The claim is that Read Write Inc Phonics is effective in teaching phonics to young children - effective enough to justify throwing out previous (research-based) schemes and to justify education depts across the country spending large amounts of money for materials and visits from trainers.

As someone whose PhD focused on the importance of phonics in early reading development I am deeply unimpressed by the system which my youngest child has just started in Primary 1, and am having to supplement it myself with Letterland materials (as was used very successfully before).

I can not find a shred of research evidence for the program on the website (sadly "as seen on Newsnight" isn't exactly peer review)...

Update 2016-09-19

Rating