This study examined the effects of aligning the "Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL)" English Framework with Bloom's Taxonomy on student achievement. Changes prompted by "No Child Left Behind" legislation increased accountability for student success, as well as mandated testing to determine annual academic growth of all…

The seemingly simple task associated with formal reading instruction may be problematic for many students with speech and language delays who often enter school with meager literacy experiences (B. K. Gunn, D. C. Simmons, & E. J. Kame'enui, 1999). However, the challenges that students face may be reduced when reading instruction includes…

This article reviews "The Early Reading Diagnostic Assessment, Second Edition" (ERDA-Second Edition), a norm-referenced individually administered diagnostic measure of early reading skills as described in Reading First federal legislation (Part B, Subpart 1 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act as amended by the No Child Left…

This article reports on findings from a national study of Reading First's effect on student reading achievement released last week by the Institute of Education Sciences. The major federal report finds that the $1 billion-a-year Reading First program has had no measurable effect on students' reading comprehension, on average, although…

The No Child Let Behind Act of 2001 created the Reading First program to help ensure that all students could read at or above grade level by the end of grade 3. The program promotes practices recommended by the National Reading Panel for early reading instruction, highlighting five essential components of reading instruction. The program invested…

LeRoy was a deaf sixth grader who used signs and his voice to communicate. Yanetta was a deaf eighth grader who had deaf parents and preferred American Sign Language (ASL). Michael was a deaf fifth grader in a suburban school who attended an oral program and used his voice exclusively to communicate. All three students struggled with reading. They…

According to this author, it was inevitable that No Child Left Behind's emphasis on standardized testing and scientifically-based reading instruction would lead to a standardized curriculum. Programs such as Open Court, Success for All, and Direct Instruction further refined standardized curriculum to a scripted curriculum that requires teachers…

"Policy Perspectives" presents visiting authors' own views and/or research on issues relevant to schools and communities nationwide. The idea that reading skill is largely a set of general-purpose maneuvers that can be applied to any and all texts is one of the main barriers to our children's overall low achievement in reading, argues…

A component of the "No Child Left Behind" Act (NCLB) (PL 107-110) is its emphasis on the importance of systematic and explicit instruction in early reading using practices that are grounded in scientific research. The Reading First legislation (Title I, Part B, Subpart 1) within NCLB is designed to support state and local education…

Title III of Public Law 107-110 (No Child Left Behind; NCLB) provided for creation of assessments of English language learners (ELLs) and established, through the Enhanced Assessment Grant program, a platform from which four consortia of states developed ELL tests aligned to rigorous statewide content standards. Those four tests (ACCESS for ELLs,…

The No Child Left Behind Act (2001) placed pressure on elementary teachers to raise standardized test scores in reading and mathematics. Unfortunately, the focus on reading and math has led to reduced time for science instruction. Mandatory standardized testing in science began in elementary schools across the United States in 2007. Instructing…

We evaluated the validity of DIBELS ("Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills") ORF ("Oral Reading Fluency") for predicting performance on the "Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test" (FCAT-SSS) and "Stanford Achievement Test" (SAT-10) reading comprehension measures. The usefulness of previously…

Schools across the nation are responding to reading assessment mandates by turning to DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills), a program endorsed by the Federal Reading First Grant Office, to assess fluency on a range of reading-related tasks. DIBELS makes strong claims regarding its usefulness in documenting reading progress…

The current study will examine possible contextual effects relative to differences in reading comprehension performance in the state of Florida. While the Reading First (RF) Impact study examined such difference using a regression discontinuity design, the authors are primarily interested in other analytic methods that might answer different…

Serious reading problems exist among middle school learners as evidenced by declining national reading scores and increased dropout rates. In response to the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) expectations in reading, several experts have promoted a scripted repeated reading strategy such as readers' theater as a possible approach to improving student…