Does knowledge of phonic sounds and symbols improve English reading ability?

I would say that, having knowledge of phonic sounds and symbols does improve reading abilities, because with that knowledge,every sentence makes more meaning,For instance, a simple  (ae phonetical symbol, or a semi-colon ;) could give any given sentence a whole new meaning. Learning the art of phonic sounds and symbols most generally improve the reading ability of any piece of write-up ,as pronunciations could only make sense or meaning when properly used.