"Reading Mastery" is designed to provide explicit reading instruction to students in grades pre-K-5. One of several Direct Instruction curricula from McGraw-Hill, "Reading Mastery" is available in two versions: (1) "Reading Mastery Classic" (for grades pre-K-2) aims to help beginning readers identify letter sounds,…

Considerable research indicates that high-stakes accountability policies have the capacity to influence language arts instruction, particularly in urban, high-needs schools where pressure to increase test scores tends to be most acute. This article utilizes Cultural Historical Activity Theory to critically examine the constraints and affordances…

Constant changes in legislation regarding monitoring student achievement levels have led schools to redevelop usage of instructional time in several core subjects. Legislation such as Missouri Senate Bill 319 specifically mandates that the school must intervene if a student is not reading at the appropriate level by grade four. Alternative…

Matching learners with the right level of graded readers is necessary when graded readers are exploited as both simplified reading materials in extensive reading programs and major instruments in the experiments. A lack of controlling ability level can prevent learners from succeeding in developing reading in an extensive reading program. It would…

The purpose of this research is to share the reading assessments that graduate students selected for their clinical practice with struggling readers. After a careful look at assessments, their place in the recent shift to Response to Intervention (RTI), specifically regarding reading instruction and the preparation of reading…

This summary of the 1973-74 Michigan Cost-Effectiveness Study describes the results of an exploratory inquiry into compensatory education reading programs in forty-eight Michigan schools. The study is said to have as its purpose the development and implementation of evaluation techniques to determine what educational practices bring about changes…

The Measurement and Evaluation Center in Reading Education (MECRE), funded through the U.S. Office of Education, was designed to study evaluation procedures presently in use and to prepare materials to assist school officials in evaluating reading programs. Emphasis was to be on evaluating Title I and Title III projects, and it was hoped that…

This longitudinal qualitative study examined how four preservice elementary teachers used language to construct professional identities, learn within relationships, and take risks in the classroom during their final three semesters in teacher education coursework and field experiences. My female participants were former students of mine in the…

This report describes the value-added models used as part of teacher evaluation systems in the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) and in eligible DC charter schools participating in "Race to the Top." The authors estimated: (1) teacher effectiveness in DCPS and eligible DC charter schools during the 2011-2012 school year; and (2)…

For lower-achieving students with disabilities, effective and appropriate alternate assessment based on modified achievement standards (AA-MAS) can open the door to greater expectations and opportunities. State policymakers have the option of providing certain students who have disabilities with AA-MAS aligned with grade-level content--and now…

The checklist presented in this paper is intended for the evaluation of secondary reading programs and contains five sections. "School Philosophy and Objectives" looks at programs as they relate to reading instruction. "Organization and Facilities" examines the sequential development of the reading program, program emphasis, types of programs,…

This report summarizes the participation and achievement information provided by state educational agencies (SEAs) on the Chapter 1 Migrant Education Program (MEP) for 1989-90. Data were obtained through State Performance Reports completed by participating SEAs. The first of four chapters provides an overview of program participation, including…

This document contains the project descriptions, objectives, evaluation procedures and results, summary and conclusions, as well as recommendations for the 1981-82 Project Evaluation Reports and Progress Reports of the Tulsa Public Schools. Part 1 contains the project evaluations of: (1) advanced placement curriculum, (2) art/drama gifted and…

This assessment scale developed by the Georgia State Department of Education is intended for use in examining the reading program in a particular school and has some suggestions as to how the school might document particular aspects of the program. Some of the suggested techniques for documentation include: describing the composition of a task…

The 1975 Summer Skills Center program in the District of Columbia public schools consisted of elementary centers serving students in grades 3-8 and secondary centers serving students in grades 9-12. It called for instructional groupings containing students of several grade and age levels. Teachers were to be activity coordinators for…