Developing an R&D Program to Improve Reading Comprehension

The Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI, now the Institute of Education Sciences) of the U.S. Department of Education charged the RAND Reading Study Group (RRSG) with developing a research agenda to address the most pressing issues in literacy. Research has shown that many children who read at the third-grade level in grade 3 will not automatically become proficient comprehenders in later grades. Therefore, teachers must teach comprehension explicitly, beginning in the primary grades and continuing through high school. Research has also shown that a teacher's expertise makes a big difference in this effort; yet, few teachers receive adequate pre-service preparation or ongoing professional development focused on reading comprehension. Finally, research has also shown that improving reading comprehension and preventing poor reading outcomes require measuring outcomes at every stage of learning. The RRSG believes that a vigorous, cumulative research and development program focused on reading comprehension is essential if the nation is to address these education problems successfully. The RRSG proposed three specific domains as having the highest priority for further research: instruction, teacher preparation, and assessment. In making this proposal, the RRSG emphasized the need for research that builds on previous research findings about reading comprehension, contributes to better theories of reading development, and produces knowledge that is usable in both classrooms and policymaking arenas. The program of reading research that the RRSG proposed in their report fits into the larger context of research on reading in the United States and was part of a larger RAND effort to suggest ways that education research and development could be made more rigorous, cumulative, and usable.