Oh, so it pre-existed the 70s? I just remember the huge ad campaign, "Hooked on Phonics - a new learning method". BS, apparently. Good to know, thank you.
ETA: the public school I went to in the 1970s, was in West Chester, PA and ranked at the bottom of the public school system. They only taught phonics in kindergarten through - except for that one teacher who decided to try another approach outside of the district mandate.
The difficulty is not all schools are created equal. So my experience doesn't reflect what you've related above at all.
no subject
ETA: the public school I went to in the 1970s, was in West Chester, PA and ranked at the bottom of the public school system. They only taught phonics in kindergarten through - except for that one teacher who decided to try another approach outside of the district mandate.
The difficulty is not all schools are created equal. So my experience doesn't reflect what you've related above at all.