Reading & Literacy

What Is ‘Encoding’? Test Your Knowledge About a Core Element of Literacy

By Marina Whiteleather — April 17, 2023 1 min read
Young writer looking at a flash card showing a picture of a dog and writing various words that begin with a "D" like dog, donut, duck and door.
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

What is encoding? And is it as important to the science of reading as its counterpart, decoding? Test your knowledge by taking our quiz.

Once you complete the quiz, you can see how your score compares to your peers’, get detailed explanations of the correct answers, and find additional reading and resources on the topic.

For more reading on the place of writing instruction in elementary literacy, read our special report, The Science of Reading ... and Writing.

Related Tags:

Coverage of students with learning differences and issues of race, opportunity, and equity is supported in part by a grant from the Oak Foundation, at www.oakfnd.org. Education Week retains sole editorial control over the content of this coverage.

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar
Improve Reading Comprehension: Three Tools for Working Memory Challenges
Discover three working memory workarounds to help your students improve reading comprehension and empower them on their reading journey.
Content provided by Solution Tree
Recruitment & Retention Webinar EdRecruiter 2026 Survey Results: How School Districts are Finding and Keeping Talent
Discover the latest K-12 hiring trends from EdWeek’s nationwide survey of job seekers and district HR professionals.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Professional Development Webinar
Recalibrating PLCs for Student Growth in the New Year
Get advice from K-12 leaders on resetting your PLCs for spring by utilizing winter assessment data and aligning PLC work with MTSS cycles.
Content provided by Otus

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Reading & Literacy Secondary Students Are Struggling With Reading, Too. A Look at the Landscape
Exclusive survey findings outline how educators perceive the obstacles affecting older students' reading.
5 min read
Students attend Bow Memorial School in Bow, N.H. on Oct. 29, 2025. Bow Memorial School is a middle school that has developed a systematic approach to addressing foundational reading gaps in middle school students.
New data show that many educators report that middle and high school students struggle with aspects of foundational literacy. At Bow Memorial School in Bow, N.H., pictured on Oct. 29, 2025, students work with reading specialist Loralyn LaBombard, who has helped pioneer a systematic approach to addressing foundational reading gaps in grades 5 to 8.
Sophie Park for Education Week
Reading & Literacy Opinion Students Need Anchors When They Read. How to Make Them Stick
I’ve taught English in China and Chinese in America. Here’s what it taught me about literacy.
Haiyan Fan
6 min read
Paper airplane tied to an anchor.
iStock/Getty + Education Week
Reading & Literacy A Popular Method for Teaching Phonemic Awareness Doesn't Boost Reading
In a new study, a highly used program didn't lead to improvements in students' word-reading abilities.
5 min read
Image of a student reading in the library.
New research suggests that exercises in phonemic awareness may be more impactful when connected to print and purposeful phonics teaching.
Allison Shelley for All4Ed
Reading & Literacy Opinion How Should Teachers Deal With Problematic Language in Literature?
Offensive prose does show up in books. Ignoring it doesn't help students.
10 min read
Conceptual illustration of classroom conversations and fragmented education elements coming together to form a cohesive picture of a book of classroom knowledge.
Sonia Pulido for Education Week