Devon School Calls for Inclusive Phonics Tests for Non-Verbal Students

A specialized educational institution located in Devon is appealing to the government to modify phonics assessments to accommodate children with speech and language difficulties as they learn to read. Orchard Manor School, situated in Dawlish, stated that the current phonics screening check mandates non-verbal students to vocalize letter sounds, a task they are unable to perform. The school has implemented modified versions of these tests; however, the outcomes are not officially acknowledged, according to the school. The Department for Education (DoE) indicated that it plans to review its curriculum and assessment methods, with a report expected next year. Phonics is an instructional method employed in schools to teach reading, where students learn to recognize and articulate individual letter sounds. These sounds are subsequently blended to create words that are then read aloud. Nevertheless, educators at the school noted the challenge this presents for students experiencing language delays or who are non-verbal. Samantha Hill, the assistant head at the school, commented that the Key Stage One phonics screening check is inaccessible for non-verbal pupils. “We have children in our school who don’t speak,” she said. “They are very capable of writing… but if you look at the Key Stage One curriculum, if they can’t orally rehearse a sentence, they cannot meet that milestone. “They communicate in other ways, using pictures, sign language and assisted technology.” Lucas, a six-year-old student enrolled at the school, is non-verbal and therefore unable to produce the letter sounds required for his phonics screening test. His parents expressed distress over the test’s inaccessibility for him. His mother, Lisa, said: “Due to government guidelines… his mark was not recognised because he didn’t orally participate in the test, which we think is extremely unfair.” Collaborating with a consultant from the Read Write Inc phonics program, the teachers devised an alternative method to evaluate Lucas’s reading proficiency. This involved allowing him to indicate the letter corresponding to what a teacher read aloud from a card. He correctly identified 37 out of 40, a result exceeding the phonics screening pass mark, according to his parents. Ceri Brinkworth, head of training at Ruth Miskin Training, said: “Since the pandemic there’s been an increase in children who begin school with delayed speech.” “Around a quarter of autistic children are non-verbal. That shows us how important this issue is. “We do need to be able to fairly assess all children.” Lucas’s father, Steven, said: “Just because Lucas is non-verbal it doesn’t mean he can’t read, write or spell, which he can. His results clearly show that. “We think that things need to change and the government needs to recognise it.” The school has initiated a petition urging the DoE to revise its phonics assessment methodology for non-verbal children in Key Stage One. The DoE said: ”The phonics screening check ensures children have learned phonic decoding to an age appropriate standard and identifies those pupils who need extra support.” “We are looking at whether the current assessment system can be improved… while protecting the important role of assessments.”