Large parts of the world don’t use a phonics system and for a long time it didn’t exist.
I am sure a properly performed study which accounted for the time spent on reading, as well as exposure to books, would demonstrate that phonics is no better than any other way of teaching reading.
My children live in a house of books, we have thousands. We read to them daily from soon after birth. They did not read early compared to their friends (though they did memorize some books which made it look as if they were reading pretty young). They didn’t start school until six and spent their early years in a bi-lingual Nordic school system before moving to the US and then Europe once again.
They now read at a very high level indeed, well above their peers. We made zero special effort. They just had access to books and libraries and live in an environment where everyone reads.
The vibes based system has always been most popular in NYC. Since much of the media is based out of NYC they made it a largely deal than it was in the rest of the country imo.
I am sure a properly performed study which accounted for the time spent on reading, as well as exposure to books, would demonstrate that phonics is no better than any other way of teaching reading.
My children live in a house of books, we have thousands. We read to them daily from soon after birth. They did not read early compared to their friends (though they did memorize some books which made it look as if they were reading pretty young). They didn’t start school until six and spent their early years in a bi-lingual Nordic school system before moving to the US and then Europe once again.
They now read at a very high level indeed, well above their peers. We made zero special effort. They just had access to books and libraries and live in an environment where everyone reads.