RF in the News:

http://www.sedl.org/pubs/catalog/items/read97.html

Reading First Awards Database

Authors: U. S. Department of Education, Lacy Wood (editor), Brian Litke (programmer), Shirley Beckwith (editor)

Reading First is an ambitious national initiative to help every young child in every state become a successful reader. This effort is based on high
expectations for what can and should happen for all students: that instructional decisions will be guided by the best available research.

http://www.reading.org/resources/issues/positions_evidence_based.html

What Is Evidence-Based Reading Instruction?

The International Reading Association’s Position Paper.

To be described as “evidence based,” an instructional program or collection of practices should have been tested and shown to have a record of success. That is, reliable, trustworthy, and valid evidence indicates that when that program or set of practices is used, children can be expected to make
adequate gains in reading achievement. “Research-based instruction” is sometimes used to convey the same meaning.

Read this statement to understand what “evidence-based” means and does not mean.

Authors:  By E. Allen Schenck, Douglas R. Walker,Carrie R. Nagel
RMC Research Corporation, Arlington, Va.

Loretta C. Webb, The McKenzie Group, Washington, D.C.

Prepared for: U.S. Department of Education
Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development
Policy and Program Studies Service

This report addresses the relationship between state content standards and
assessments and the essential components of effective reading instruction.
The extent to which the essential components are addressed in the standards
and assessments indicates the extent to which states have integrated the
essential components into their reading curriculum. This report describes
reviews of state assessments and standards, the purpose of which was
twofold:

· to evaluate the degree to which state reading content standards for
K-3 students reflected expectations for learning in these five essential
areas of effective reading instruction; and

· to determine the extent to which state assessments administered in
the K-3 grade span played a role in the measurement of Reading First
outcomes in the five areas.

Click here to read the report (PDF file)

http://www.edweek.org/chat/transcript_10-28-2004.html

G. Reid Lyon is a research psychologist and the chief of the Child
Development and Behavior Branch within the National Institute of Child
Health and Human Development at the National Institutes of Health. He has
been an influential proponent of the scientific approach to reading
instruction and development.  This is a transcript of an on-line
teleconference he held with Ed Week in October, 2004.

http://www.ed.gov/programs/readingfirst/faq.html

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What’s the current situation - how well are America’s children reading?

Not nearly well enough. Educators, parents and other interested parties have long acknowledged the general deterioration of our students’ overall reading achievement. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) provides perhaps the best single glimpse into the nationwide problem. From NAEP, we get a basic picture of how well children read, and the picture is not encouraging. Approximately 40% of students across the nation cannot read at a basic level. And as disconcerting as this general situation is, specific sub-groups of students are experiencing even less success.

* Almost 70% of low-income fourth grade students cannot read at a basic level. In other words, these children struggle with foundational reading skills like summarizing and understanding a story.
* Almost half the students living in urban areas cannot read at a basic level.
* Average-performing students have made no progress over the last 10 years, and the lowest-performing readers have become less successful over this same time period.

From a national perspective these facts are deeply troubling, and cry out for a vigorous and coordinated effort by all those with a role and responsibility in educating our nation’s children. Not being able to read at grade level is devastating to the nine-year old child who cannot do homework, enjoy a book or look forward to future grades with confidence and excitement.

MORE...