Open Court Reading
Encyclopedia
The Open Court Reading Program is a core Language arts/English series used in a large number of elementary school
s classrooms. It was one of two reading programs adopted for use in California schools when textbooks were last chosen in 2002. The other was Houghton-Mifflin Reading. For the 2008 Edition, Open Court Reading's name was changed to Imagine It!.
The series is published by SRA-McGraw-Hill
.
There is both praise and criticism of the program among educators. Proponents of Open Court Reading believe that its focus on phonics
and reading comprehension
strategy use, both taught with very explicit instruction, benefit children. Some critics dislike the explicit nature of instruction, suggesting that it leaves little room for child exploration or teacher creativity, as constructivist
models of reading instruction such as whole language
. Success for All
, a whole-school reform model that includes reading has been studied extensively, but Open Court has been tested experimentally far less.
done by Bereiter and Scardamalia, again both authors on the program. Through inquiry students learn to use reading and writing as tools for learning, to work collaboratively, and to build and share knowledge.
Open Court Reading is used in a variety of districts across the country. Results from both state and national high stakes tests have shown Open Court Reading to be an effective language arts program.
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
s classrooms. It was one of two reading programs adopted for use in California schools when textbooks were last chosen in 2002. The other was Houghton-Mifflin Reading. For the 2008 Edition, Open Court Reading's name was changed to Imagine It!.
The series is published by SRA-McGraw-Hill
Science Research Associates
Founded in 1938, SRA or Science Research Associates Inc. is a Chicago-based publisher of educational materials and schoolroom reading comprehension products. Early on, it had a trade and occupational focus...
.
There is both praise and criticism of the program among educators. Proponents of Open Court Reading believe that its focus on phonics
Phonics
Phonics refers to a method for teaching speakers of English to read and write that language. Phonics involves teaching how to connect the sounds of spoken English with letters or groups of letters and teaching them to blend the sounds of letters together to produce approximate pronunciations...
and reading comprehension
Reading comprehension
Reading comprehension is defined as the level of understanding of a text. This understanding comes from the interaction between the words that are written and how they trigger knowledge outside the text. ....
strategy use, both taught with very explicit instruction, benefit children. Some critics dislike the explicit nature of instruction, suggesting that it leaves little room for child exploration or teacher creativity, as constructivist
Constructivism (learning theory)
Constructivism is a theory of knowledge that argues that humans generate knowledge and meaning from an interaction between their experiences and their ideas. During infancy, it was an interaction between human experiences and their reflexes or behavior-patterns. Piaget called these systems of...
models of reading instruction such as whole language
Whole language
Whole language describes a literacy philosophy which emphasizes that children should focus on meaning and strategy instruction. It is often contrasted with phonics-based methods of teaching reading and writing which emphasize instruction for decoding and spelling. However, from whole language...
. Success for All
Success for All
Success for All refers to standards-based Comprehensive School Reform curricula for early childhood through middle school, produced by the nonprofit organization Success for All Foundation ....
, a whole-school reform model that includes reading has been studied extensively, but Open Court has been tested experimentally far less.
Overview
Open Court Reading is a comprehensive reading and writing program for kids in elementary school known for its systematic instruction in phonological and phonemic awareness and phonics. Equally strong is the instruction in comprehension and writing. The comprehension instruction is based on Ann Brown’s work with Anne Marie Palinscar to develop reciprocal teaching and Michael Pressley’s work on transactional strategy instruction both of which are constructivistic in nature. Both Brown and Pressley were authors on the program. Writing instruction focuses on teaching writing process, forms and traits. Inquiry is at the heart of Open Court Reading. The inquiry strand within the program reflects the research on knowledge building communitiesKnowledge building communities
A Knowledge Building Community is a community in which the primary goal is knowledge creation rather than the construction of specific products or the completion of tasks. This notion is fundamental in Knowledge building theory. If knowledge is not realized for a community than we do not have...
done by Bereiter and Scardamalia, again both authors on the program. Through inquiry students learn to use reading and writing as tools for learning, to work collaboratively, and to build and share knowledge.
Open Court Reading is used in a variety of districts across the country. Results from both state and national high stakes tests have shown Open Court Reading to be an effective language arts program.
External links
- Official website of SRA/McGraw-Hill, Open Court Reading publisher.
- Open Court Resources.com, largest collection of free Open Court Reading Resources on the internet created by and for Open Court Reading teachers
- A Yahoo Discussion Board created by teachers of Open Court Reading to share ideas for teaching the program.