The Dispatch from Moline, Illinois • 13

THE DAILY DISPATCH, Moline, Illinois Wednesday, November 27, 1991 A13 National ,1 Educators debate merits of 'Hooked on Phonics scales down advertising claims Dallas Morning New quires only a cassette tape recorder. It's easy to order over the phone, even COD. The anonymity protects illiterate adults from the embarrassment of acknowledging their problem to a tutor or sales-clerk. No other program combines all these features with comparably expansive claims of success, education experts say. Does it work? The question those experts have is simple: Does it work? Some literacy programs and school districts examined "Hooked on Phonics" and found it wanting.

"A couple of people called who bought it," said Molly Stewart, assistant director of the Dallas County (Texas) Adult Literacy Council. The cheery radio huckster's pitch everywhere: "Did you know there are only 44 sounds in the English language? That's right, 44!" fShe is selling "Hooked on Phonics" a promise to all that they can teach themselves to read. I i The product's creator, a nia musician, says "Hooked on phonics" will help adults who can't Jead, children just learning to read, and children with reading problems. Ms company plans to spend more $35 million this year on the unavoidable radio ads and television "infomercials." Detractors, including some of the Ration's leading educators, say a design and $180 price tag make "Hooked on Phonics" a rip-off aimed at people too desperate to re to provide some sense of what the words might mean. Some educators call that a fatal flaw, particularly for small children; if they don't know what the words mean, the sounds are nothing more than random noises.

But Gateway officials point to studies saying that even young children are familiar with thousands of words from TV. The program costs too much for what it delivers. For $180, anyone looking for instructional materials can visit any teacher's supply store and emerge with a car full of tapes, workbooks and flashcards. But those elements would not necessarily constitute a program of reading instruction, educators say. Defenders of "Hooked on Phonics" suggest a more appropriate cost comparison is with the $30 an hour one would pay a private tutor.

Now you know United Press International Mercury is a waterless and airless planet that alternately bakes and freezes as it orbits the sun. People can't teach themselves to read. Suzanne Knell, director of the Illinois Literacy Resource Development Center, says a tutor or a teacher is necessary. "It's tough for them to make that step," she said of adults who can't read. "But if you're really going to deal with the problem, it's going to take that phone call and that interaction to get the necessary services." "Hooked on Phonics" lacks feedback and explanations.

The cassette tapes that are the core of the program are of a woman reading flashcards. Some are potentially confusing; for instance, the card with "Mr." is pronounced "mister" with no explanation. The workbooks contain words or sentences not on the tapes, meaning that a student working alone has no answer key. "Hooked on Phonics" ignores other elements traditionally considered necessary to teach reading. The program has no definitions of the words used, few pictures or other visual cues, and no narratives nute tape, a person would be able to read a 120-page book; but Shanahan says the ad never said it would take only 18 minutes.

"It was after learning, learning, learning, learning one 18-minute lesson," he said. He said he was not troubled that someone who could not read could miss the distinction. He defended the claim that the lesson would lead to reading a book. The "book" referred to is not a novel or story. It is a softback workbook filled with lists of simple words.

"What is a book? Is a magazine a book? Is a menu a book?" he asked. Besides, he said, for those who start the program able to read nothing, that workbook is a significant accomplishment in which they take great pride. "You call them and tell them they're not reading a book," he said. Four criticisms Critics focus on four of what they call the shortcomings of "Hooked on He said he brought in academic experts to help design an improved version. But in the next breath, he ridiculed their suggestions.

"They made the thing so tedious and so boring that I couldn't use it," he said. "I said, 'Get rid of Ultimately, he said, no Ph.D.s had a hand in creating the current version of "Hooked on Phonics," a point that rankles many critics who challenge Shanahan's credentials. Not exactly Michael Recent ads say "Hooked on Phonics" has put "sounds to music, making learning to read simple and fun." But customers expecting music in the style of Michael Jackson, or even Ernie of "Sesame Street," will be disappointed. The tapes have no songs or melody, only an unchanging rhythmic syntho-pop background setting a constant pace of about 110 beats a minute. The instruction tape states that The commercial success of 'Hooked on aphonics' indicates it fills a void that main--stream educators have left largely vacant.

I 1 T'HiS'WEEKEND 1 NOV. 29 DEC. 1 Handcrafted Hardwood Furniture SOLID OAK TABLE AND CHAIR SHOW AND SALE the music is beneficial because "many educators believe that when the right and left sides of the brain are stimulated at the same time, learning capabilities are maximized." The music does that, said Jane Wages, a Gateway employee. Shanahan refers to her as his "resident Ph.D." and expert in teaching techniques, even though she acknowledges that she has no doctorate and that her master's degree is in comparative literature. "It's just general scientific knowledge," she said of the claim that music engages both sides of the brain.

"We don't have an expert who wrote the theory and figured it all out." Slick campaign Academic credentials aside, the slick national marketing campaign has made "Hooked on Phonics" a household name and drawn heavy criticism from literacy experts. Commercials asserted that by learning the lessons on an 18-mi- vfcist including an estimated 27 jnillion adult illiterates in the U.S. The company's response to all at-i Jacks is blunt: "Hooked on Phonics" works, and it has thousands of testi- monials to back the claim. Tilling a vacuum Even some who challenge those fclaims acknowledge that the prod- net's commercial success more -ihan 500,000 have sold in five years shows that "Hooked on Phonics" refills a void that mainstream educa-c lors have left largely vacant "These people have found a 'l something that fits a people's needs that nobody else is doing," said Dr. Judith Walker De-( Felix, chairman of curriculum and instruction for the University of Houston's college of education.

John Shanahan, creator of Hooked on Phonics," waves off Jmost criticism from teaching ex- perts. "I'm not afraid of these so "They were almost in tears." Some national literacy experts offer similar comments. But Gateway Educational Products has a list of satisfied customers, including some education experts, who attest to the product's effectiveness. "When kids are having a difficult time with the learning process, you look for other methods," said Andrea Hilburn, principal at C.F. Carr Elementary School in Dallas.

One of her teachers is using parts of the "Hooked on Phonics" program with selected students. Gateway's customer list offers glowing tales of success. Albert Lee Rockins of Dallas heard the ad last year and ordered the program. Rockins, 72, said he was unable to read when he started "Hooked on Phonics." "I won't say it made me speed-read," he said. "But I can read fast enough to complete what I want to read and then understand it." We at Joseph's Furniture believe in Values.

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noon to 6 p.m. 2018 16th St, Moline, IL Seating Available Call 764-4813 for a confirmed reservation I But Bobby Phillips, 55, whose name also was supplied by Gateway, said she made little progress since ordering the program earlier this year. She said she didn't complete the program, but will try again. Claims scaled down Shanahan, the former musician who scorns academic credentials and criticisms, nonetheless admits that his commercials have scaled back their claims. Earlier claims that a person can read a 120-page book after learning the lesson contained on an 18-minute cassette no longer are being broadcast.

A new version of "Hooked on Phonics" now in production will respond to some of the specific criticisms leveled by some educators, company officials say. But those changes probably won't satisfy those who deny the basic premise that a person armed only with flashcards, a few workbooks and a tape recorder can teach himself to read. Shanahan's foray into education started in 1977, when he noticed that his son was throwing up on the way to elementary school The problem turned out to be caused by nerves, he said. "He couldn't read." Shanahan went to the library and dug out old reading-instruction books that used phonics. He took notes, came home and put a tape together, adding music for the background.

It worked for his son and for friends and neighbors who asked for copies, Shanahan said. By 1984 he was selling an early version of "Hooked on Phonics" out of a small warehouse. But the orders kept increasing, and the ber of adults who called asking for a similar program for them made JOIN US FOR YOUR TRADITIONAL THANKSGIVING $8.95 Our Treat FREE Coffee and Soft Drinks Early Dinner and Regular Dinner Menu Items Also Available 1 1 ON THE ROCK Moline 764-4813 A A fOv 1 Ms? 7r'i I' TS5V JL Shanahan realize that a larger market was waiting to be tapped 1 I 4 i 1 t-rHl 3sm Personal Word Processor PWP 2200 3.5" Built-in Disk Drive 720K Disk Capacity MS-DOS File Format Compatibility WordPerfect ASCII Translators Compatible with IBM Computers for Word Processor All typewriters and word processors on sale. Prices $100.00 to $250.00 off our regular low retail. 3 lj LgI- he ''fa ,4 i 'y In Business 40 Years Same Location 1520 6th Avenue, Moline 762-9425 8-5 Sat.

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