About this episode
This episode discusses the changes in reading education and the backlash from those who promoted discredited methods.
Schools around the country are changing the way they teach reading. And that is having major consequences for people who sold the flawed idea we investigated in Sold a Story . But Lucy Calkins, Irene Fountas and Gay Su Pinnell are fighting back — and fighting to stay relevant. And so are organizations that promoted their work: the Reading Recovery Council of North America and the publisher Heinemann. Read: Two universities stick with a discredited idea Read: Reading Recovery financial difficulties Read: Science movement trouble for Heinemann Read: Transcript of this episode Watch: The story behind Sold a Story Organize: Sold a Story discussion guides Support: Donate to APM Reports More: soldastory.org Dive deeper into Sold a Story with a multi-part email series from host Emily Hanford. We’ll also keep you up to date on new episodes. Sign up at soldastory.org/extracredit .
People in this episode
Host: Emily Hanford
Topics covered
- reading education
- teaching methods
- literacy
- educational reform
- controversy
Keywords
- reading
- education
- Lucy Calkins
- Irene Fountas
- Gay Su Pinnell
- literacy
- controversy
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Reading Recovery Council of North America, Heinemann
Books & works: Sold a Story
More episodes of Sold a Story
- ‘Dyslexia and the Reading Wars’: Emily Hanford's Conversation with The New Yorker’s David Owen · April 28, 2026 · 1h 1m
- Emily Hanford LIVE with Reid Lyon and Margaret Goldberg · December 9, 2025 · 58 min
- 14: The Cuts · August 21, 2025 · 38 min
- 13: The List · March 6, 2025 · 34 min
- 12: The Evidence · February 27, 2025 · 31 min
- 11: The Outlier · February 20, 2025 · 31 min
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