Students are not learning to read well in California public schools. This is particularly true for students in special education. If more of California's students in special education are to demonstrate literacy skills to state and national standards, it will require more of their teachers teaching those skills. With the plurality of California…

Native American secondary students have consistently scored lower in reading than other racial groups. Research has suggested that increasing student reading engagement and using a culturally-responsive pedagogy may help Native American students to improve reading levels. The problem addressed by this study is the need to identify best practices…

Community-based literacy learning spaces are crucial to the enduring African American pursuit of literacy. This article reports findings from a study exploring the impact of a community-based literacy tutoring program for African American readers in grades 3-5. Findings also report on ways the community literacy site was similar to historic…

The audience for this guide is state, local, and program leaders who want to learn more about federal funding sources that can support early literacy programs and systems reform. Funding available through federal programs can help address the underlying causes of children failing to learn to read by the end of third grade, such as limited access…

The International Reading Association (2003) has recently established new guidelines for graduate students enrolled in reading and literacy programs. These guidelines require graduate students to maintain direct contact with students during their coursework for advanced degrees. Field experiences support best practices in bridging the gap between…

REL Appalachia conducted a systematic review of the research evidence on the effects of increased learning time. After screening more than 7,000 studies, REL Appalachia identified 30 that met the most rigorous standards for research. A review of those 30 studies found that increased learning time does not always produce positive results. However,…

This pamphlet describes the Texas Reading Initiative, a comprehensive plan aimed at improving reading instruction in Texas and begun after a challenge was issued by Governor George W. Bush that each and every child must learn to read. It lists the 8 key elements that were established to guide the initiative (including increasing awareness of…

Descriptions of selected college reading improvement programs (most of which were begun in the 1920s or 1930s) reveals that with the exception of increased standardization in the areas of administrative concerns, little seems new. Reviewing the cases of seven college reading improvement programs (Harvard, Hamline, Amherst, University of Chicago,…

This report examines the first 2 years of the Alabama Reading Initiative (ARI), whose goal is 100% literacy for all Alabama's public school children using a balanced approach to reading instruction. It includes results from the external evaluation team, examples of changes in teaching practices and student behaviors, as well as the voices of…

Lists the hierarchy and objectives of USOE's Right-to-Read Program and includes a description of the National Reading Council. (MB)

This project provided individual and small group remedial reading instruction to pupils in 14 alternative high schools in New York City. Students were assigned on the basis of a minimun of two years retardation in reading skills as determined by standardized reading achievement test scores, recommendations of guidance counselors and staff…

The components of an educational program, designed to ensure the attainment of specific objectives, are described. Program objectives included the introduction of a new individualized instructional system operating within the same constraints experienced by public school staff, insurance that each child in the program would receive his fair share…

The Reading Excellence program seeks to provide a cadre of trained volunteers to deliver tutorial assistance in reading to at-risk students during non-instructional times that will result in significant improvement in student performance on reading and language arts as measured by their age-appropriate standardized tests. This paper describes the…

The National Reading Research Center (NRRC) advocates education through research that addresses the unacceptably low reading achievement of American students and the lack of equity in the achievement of mainstream and minority populations. The NRRC acknowledges four pervasive problems that will sharpen the focus of the center's work: too many…