キャサリン・スノーによる読むことの教育理論 -Committee on the Prevention of Reading Difficulties in Young Children に焦点をあてて-

Abstract

Catherine Snow (1945-present) is a researcher on children's language and literacy development, focusing on how oral language skills are acquired and how they relate to literacy outcomes. She is the chair of the Committee on the Prevention of Reading Difficulties in Young Children (CPRD). This paper focuses on Snow's theory about reading education developed through arguments in this committee. This theory is based on her practical experience in the study, named Home School Study. After this study, she began the reform practices of reading education. This paper focuses on Snow's theory because there are possibilities to overcome the problems of education policy in the United States, named Reading First. The theoretical basis of Reading First is the National Reading Panel (NRP), which is based on CPRD. These two reports have often been confused, because they both emphasize elements of effective practices of reading education. However, they have some differences. NRP is a formal synthesis of research results prohibiting the inclusion of any kind of instructional recommendations, whereas CPRD is a consensus report, reflecting an agreement among a group of scholars concerning their recommendations for school. That is, compared with NRP, CPRD emphasizes the diversity of practices. Therefore, in Snow's reading education theory, it is important to see the practices that cannot be explained by science.