The role of phonics instruction in reading motivation

There is a longstanding debate among those who study and teach reading about the place of phonics in early reading instruction. One key area of contention is whether introducing the rules of phonics in first-grade might enhance or inhibit children's motivation to read. The purpose of the current study is to investigate the link between early phonics instruction and motivation to read. The study was guided by three research questions: (a) Does early phonics instruction promote or inhibit motivation in reading? (b) Does the type of reading instruction promote or inhibit reading achievement over time? (c) Are there gender differences in reading motivation and reading achievement during the later elementary years?; To answer the first two questions, a Teacher Questionnaire (TQ) was constructed and psychometrically analyzed. To answer the third question on gender differences, the Motivations for Reading Questionnaire (MRQ) was used to measure reading motivation in fourth graders and the psychometric qualities of this measure were also analyzed. Gender differences were also tested using Terra Nova reading achievement scores.; Participants included 177 fourth grade students, who were administered the MRQ; past records of Terra Nova reading achievement scores from grades 2--4 for these students were obtained from their schools. There were 29 teachers in grades K--3 that completed three short teacher surveys: the TQ, the School Instructional Practices Survey, and the Usability Sheet for Teachers Questionnaire.; Results of the TQ psychometric analysis suggested that teachers use phonics instruction in their classrooms, but don't necessarily realize that it is called phonics. Psychometric analysis of the MRQ resulted in the development of new motivation subscales related to reading. In the main analyses, the data did not conclusively answer questions one and three but question two revealed significant differences between early phonics instruction and reading achievement in the second grade. Additional analyses showed significant correlations between the MRQ and Terra Nova scores.