There is debate about the best way to teach children how to read. Some educators endorse the whole-word approach, whereas others endorse the phonics approach. Contrast these two approaches

Cite one argument for using the whole language approach and one argument for using the phonics approach.

What will be an ideal response?

The whole-word approach emphasizes the association between the visual form of a word and the word's meaning. The argument is that skilled readers rely on visually based meaning retrieval, so beginning readers should be taught to read like skilled readers. The phonics approach emphasizes the association between the visual form of a word and the word's sound. The argument is that readers need strategies for dealing with unfamiliar words. To this end, educators should capitalize on the already well established association between a word's sound and a word's meaning.