Intended for parents and all citizens concerned about improving Chicago's 592 public schools, this handbook explains how important reading is to a decent education and future employment. Chapter one describes the school improvement campaign called "Schoolwatch," the problems in the Chicago public schools, and the components of effective schools. Chapter two analyzes what it means to know how to read; it explains how reading is tested and evaluated in the Chicago public schools and what the scores mean. It also shows how to look at reading scores for the school system as a whole, for one's own school, and for a child. Chapter three describes in depth the ten ingredients that researchers have identified as crucial for an effective school. For each one, a "report card" gives parents specific things to look for to help them decide whether their school measures up and where there is room for improvement. Chapter four describes how decisions made "downtown" affect the way that children learn (or do not learn) to read in Chicago, and tells what changes are needed so that the school system's huge bureaucracy serves the local school. Finally, chapter five tells exactly how parents, business people, community groups, and journalists can work together in Chicago's "Schoolwatch" program to improve the schools. (HOD)