1. The problem is that teachers don’t spend enough time with the children practicing the letters and vowels. As the famous Yiddish song goes, “Nocha mol und noch a mol” – again and again. They go through them quickly and some of the children do pick them up but a large percentage need more practicing.
2. Phonics enables a reader to quickly learn how to read Hebrew, but falls down when it comes to understanding the text. Many sets of letters have the same sound, and understanding Hebrew requires the totally accurate identification of every letter in a word. Unlike English, you can’t just guess the meaning of a word you have read.
3. Many Gedolim have banned teaching regular frum children using phonics such as The Chazon Ish and Rabbi Dessler. Recently, at a meeting in Yerushalyim, including members of the Bedatz, and other gedolim, reiterated that that “new” method is completely ossur.
Phonics first came out in the 1930’s with the Orton-Gillingham method, and people then tried to adapt it for teaching Hebrew and the Gedolim reacted against it, explaining that teaching by the Mesorah implants Yiras Shomayim into the children.
Anyone can teach Alef Beis. One just needs to open a Reishis Daas and teach it, but ONLY according to our mesorah. Period. This is As Simple as Kometz Alef “Oh”. Any other approach used is against our mesorah and dangerous. Therefore a rebbe or morah teaching the alef beis has a tremendous responsibility to follow our mesorah and not to deviate one iota from it . Our children’s future is at stake.
Rabbi Abenson is the founder and director of ShaarHatalmud, a unique yeshivah-based online program, which incorporates learning all Kodesh subjects, from Kriah all the way up to learning Gemara, Rishonim and Shulchan Orech. He also conducts evaluations, remediation and training, and consults with school principals to improve students’ underdeveloped skills.
Rabbi Dovid Abenson can be contacted at:
Tel. 15147393629
Cell/Whatsapp 15149935300
Email: ravabenson@shaarhatalmud.com
Website: ShaarHatalmud.com