The former Chief Education Officer has suggested that Government scrap a controversial multi-media language programme in primary schools.

Calling the Writing-to-Read programme one which has done more harm than good, Dean Furbert told The Royal Gazette : "I've never been a supporter of the Writing-to-Read programme. It has had an ill effect on children's ability to spell.'' He was responding to a recent report that nearly half of CedarBridge Academy's students were functioning below the required literacy level and veteran educator Dale Butler's call for a literacy commission to be set up.

The US-based Writing-to-Read programme was introduced in the public school system some 15 years ago to help students in Primary One and Two to master basic speaking, reading and writing skills. Rather than approaching each separately, they are developed simultaneously.

Through the programme, teachers use computers to introduce children to new words and sounds. The children, in turn, complete writing and speaking exercises to reinforce what they have learned.

But Mr. Furbert said the Education Ministry needed to review the effectiveness "or lack thereof'' of such programmes.

"Writing-to-Read is a programme that teaches children to write as they read,'' he explained. "While they learn to read, they are taught to put the way the word sounds on paper. But once a child hears a sound that does not correspond with the spelling -- for example phone, not fone -- they have difficulty making the adjustment.

"My view is children are smart enough to learn it the right way first.

"Many parents have had concerns that at Primary Three and Four children have had to relearn the fundamentals of spelling,'' Mr. Furbert added. "Many teachers and principals have also felt this way for some time.'' And Bermuda Union of Teachers general secretary Milton Scott confirmed this.

"Writing-to-Read is a very controversial programme,'' he said. "We were told it was the best thing to hit the Island when it was introduced here.

"Kids became more spontaneous in expressing themselves. But when they moved to Primary Three some had problems with writing.'' Mr. Scott attributed some of the problems with the programme to the fact that many of the people involved in introducing it in the school system were no longer there. He also said there has been no consistency in carrying out the programme and no monitoring.

"The Department of Education used to hail this as a success. Now they hardly talk about it,'' he said. "It has caused some difficulty, especially for students moving from the traditional approach of writing.

"Why not go back to basic reading, writing and arithmetic. There are certain things you have to learn from rope, such as timetables and some formulas. But students still need to have a foundation in the basics.'' While not knowing the monetary value of the Writing-to-Read programme, Mr.

Furbert pointed out that it was costly because it was completely computerised.

Furbert blasts reading scheme He also noted that it took "a big chunk'' of time out of the school day.

By mandating the Writing-to-Read programme for all children, the Ministry had not taken into account the fact that children have different learning styles, Mr. Furbert said.

"Many children have been put through the Writing-to-Read programme when they did not need it,'' he added.

"I believe most teachers know how to teach children to read at the level they have to be taught. But that does not mean that we don't have children with special needs who will need special assistance.

"When teachers and students are given the opportunity and guidance to be creative, they will discover the kind of things children need to bring that on. In fact, given the attention, love, and guidance they (children) will discover themselves what they need.

"This does not mean that we don't need experts. But sometimes we can impede learning by not encouraging the student to be challenged or motivated and take responsibility for his own learning.'' Mr. Furbert, who headed up the committee of the Education Planning Team which dealt with literacy, said CedarBridge principal Ernest Payette's disclosure about literacy came as no surprise to him.

"Perhaps in the process of restructuring, a lot of attention that should have been given to the fundamentals of reading has been shifted to another area,'' he added. "What we're seeing is the result of that shifting.'' However, Mr. Furbert credited the Education Department for identifying children likely to be at risk and providing intervention.

And while he said he would not be interested in serving on a literacy commission "at this time'', he suggested: "What we need is for people to not just examine what we're doing, but to ask ourselves whether what we are doing is having the effect we want.

"A lot of the attention to strategies and things that teachers did 20 to 30 years ago can still be done. But things have become more complex. There has been pressure on teachers to do more, particularly as a result of restructuring.

Mr. Furbert admitted that he would like to see teachers reading to children as they did years ago.

"Teachers need to be free to help students at their own pace,'' he said.

However, Education Minister Jerome Dill said the blame could not be attributed to the Writing-to-Read programme if literacy problems were looked at historically.

Mr. Dill also stressed that since his Ministry had identified "part of the problem'', they would be focusing on finding the solution. And he said they welcomed any suggestions.