This report summarizes information regarding populations, methods, evaluation and instructional materials, analyses, and results from three doctoral dissertations that used the Word Attack component of the Wisconsin Design for Reading Skill Development as an instructional and assessment instrument. The first study investigated the assumption that mastery of essential word attack subskills results in functional word attack ability. The second study investigated the degree to which first-grade subjects retained reading ability over summer vacation. Reading ability was measured by both norm-referenced and criterion-referenced tests. The third study investigated the effects on selected teachers of three motivational treatments: (1) pupil reading achievement monitored without feedback to teachers, (2) social incentives given to teachers, and (3) monetary incentives given to teachers. Measures of effect were gain scores on the Wisconsin Tests of Reading Skill Development: Word Attack and staff teachers' perceptions of selected interpersonal variables. (Author/RB)