Reading First (CRS Report for Congress)
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| Release Date |
Revised Feb. 6, 2008 |
| Report Number |
RL33246 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Gail McCallion, Domestic Social Policy Division |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
| Older Revisions |
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Summary:
The Reading First program was authorized as part of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) through the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLBA). The NCLBA was signed into law on January 8, 2002, and will expire at the end of FY2008 (including the automatic General Education Provisions Act one-year extension). It is expected that the 110th Congress will consider legislation to reauthorize the ESEA.
Reading First was drafted with the intent of incorporating scientifically based reading research (SBRR) on what works in teaching reading to improve and expand K-3 reading programs to address concerns about student reading achievement and to reach children at younger ages. By the end of October 2003, all states and the District of Columbia had received their FY2002 and FY2003 Reading First awards. Information from the U.S. Department of Education's (ED) April 2007 report on state performance data; a February 2007 Government Accountability Office report, and a 2007 Center on Education Policy report, Reading First: Locally Appreciated, Nationally Troubled, have all provided relatively positive information about states' and local school district's opinions of the impact of Reading First on student achievement. However, state assessment measures and cut-off scores for determining reading proficiency vary from state to state, making it difficult to draw definitive conclusions on Reading First's performance from these data.
There have, however, been criticisms of the program that centered on the perceived "overprescriptiveness" of the program as it has been administered, perceptions of insufficient transparency regarding ED's requirements of states, and allegations of conflicts of interest between consultants to the program and commercial reading and assessment companies. Controversies have also arisen regarding the application of the SBRR requirements in the NCLBA to the Reading First program. Three groups representing different reading programs filed separate complaints with ED's Office of Inspector General (OIG), asking that the program be investigated.
In September of 2006, the OIG issued a report on Reading First's grant application process. Subsequent OIG audit reports were issued on ED's administration of selected aspects of the program, on the RMC Research Corporation's Reading First contracts, and on several states' administration of the program. The OIG reports were highly critical of ED's implementation of the Reading First program, and essentially validated many of the concerns that had been raised in complaints filed with the OIG. In response to the controversy surrounding Reading First, the program's funding was cut from $1 billion in FY2007 to $393 million in FY2008. The Administration has requested that the program's funding be restored to $1 billion for FY2009.
This report will be updated periodically.
