Sir Jim Rose is a renowned educationist who has made significant contributions to the field of education, particularly in the area of phonics and special needs. He is widely recognized for his work in understanding dyslexia and helping children with dyslexia learn better.
It is estimated that up to 10% of the population has some form of dyslexia. Understanding dyslexia and finding ways to help children with dyslexia learn better is, therefore, a crucial area of research in education.
Sir Jim Rose’s work in this area began in the early 2000s when he was commissioned by the UK government to review the teaching of early reading. This led to the widespread introduction of phonics in the primary curriculum. His continuing work centred around the ‘simple view of reading’ stressing the two important dimensions of reading ‘word recognition’ and decoding, which underpinned developing approaches to tackling reading.
The Rose Report, as it came to be known, made several recommendations for improving the teaching of reading in primary schools, including a more systematic and structured approach to phonics teaching.
In the report, Sir Jim Rose also highlighted the importance of identifying and supporting children with dyslexia. He recommended that all teachers receive training on how to recognize and support children with dyslexia, and that children with dyslexia should be given extra support, including one-to-one teaching and assistive technology.
Sir Jim’s continuing work centred around the ‘simple view of reading’ – a crucial framework for understanding reading and its two key dimensions. Sir Jim’s contributions on this topic have underpinned the development of many effective approaches to teaching reading. We all owe Sir Jim a great deal as his work helped a generation of educators understand the reading process and promoted the importance of early intervention for children with dyslexia..
Sir Jim will be sorely missed, and his passing is a great loss to the education community.