The U.S. Department of Education's Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) promotes excellence and equity in education by conducting research and demonstration projects, collecting statistics, disseminating information, and providing technical assistance to those working to improve education. OERI supports two major research and development programs: the 12 National Research and Development Centers and the 10 Regional Educational Laboratories. This digest reviews a sampling of recent reading-related research and development initiatives being conducted by the Labs and Centers. The digest first looks at the National Research Center on English Learning and Achievement's (CELA) studies on how the various components of curriculum can work together to support higher literacy levels in elementary and secondary school students. It then examines several research initiatives underway at the Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement (CIERA), including a comparison of the effects of three phonics programs on decoding and the ability to read connected text, and a study of how watching "TV stories" can prepare non-reading preschoolers for later reading comprehension. The digest notes that the North Central Regional Laboratory (NCREL) has a long-term professional development program to improve reading at all grade levels by helping teachers take a strategic approach to reading and teaching. Also discussed are projects at the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (SEDL) and at the Northeast and Islands Regional Educational Laboratory. (NKA)