§ Lord Marlesfordasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will arrange for all children to learn the international phonetic alphabet before they reach school leaving age. [HL695]
161WA
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Skills (Baroness Ashton of Upholland)There are no plans to introduce the international phonetic alphabet into schools. Primary pupils, through the National Literacy Strategy (NLS), are already taught to read using a range of strategies including both synthetic and analytic phonics, as well as other strategies such as grammar and context. The NLS advocates the Searchlights model of teaching children to read which emphasises the central importance of early phonics but also accepts that children will attempt to make sense of a wide range of print and texts during the course of mastering the phonic code.