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The Robinson Reading System (RRS), formerly known as the Sounds First Reading System (SFRS), is a linguistic approach to literacy that simplifies English spelling at the beginning stages to help struggling readers decode words more efficiently. A 2013 dissertation explored the efficacy of the Robinson Reading System compared to the well-established Orton-Gillingham (OG) approach for children with language learning disabilities—marking the first formal study of its kind.
This research is particularly significant because it provides empirical data on how the Robinson Reading System performs relative to OG, a widely respected, multisensory approach to reading instruction. The findings suggest that RRS is as effective as OG for children with reading difficulties, reinforcing the importance of linguistic approaches in literacy education.
The Study: Comparing Two Reading Intervention Approaches
The dissertation examined the reading progress of 18 children who received instruction in the Robinson Reading System (formerly Sounds First Reading System) after previously being taught with Orton-Gillingham. The study contrasted their results with a matched sample of 18 children who received two consecutive years of OG instruction. In total, data from 36 children attending a private school for students with language learning disabilities was analyzed.
Key Components of the Study
The study spanned two years and assessed progress using five subtests from the Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement (WJ III ACH):
Letter-Word Identification
Word Attack
Passage Comprehension
Reading Fluency
Spelling
Assessments were conducted on three occasions:
Baseline assessment before instruction began.
Assessment 2 after one year of OG instruction.
Assessment 3 after the second year—either another year of OG instruction for the control group or a year of RRS instruction for the RRS group.
A two-way ANOVA was used to analyze the data, assessing both within-group and between-group factors.
Findings: How Did the Robinson Reading System Compare to Orton-Gillingham?
The most significant finding of this study was that the Robinson Reading System was just as effective as OG in improving reading skills among children with language learning disabilities.
✅ No significant differences were found between the OG-only group and the RRS group in terms of reading achievement on the WJ III ACH subtests.
✅ Both groups made progress, showing that both methods were effective for teaching reading.
✅ Within-group improvements indicated that students benefited from the instruction they received, whether OG or RRS.
Limitations of the Study
As with any research, there were some limitations that should be considered:
🔹 The sample size was small (36 children), limiting the ability to detect subtle differences.
🔹 The study used archival (historical) data, meaning there was no random selection of participants.
🔹 Since all students attended the same private school, the findings may not generalize to different school settings or larger populations.
Despite these limitations, the study provides valuable preliminary evidence that the Robinson Reading System is a viable alternative to OG for students with language-based learning disabilities.
What This Means for Literacy Education
This dissertation is an important milestone for the Robinson Reading System. The findings reinforce that linguistic approaches—such as the Robinson Code—can be just as effective as traditional phonics-based methods like Orton-Gillingham.
Why This Matters
1️⃣ More Options for Struggling Readers – Many students with dyslexia and language learning disabilities benefit from structured reading programs. This study suggests that the Robinson Reading System offers another effective choice alongside OG.
2️⃣ Supports the Use of Linguistic Approaches – The Robinson Code, like Pinyin in Chinese, provides a phonemic transparency scaffold before transitioning to standard English spelling. This research supports its effectiveness in building decoding skills.
3️⃣ Potential for Further Research – While this study was small, it lays the groundwork for larger-scale research on linguistic approaches in literacy education. Future studies could examine how RRS impacts different student populations, long-term reading outcomes, and literacy rates in public schools.
Conclusion: A Strong Foundation for Future Literacy Instruction
This 2013 dissertation marks the first formal research study on the Robinson Reading System (formerly Sounds First Reading System) and provides promising evidence of its effectiveness. While more research is needed, the study confirms that RRS is as effective as Orton-Gillingham for children with language learning disabilities.
As literacy educators and researchers continue to explore the best methods for teaching reading, the Robinson Reading System stands as a scientifically supported, linguistic-based approach that could help revolutionize reading instruction for struggling learners.
Reading is one of the most critical skills a person can develop, yet the ease of learning to read varies drastically depending on the orthography of a language. Some languages have a straightforward system where letters correspond consistently to sounds, making reading instruction relatively simple. Others, like English, present a complex and inconsistent relationship between spelling and pronunciation. These are known as opaque orthographies—and they pose a major challenge for learners.
What is an Opaque Orthography?
An opaque orthography is a writing system in which the relationship between spelling (graphemes) and pronunciation (phonemes) is irregular or unpredictable. This makes it difficult for learners to sound out words because the same letters or combinations can represent different sounds.
Examples of Opaque Orthographies
English: The letter "c" sounds different in cat (/k/) and ceiling (/s/). The combination "ough" produces multiple sounds in words like though, through, cough, rough, bough.
French: Many letters are silent, and pronunciation rules can be inconsistent (eau in beau is pronounced simply as /o/).
Danish: Silent letters and complex vowel sounds make pronunciation difficult for beginners.
Transparent vs. Opaque Orthographies
Languages with transparent orthographies, on the other hand, have a consistent letter-to-sound relationship, making them easier to learn:
Spanish: Each letter generally corresponds to one sound (e.g., casa is always pronounced /kasa/).
Italian: Spelling and pronunciation follow regular, predictable patterns.
Finnish: One of the most transparent orthographies—each letter represents a single sound with almost no exceptions.
Why Does This Matter for Learning to Read?
Opaque languages require more memorization because spelling rules are inconsistent. Readers must rely heavily on recognizing whole words rather than decoding letter by letter.
Transparent languages allow children to decode words more easily, reducing the need for rote memorization.
Children learning to read English are at a disadvantage compared to those learning transparent languages, as they must navigate complex and unpredictable spelling patterns.
How the Robinson Code Makes English More Transparent
To address the challenges of opaque orthographies, literacy experts have developed linguistic approaches to bridge the gap between spoken language and writing systems. One of the most successful examples of this is Pinyin, which was created in 1958 to improve literacy in China by providing a phonetic system for Mandarin.
Inspired by Pinyin, Dr. Martha Robinson developed the Robinson Code, a system designed to make English more transparent and accessible for learners.
How Does the Robinson Code Work?
The Robinson Code is based on the idea that before students learn English’s irregular spelling rules, they should first master a consistent, phonetic system. The Robinson Code:
Teaches the 41 sounds of English using the most common spellings first.
Introduces words in a controlled way, ensuring learners can sound them out with consistency.
Uses a simplified phonetic approach to help students build strong decoding skills.
The Robinson Code and the Dual-Route Theory of Reading
The dual-route theory of reading acquisition explains that readers process words in two ways:
The Phonological Route – Breaking words into sounds and blending them together.
The Lexical Route – Recognizing whole words instantly after repeated exposure.
For children learning an opaque language like English, phonological decoding is essential at the start—but English's complex spelling system makes this difficult. The Robinson Code helps learners first master phonetic transparency, strengthening the phonological route before transitioning to recognizing words by sight.
A New Path to English Literacy
While Pinyin transformed literacy in China, the Robinson Code has the potential to do the same for English. By making English’s opaque writing system more transparent, the Robinson Reading System could revolutionize how struggling readers—especially those with dyslexia—learn to read.
The challenge now is adoption. Will the Robinson Code change English literacy instruction as Pinyin did for Chinese? We believe it will. Its ability to make reading simple, systematic, and accessible may hold the key to the next literacy revolution.
