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Will Myrna Culbreath, author of PhonicsOpoly, take the $1,000,000 Challenge?
(I have contacted Myrna Culbreath several times since the original report was posted on 3/2/04 and have not received a response. I have increased my challenge offer from $500,000 to $1,000,000. - 6/8/04 Update)

Can the Hooked on Phonics and The Phonics Game companies prove that they can increase students' grades within 30-60 days?

And why doesn't the Federal Trade Administration enforce their previous decision involving false advertising?

(If you want to protest the advertising practices of these companies, contact the Federal Trade Commission https://rn.ftc.gov/pls/dod/wsolcq$.startup?Z_ORG_CODE=PU01.)

Home reading programs have become big business in the last 15 years. In the late 1980's, Hooked on Phonics exploded into the media with catchy ads. By 1991, Gateway Educational Products, the maker of the Hooked on Phonics program, was the second largest radio advertiser of any product ($41 million) and sales rose to over $175 million per year. Their ads claiming quick improvement went well beyond their research proof. After the Federal Trade Commission's cease-and-desist order and a critical Dateline story, the public became aware of their unsubstantiated claims. Sales plummeted and the company filed for bankruptcy and was sold to Gateway Learning Corporation, which started marketing a new Hooked on Phonics. The following is from the FTC decision http://www.ftc.gov/opa/1995/06/gateway2.htm:

"The final order requires Gateway and the two individual respondents to have competent and reliable evidence to back up any future educational-benefit claims they make for Hooked on Phonics or any other educational product or program they market. They also are required to have substantiation before representing, among other things, that Hooked on Phonics or any other educational program or product:

• will quickly and easily teach those with reading problems or disabilities to read, regardless of the problem;
• will enable users with reading problems or disabilities to improve significantly their reading levels and classroom grades;
• can teach those with dyslexia, attention deficit disorders, and other learning disabilities to read; and can teach reading in a home setting without additional assistance.

The respondents also are prohibited from using testimonials that purport to represent the typical experience of consumers who use an educational product or program, unless they can substantiate that the represented experience is, in fact, typical.

Finally, the order contains various reporting provisions to assist the FTC in monitoring compliance."

Then came The Phonics Game marketed by A Better Way of Learning Corporation, which seemed to copy the Hooked on Phonics advertising strategy, especially with unsubstantiated claims. The company claimed that students, after only 18 hours of using The Phonics Game, improve one full letter-grade (e.g., a D student becomes a C student) and students also improve their IQ scores by 10 points. As outrageous as these claims seem, sales of The Phonics Game at $200+ per game generated over $50 million in sales per year.

In late 1998, Jan Hartleben Slusser and I gave The Phonics Game the first Educational Mirage Award as a popular educational program with unsubstantiated claims. The complete report is at http://www.edresearch.com. I contacted the Federal Trade Commission about the unproven claims. Several representatives from A Better Way of Learning stated that because they provide a 60-day money-back guarantee, consumers were protected. Based on Federal Trade Commission guidelines
(http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/buspubs/ad-faqs.htm), we believed that their position was incorrect. The following is an excerpt from FTC guidelines:

"Before a company runs an ad, it has to have a ‘reasonable basis’ for the claims. A ‘reasonable basis’ means objective evidence that supports the claim. The kind of evidence depends on the claim. At a minimum, an advertiser must have the level of evidence that it says that it has. For example, the statement ‘Two out of three doctors recommend ABC Pain Reliever’ must be supported by a reliable survey to that effect. If the ad isn't specific, the FTC looks at several factors to determine what level of proof is necessary, including what experts in the field think is needed to support the claim. In most cases, ads that make health or safety claims must be supported by ‘competent and reliable scientific evidence’ -- tests, studies, or other scientific evidence that has been evaluated by people qualified to review it. In addition, any tests or studies must be conducted using methods that experts in the field accept as accurate."

The FTC guidelines also state that testimonials and money-back guarantees are not sufficient. Furthermore, a FTC representative on February 11, 1999 wrote,

"The presence of a money-back guarantee does not affect the need to have substantiation to support any effectiveness claims made for a product or service. Rather the money-back guarantee is simply another claim that must be truthful to avoid violating Section 5 of the FTC Act."

After our report, the fraudulent claims about The Phonics Game were removed from their web site. When it appeared that the company’s sales dropped dramatically, Jan and I went on to other ventures. Then I received an email from Micheal Fanning in November 2003 asking me about the Educational Mirage Award report.

Now it appears that both Hooked On Phonics and The Phonics Game have returned to making grade improvement "promises." Also, Myrna Culbreath, the author of The Phonics Game, has created a new game PhonicsOpoly and her claims are absolutely outrageous.

Unproven Claims by Popular Home Reading Programs

Hooked on Phonics: http://www.hop.com/hopshop/catalog

“Don't wait! Unlock the secrets of A+ students with Hooked on School Success—and give your child the power skills to achieve higher grades in school…and greater success in life. Remember, your child must earn better grades in 60 days—or your money back!”

The Phonics Game: http://www.phonicsgame.com

Go to the “Phonics Game” link and then hit the “Guarantee” link.

The Phonics Game™ Promise:
“Along with our 30-day money back guarantee with The Phonics Game™, we 'Promise' that your child will receive a minimum of a full letter grade improvement on his or her next report card.”

PhonicsOpoly: http://www.learnbygames.com/

The following is her claim on the “FAQ’s” link:

“Bottom 25% to top 14% in the country—in 16 Hours!
In an independent third party study, under a U. S. Department of education grant, PhonicsOpoly took disadvantaged, poor, mostly minority, many second-language 3rd to 6th graders from the bottom 25% to the top 14% in the country—in 16 hours.

The independent Ph. D evaluator wrote:
“This is an astounding result.”
(Of course, there was no study.)

Later, she says:

“We’ve also used PhonicsOpoly with teenage juvenile delinquents in a locked juvenile justice school. They went from as low as a 2.6 grade level, average under 5th grade level, to all on a college level—in about 10 hours.”
(Probably a more interesting game is to count the number of grammatical errors on her web site.)

Culbreath has a history of making outrageous false claims. In the Appendix of this report, I have provided some of the many fraudulent claims she made about The Phonics Game.

Here is the $1,000,000 Challenge: If Myrna Culbreath has scientific proof to support her effectiveness claims, I will give her $1,000,000. However, I think that it is only fair that if she cannot prove her claims, she should give me $1,000,000, which I will donate to the Better Business Bureau.

Speaking of the Better Business Bureau: How the BBB rates Home Reading Programs

Hooked on Phonics – go to http://search.bbb.org/ and use the web site link (www.hookedonphonics.com):

The beginning of their report begins: “Complainants allege unauthorized charges to credit or debit cards, and difficulty obtaining credits or refunds.” Go to the BBB web site for the full report.

PhonicsOpoly– go to http://search.bbb.org/ and use the web site link (www.learnbygames.com):

The BBB report begins: “Based on BBB files, this company has an unsatisfactory record with the Bureau. An unsatisfactory record is given when a pattern in the company's customer complaints causes us concern, when the company does not respond to complaints, or when it will not substantiate its advertising claims.” Go to the BBB web site for the full report. It also should be noted that learnbygames.com is operating with a suspended California corporate license (go to
http://kepler.ss.ca.gov/list.html and type in “learnbygames.com” as the corporate name).

The Phonics Game was acquired by ImaginEngine Direct Publishing in June, 2002. Although the BBB report on the past owner (A Better Way of Learning) was unfavorable, the current owner has a satisfactory BBB record. However, if you are a possible purchaser, it appears that the product has not changed significantly and you should read our review of the Phonics Game kit (hit this link).

6/9/04 Update Comments

This report was posted on March 3, 2004 and the companies have yet to substantiate their claims. Why do they continue make unsupported claims and why doesn't the Federal Trade Commission do their job? The earlier-cited FTC decision clearly states that Hooked On Phonics cannot advertise based on unsubstantiated claims. It appears that they and other home reading programs can make questionable claims without fear of FTC enforcement. I have written a letter of complaint to the FTC (hit link for FTC letter).

If you would like to file a FTC complaint about this situation, go to https://rn.ftc.gov/pls/dod/wsolcq$.startup?Z_ORG_CODE=PU01.

Also, because all three companies are located in California, I wrote a complaint letter to the California Attorney General's Office (hit link for CA Attorney General letter). If you would like to email a complaint, you can send it to tom.dresslar@doj.ca.gov. I must admit that I have been unable to get an Attorney General's Office response on several complaints.

Home reading programs have been out long enough that it would be expected that the companies involved would provide well-conducted research studies to evaluate if their programs actually work. Given their promises, I hope that these companies will contact one or more of the many educational researchers to conduct such a study. Until then, they should be required to not make false claims.

Appendix

Background Information about Myrna Culbreath from The Phonics Game Report

In interviews, Myrna Culbreath says that she originally created a speed-reading program for college professors and students, executives, and professionals, but found that many participants did not have basic reading skills. For example, she described a top engineer at a nuclear plant who only had minimal reading skills. The Phonics Game was created, she said, for these people. Given the high academic requirements of graduate degrees, the idea that college professors, physicians, and other professionals lack basic reading skills is absurd. Another example of outrageous exaggeration is a person with law and dental degrees who "couldn't read for more than five or ten minutes in a row without about to conk out." She says that after playing only two of the Phonics Game card games, he was no longer sleepy when he read. Also, she said his spelling and handwriting improved.

Culbreath also says that her program is for people with foreign accents. She says in her interview that after one weekend of instruction, a person totally lost his Spanish accent thanks to The Phonics Game.

For parents who wonder if their child has a reading problem, Culbreath says that a first grader should be able to read the newspaper by the end of first grade. If the child can’t read the newspaper, Culbreath suggests purchasing The Phonics Game. Of course, newspapers are written well above a first grade level.

Because of these and other statements, we decided to investigate Culbreath’s background. A company representative said that Culbreath developed the speed-reading course when she worked for the University of Colorado. DeLaris Carpenter, the Director of Student Academic Services at that university, has never heard of her. Carpenter has worked there since the early 1980's. Also, other staff members did not recognize her name.

Myrna Culbreath says in her web interviews that her program has revolutionized reading instruction, but there is not one reference about her as an educator or The Phonics Game in any educational journal. Given Culbreath’s complaints about others’ reading and writing skills, our search of her name on the Internet found several interesting reviews of her fiction writing. Book reviewers have not been impressed by her writing skills as a co-author of several Star Trek books. Her books have been universally panned because of poor grammar and spelling. For example, Lewis Stiller described her writing in his review of Prometheus Design: "The authors do not feel bound by conventional laws of punctuation either. They are addicted to the ellipsis, and seem to hyphenate randomly." Her books received the lowest scores possible on readability according to the TrekNews web site. Also, in a rating by the Oxford University Library Service of the 179 Star Trek publications, movies, and TV episodes, her book Triangle ranked 177th and Prometheus Design ranked 178th.

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Originally published 3/3/04
Latest update: 6/7/04
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