19 Tex. Admin. Code § 74.2001 - Phonics Curriculum
(a) The following
words and terms, when used in this subchapter, shall have the following
meanings.
(1) Systematic
instruction--Instruction that is carefully planned and sequenced where simple
concepts are taught first before progressing to more complex concepts. This
form of instruction is broken down into manageable step-by-step pieces that are
aligned to instructional goals.
(2)
Direct instruction--Explicit, teacher-led instruction that clearly and
specifically teaches a skill through concise explanation, modeling, practice,
and feedback.
(3) Phonics--The
ability to read (decode) and spell (encode) individual words. Decoding refers
to the process of using letter-sound knowledge to blend sounds and word parts
to read words. Encoding refers to the process of using letter-sound knowledge
to spell words.
(b) Each
school district and open-enrollment charter school shall adopt a phonics
curriculum for Kindergarten-Grade 3. Explicit and systematic instruction is
necessary to effectively teach phonics in English and in Spanish.
(1) A phonics curriculum must:
(A) for the applicable Kindergarten-Grade 3
grade level and as identified in the Texas Resource Review rubric, align with a
subset of the developing and sustaining foundational language skills portion of
the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills, as follows:
(i) for English Language Arts and Reading
when teaching students to read in English; or
(ii) for Spanish Language Arts and Reading
when teaching students to read in Spanish;
(B) align with current and confirmed research
in reading and cognitive science;
(C) provide concise, direct, explicit, and
systematic phonics instruction with cumulative review;
(D) provide specific daily instructional
sequences and routines, which include modeling, guided practice, and
application with immediate, corrective feedback;
(E) include ongoing practice opportunities in
isolation and in connected, controlled text that follows the instructional
focus;
(F) include assessments to
measure and monitor student progress;
(G) provide specific guidance after
monitoring progress to support students in reaching mastery of a concept or to
accelerate instruction as needed; and
(H) include the quality components addressed
in a phonics-specific rubric approved by the commissioner of education for use
in the Texas Resource Review.
(2) The program may:
(A) function as a stand-alone phonics
program, be part of a core language arts program, or act as a supplemental
foundational literacy skills program; and
(B) include scaffolded application in
specific daily instructional sequences and routines.
(3) The program may not:
(A) teach word recognition, when teaching
students to read in English, through visual memory, guessing, the shape of a
word, or the use of pictures or context clues to decode words instead of
explicitly teaching words that cannot be sounded out and that do not follow the
rules of phonics; or
(B) be used
solely for intervention purposes rather than for core instruction
implementation.
(4) A
phonics program that does not meet all criteria in paragraph (1) of this
subsection may be used by a school district or open-enrollment charter school
if the program has a strong evidence base and is used in conjunction with a
phonics program that meets all criteria in paragraph (1) of this
subsection.
Notes
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