SWI Editorial Archives | Structured Word Inquiry

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Phonics Did Not Eliminate Guessing

SWI EditorialJuly 29, 2026

Phonics Did Not Eliminate Guessing

Fluency instruction for older students should consider meaning, sentence structure, vocabulary, and morphology.

SWI EditorialJuly 7, 2026

Fluency Is an Outcome More Often Than It Is a Treatment Target

SWI EditorialJune 3, 2026

The Morpheme Is the Natural Habitat of the Grapheme

Illustration for a post on National Reading Panel phonics claims, showing a balance scale with the words “When the comparison changes, the conclusion changes.”

SWI EditorialJune 1, 2026

When the Control Group Changes, the Conclusion Changes

Child studying the “tribe” word family through Structured Word Inquiry, with related words such as contribute, distribute, tribute, and redistribution shown on a whiteboard.

SWI EditorialMay 22, 2026

Syllable Division Does Not Teach the Word

Diagram showing phonics as a teaching method and phonology as a language domain within orthography

SWI EditorialMarch 31, 2026

Phonics Is Not Phonology

Diagram showing multiple entry points into the writing system compared to a linear reading instruction path

SWI EditorialMarch 15, 2026

Learning to Read Is Not Linear: Multiple Entry Points Into the Writing System

Charcoal drawing of a student facing a chalkboard labeled irregular and unexamined structure in reading instruction

SWI EditorialFebruary 14, 2026

When Words Don’t Fit the Model: Rethinking Irregular Words

Illustration showing a small child sitting withdrawn on the floor while an adult authority figure holds a textbook labeled “Phonics First,” representing harm caused by rigid reading instruction.

SWI EditorialFebruary 8, 2026

Collateral Damage in the Reading Wars: When Phonics-First Fails

Charcoal illustration of an open book labeled “Linguistic Phonics,” showing abstract language markings on one page and simplified phonics patterns on the other, held above a group of adult educators.

SWI EditorialFebruary 7, 2026

“Linguistic Phonics”: Why the Label Doesn’t Match the Theory

A student struggling with classwork, illustrating how literacy learning can continue when phonology develops slowly

SWI Editorial, SWI Spot LightFebruary 3, 2026

When Phonology Is Slow: Structured Word Inquiry With Struggling Learners

A chalk-style illustration of a person climbing a ladder on a cracked stone foundation, symbolizing how isolated reading skills lack support without strong word knowledge.

SWI EditorialFebruary 1, 2026

Robust Reading Comprehension Is Not an Add-On