How to Question a School Reading Program to Gauge Its Effectiveness

Literacy is an ongoing challenge and issue with most schools. The No Child Left Behind Act also places a major focus on literacy and ways to improve the reading ability of all school age children. There are so many reading programs that have been developed by universities, professional organizations, text books companies and others, that it is difficult for a school district to choose a program that would work best for children. There are some questions that you, as a parent, can ask to help you assess a program at your child's school.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Ask your child's teacher, or the principal, what reading program is being used in the school and in the individual classrooms. Go online to research and find out all the information that is available about that reading program, including its success rate and methodology.

2. Keep in mind that another question you may want to ask is how much research did the school district do on various reading programs in order to determine which one they decided to go with and why, exactly, did they choose that particular reading program for the local schools. Also ask about the success rate of the reading program.

3. Keep in mind that it is important for you to determine if the reading program is research-based and if it includes the five essential elements that have been identified by the National Reading Panel. Find out if the program is agreeable to the criteria listed in the No Child Left Behind Act, as well.

4. Ask your child's teacher if the reading program is presented and utilized by your child within the confines of a group of children, and if so, how many children are in each reading group?

5. Find out how the children were selected for the reading groups so that you can make sure that the groups are determined by the selected children's individual reading levels and abilities.

6. Have the teacher explain what the expectations are for the reading group. You might ask how fast the pace will be to ensure that the program does not place too high of an expectation onto your child and therefore potentially creating a eventual dislike of reading.

7. Question how many days per week and how long of a period of time the reading program will be utilized, and if the program incorporates individual reading time or instructions, as well.

8. Ask about training the teacher or other school teaching staff received on the particular reading program the school or school district has selected for students. See if the teacher was trained in different learning styles.

9. You might also want to ask if the classroom or other teaching staff (some schools have a specific teacher assigned to reading instruction through the selected reading program), have received a certification as being properly trained and qualified to utilize the reading program correctly.

10. Check with the teacher, the school principal, or even the school district to find out what criteria will be used to determine if and when your child is ready to move to the next reading level, and what the next level entails so that you can make sure your child is getting the right reading instruction.

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