Make no mistake about it.
Truespel Book One is a must-read for those wishing for a better
understanding of the sound-spelling relationships of USA English. There are data here present nowhere
else. This book shows that truespel is
a mature spelling system, double-checked, configuration controlled, ready for
prime time, and it’s free. Any teacher
or student can access the web converter to see how USA English is pronounced.
The author states that truespel is in fact the world’s first
USA English "pronunciation guide spelling system." As such it consistently uses one spelling
per sound for each of the 40 USA English sounds (phonemes). Truespel also indicates the stressed syllable
in a word, as pronunciation guides should do.
It’s big advantage, because it uses no special symbols, is being
keyboard enterable. This creates the
possibility of keying into a computer the sounded-out version of words to
return traditional spelling, a major enhancement.
The author states that another great advantage of truespel
is the integration of three reading areas: 1. pronunciation guides, 2. initial
phonetic teaching (synthetic spelling for learners prior to traditional
spelling), and 3. standardized intermediary spelling between languages
(translations guides). This has never
been done before, but, as Truespel Book One shows, other languages can be
spelled by truespel. In fact the data
show that 95% of the phonemes of 13 other languages are common to USA English. The author draws a graph of the results
showing another first, a “leengwuprint” of these data and how the frequencies
of sounds of various languages differ.
The author hopes to replace present dictionary phonetic guides (which
use special symbols) with truespel.
Truespel is actually more accurate for USA English than these generic
guides. This also would supplement the
use of truespel as a teaching aid for learners, creating a link between present
pronunciation guides and initial synthetic spelling - a total system approach
that does not exist now. This is necessary,
the author states, for three reason:
First, English spelling is a problem. It has been found that English “causes”
twice as much dyslexia as languages with more consistent spelling, such as
Italian, according to a major international study by Paulescu 2001.
Second, “phonemic awareness” is the best predictor of
reading success (Stanovich, 1993-94).
Preschool phonemic awareness is a better measure even than IQ,
vocabulary, or listening comprehension for predicting reading success. From this it follows that the teaching of
phonemic awareness using truespel would be a good early reading tool greatly
enabled by its simplicity and link to pronunciation guides.
Third, using simplified (synthetic) phonetic schemes for
initial instruction does help teach reading with demonstrated success. Jane M. Flynn shows that a phonetic scheme
(sometimes called synthetic phonics) is better even than phonics using regular
words. A synthetic spelling system in
Scotland found the same results after a recent 5-year follow-up study (2003)
for 264 children of average ability.
Boys (which usually lag behind girls in reading) were especially
helped. This synthetic system
introduced in 3rd grade aided traditional reading and writing in later grades.
It is now the position on the USA government, as a result of
the National Reading Panel study, that teaching phonetics is of ultimate
importance for learners (see "Teaching Children to Read" (April
2000). The author agrees and offers
truespel with the promise of its new capabilities as the way to go. New methods are needed. Recently 87% of the children in his state
were tested BELOW standard for reading by national No Children Left Behind
testing. The author says, something
needs to be done.