And inspections of the underperforming ones often find that they make insufficient use of whole-class teaching, phonics, or other traditional methods.

ECONOMIST: Plowden��s progress

Phonics teaching is an important component of the teaching of reading, but not all words in English are phonically regular (the linguist David Crystal estimates 80% are, but the other 20% contains many of the most common words in English).

BBC: Viewpoints: Teaching children to read

Teaching unions and head teachers have said phonics is a good way of teaching children to read but say it is not a magic formula and different children may require different approaches.

BBC: New reading test for six-year-olds spelt out

Most ominously, both Mr Gove and the Tories' leader, David Cameron, are fond of party-pleasing prescriptions, including policies for which proof of effectiveness is non-existent (school uniforms) or limited (insisting on synthetic phonics for teaching reading).

ECONOMIST: The Conservatives on education

The teaching of reading should encompass a balance of teaching strategies including a systematic approach to phonics and other word reading strategies, and a significant emphasis on children experiencing a wide range of texts, including moving image and digital - all available to read from the very beginning.

BBC: Viewpoints: Teaching children to read

The Department for Education maintains that international evidence demonstrates that phonics is the most effective way of teaching early reading.

BBC: Teachers reject 'pointless' new phonics check

But look who it has appointed to carry it out: Jim Rose, former Deputy Chief Inspector of Schools in England - knighted this summer following his 2006 report into the teaching of early reading, with its emphasis on synthetic phonics.

BBC: ANALYSIS