Dr. George Hruby: PART THREE Dr. George Hruby Follows the Money & Talks about the Future: An Interview Conducted by Dr. Sam Bommarito

Part Three Introduction

This is part three of my interview with Dr. George Hruby. Many times, when I am online and discussing the shortfalls of the social media version of SOR, many folks make the comment- follow the money. In this final segment of the interview, Dr. Hruby does exactly that. What he finds is extraordinary. Unfortunately, the dialogue about best practices for literacy has been preempted by folks interested in profit, not kids. Dr. Hruby ends by pointing out the importance of teacher agency—motivation matters. Teachers matter. Teachers make more of a difference than programs. We need to empower them with practices based on ALL the research. We need to allow them to use the tools they need to provide for the needs of all the children. Dare to dream.

In Case You Missed It, here is the Information from the First Two Parts. If you’ve read the previous two blogs, you can skip to the interview section of this blog.

Some may remember when Dr. George Hruby first posted his video entitled What the Phonics is the Science of Reading? The video was an instant hit on YouTube, garnering over 12,000 views. In it, Dr. Hruby pushed back on the notion that the science around literacy instruction is settled. Instead, he made a strong case for the existence of the Sciences of Reading (Sciences with an s). That way of looking at things counters much of the misinformation and misdirection being made by proponents of the so-called Science of Reading. As P.D. Pearson has said, the term settled science is an oxymoron. The claims by some SOR advocates that it’s all settled science are problematic at best. Here is the  LINK to that YouTube video.

What the Phonics is the Science of Reading?

The YouTube video was a warm-up piece for The Literacy Research Association Conference. Normally such introductions are done in person. However, in that particular year, 2020, we were in the midst of the COVID crisis, and most conferences had gone to a remote format. It is still worth watching.

Let’s fast forward. As you may recall, in July of 2023, I did a two-part interview with Dr. Hruby about his views LINK, LINK. This year, I’m adding a three-part interview covering some new ground. This is Part Two of that series, and it will focus on what Dr. Hruby has to say about comprehension.

Before we look at the interview, here is some information about Dr. George Hruby and his background:

LINKS FROM THE ABOVE SCREEN CAPTURE:

Published works LINK. Handbook of Reading Instruction LINK

Here is a link to the YouTube interview:

Here are the talking points for Part Three:

KEY SLIDES FROM PART THREE OF THE INTERVIEW

Link to Hruby G.G. (2023) The science of readingpolitik LINK.

I have three important takeaways from Part Three of this interview and from my previous conversations with Dr. Hruby.

1. The driving force behind much of the dialogue around literacy is being controlled by for-profit folks. They are interested in profit and bottom lines. They promote a very narrow view of literacy. Their views and actions encourage going for the low-hanging fruit of decoding and low-level comprehension. They fail to provide what readers need to become thinkers and problem solvers. They are stripping away many of the tools teachers need to help ALL the children. They are stripping away local control of the curriculum.
2. Dr. Hruby’s explanation about following the money is well thought out and well-documented. Please pay special attention to it.
3. Teachers make more of a difference than programs. Our policies should reflect that research-based fact. Many of our best reading teachers are leaving the field in droves because they cannot accept the role of room monitor rather than that of real teacher.

IN CONCLUSION- One of the many things I learned Writing Workshop is that ending with your introduction can be a powerful writing move. So that is what I am going to do:

Many times, when I am online and discussing the shortfalls of the social media version of SOR, many folks make the comment- follow the money. In this final segment of the interview, Dr. Hruby does exactly that. What he finds is extraordinary. Unfortunately, the dialogue about best practices for literacy has been preempted by folks interested in profit, not kids. Dr. Hruby ends by pointing out the importance of teacher agency—motivation matters. Teachers matter. Teachers make more of a difference than programs. We need to empower them with practices based on ALL the research. We need to allow them to use the tools they need to provide for the needs of all the children. Dare to dream.

Happy Reading and Writing.

Dr. Sam Bommarito (aka, the guy in the middle taking flak from all sides)

Copyright 2024 by Dr. Sam Bommarito. Views/interpretations expressed here are solely this author’s and do not necessarily reflect the views of any other person or organization.

BE SURE TO HAVE A LOOK AT PEARSON AND TIERNEY’S NEW BOOK FACT CHECKING THE SCIENCE OF READING (Click the link and scroll down to read the book)- LINK