The ABC of reading

Perspectives on the alphabetic principle

Abstract

An alphabetic writing system is a system in which words consist of individual letters that correspond to spoken-language units at a similar level of analysis. The systematic relationships between units of these two systems are collectively referred to as the Alphabetic Principle. This principle has attained the status of one of the most basic and universal assumptions in current research on reading and writing. But although it is thus extensively used, there have been few attempts to determine what restrictions may apply to its appropriate use as a scientific term. A primary aim of the present article is to contribute to the empirical foundation of reading research through a clarification of the scientific status of the Alphabetic Principle. The article analyses a report from the United States National Reading Panel (NRP, 2000), chosen as an example of how the Alphabetic Principle is used in current reading research, and addresses the Alphabetic Principle qua principle in order to clarify its scientific status. We argue that the term “principle” creates the incorrect impression that the phenomenon is precisely defined and universally valid. As we see it, the Alphabetic Principle rather refers to regularities or patterns that vary between languages. Phonics, the reading-instruction approach normally defined on the basis of the Alphabetic Principle, is of greatest value for languages with shallow orthographies—but even there, we should be aware that no simple and unambiguous association exists between grapheme and phoneme.