The Reading First Program and Statewide-Mandated Assessments: A Three-Year Comparative Study

Monica Wong-Ratcliff¹, Sherlyn Ezell Powell², Bob N. Cage³, Cheng C. Chen⁴
(1. Department of Teacher & Bilingual, College of Education & Human Performance, Texas A&M University, USA;
2. Department of Curriculum & Instruction, College of Education & Human Development, University of Louisiana at Monroe, USA;
3. College of Education & Human Development, University of Louisiana at Monroe, USA;
4. College of Arts and Sciences, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, TX 78363, USA)

Abstract: This three-year comparative study investigated the impact of the Reading First (RF) Program on student performance as measured by statewide-mandated English Language Arts (ELA) assessment programs. A matching procedure was used where 3 RF schools and 3 non-RF schools from two rural school districts in north Louisiana were matched. The ELA test scores of 882 third grade students and 909 fourth grade students in the Louisiana statewide ELA assessment programs between 2006 and 2008 were analyzed. The findings indicated that the RF students performed better than the non-RF students for these three years. The study provided evidence that the federal initiative of disseminating research-based reading instructional strategies into high-poverty, low-performing schools was successful.

Key words: reading first; rural schools; statewide assessment; elementary schools; reading