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Study of Reading Program Finds a Lack of Progress
By Maria Glod
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, November 19, 2008; Page A06
Students in the $6 billion Reading First program have not made greater progress in understanding what they read than have peers outside the program, according to a congressionally mandated study.
The final version of the study, released yesterday by the U.S. Department of Education, found that students in schools that use Reading First, a program at the core of the No Child Left Behind law, scored no better on comprehension tests than students in similar schools that do not get the funding.
Read more HERE
1 comment:
Correct me if I’m wrong, but “Reading First” is a funding, not a specific reading program (like “Hooked on Phonics”). As the article states: The final version of the study, released yesterday by the U.S. Department of Education, found that students in schools that use Reading First, a program at the core of the No Child Left Behind law, scored no better on comprehension tests than students in similar schools that do not get the funding.
The program itself is explained here The federal government provides money to the states, and the states provide that money to their schools. Who gets that money is determined by poverty levels, and only schools that apply for that money (from their states) which will use “programs that are founded on scientifically based reading research” are eligible.
So, it seems we have a “funded mandate” to ensure that the “best practices” or “proven” instruction is used…and what is to blame? NCLB? For funding reading instruction?
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