NCTE: No Phonics,
Please
FROM PUBLISHING
TRENDS (DECEMBER 2001)
Eyeing
the plethora of titles from publishers large and small
at the 91st National Council of Teachers of English
(NCTE) convention, one relatively new educational publisher
was heard to marvel, “How can so many books sell?” Indeed,
that was the question furrowing many publishers’ brows
during the weekend of Nov. 17, as an estimated 6,000
teachers and English professors converged upon the Baltimore
Convention Center for their annual meeting. Though nobody
could muster much by way of an answer, all reports indicate
that NCTE still remains a signal opportunity to market
new books and mingle with teachers — an educational
publisher’s best sales force bar none.
Attendance seemed down from previous years (perhaps
due to the less than glamorous location and the reluctance
of many to travel), but that did nothing to stem the
long lines of patient teachers who snapped up author-signed
copies of their favorite titles. Many books on display
reflected this year’s convention theme, “Recreating
the Classroom,” which inspired a wide range of symposia
on democratizing the classroom, integrating technology,
teacher development, and, of course, basic literacy.
Amid hot topics such as “Classroom As Think Tank” and
the incendiary “Phonics Exposed: Understanding And Resisting
Systematic Direct Intense Phonics Instruction,” the
convention embraced a multi-dimensional approach to
teaching language arts that targets a wide range of
student abilities and interests. When not drubbing phonics,
teachers bashed “neo-liberal politics” and the government’s
rigidly prescribed reading programs, arguing for more
inclusive syllabi across the board. Compared to years
gone by, in fact, this season’s NCTE felt fresh and
up-to-date, a mood undoubtedly aided by a roster of
speakers that included filmmaker Ken Burns, director
John Waters, author Lucille Clifton, and
last year’s Newbery winner, Christopher Paul
Curtis.
From a publishing perspective, the emphasis on teaching
through literature — known as the “whole language” approach
— seemed as strong, if not stronger than in previous
years, with themes of multi-culturalism, feminism, and
cultural sensitivity readily apparent in publishers’
lists. (For its part, Scholastic was noted for
offering a $15,000 grant enabling 55 teachers to attend
the conference.) In the end, hot-button subjects such
as standardized testing took a welcome back seat to
making the classroom relevant for a diverse and digitally
aware population.
We
thank Dan Weiss of book packager Weiss Associates for
his contribution to this article.
©2001
Publishing Trends
