Behaviourist theories Behaviourist theories or Bottom –up approach emphasised on codes and phonics
Cognitive Theories: Cognitive theories or Top-down approach devalues code in word recognition and is utterly whole language based emphasis equally on readers’ schema and the print on the page (Winch, Johnston, March, Ljungdahl & Holliday, 2010). Top-down approach sees ‘meaning as a result of the interaction between the text and the reader’ (Fish, 2014).
Sociocultural Theory: Sociocultural theories or ‘Balanced approach’ on the other hand circumvents the excesses of both these views and accentuated on the explicit and systematic instructions in reading (Winch et al. 2010). According to sociocultural theorists meaning is not only located in the text and in the reader but also both inside and outside the text and the readers (Fish, 2014).