Tools

  Email Page
  Print Page
School of Ed Home

History of America Reads

"Every person who knows how to read has it in their power to magnify themselves, to multiply the ways in which they exist, to make life full, significant, and interesting."
-Anonymous

The America Reads Challenge is part of a campaign initiated by President Clinton in 1996. It was started following a 1994 survey completed by the Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), which drew attention to a national problem. The survey revealed that many of our nation's children were not proficient readers and failed to meet basic reading requirements for their respective age groups. Research shows that children who have underdeveloped reading skills at the end of the third grade will have severe difficulty elevating these skills to the level of their peers in subsequent years of education. These children are also more likely to drop out of school. Such students find themselves at a social and economic disadvantage. Hope is created, however, by research showing early intervention can significantly improve students' reading abilities. The America Reads Challenge calls upon educators, parents, librarians, business people, senior citizens, college students, and community and religious groups to help all the country's children learn to read by the end of the third grade.

For a more in depth history of America Reads, visit the national site at http://www.ed.gov/americareads/aboutus_history.html

National Site • Contact Us