NATION RECEIVES READING REPORT CARD MARCH 7;
U.Va. Experts Can Evaluate the Grades

The U.S. Education Department is expected to release this week the
Nation's Report Card describing the results of reading testing in
schools nationwide.  

For 1994, the most recent test results, Virginia was in the middle,
but its ranking had dropped 10 percent from 1992 scores.  

The seriousness of the decline in reading performance is underscored
in research conducted by Connie Juel, a nationally recognized expert
in pre-school and early reading instruction.  Juel, the Thomas A.
Jewell Professor in Reading at the University of Virginia, has found
that if children leave first grade as poor readers, there is a 90
percent chance they will still be poor readers in fourth grade.

For more information on factors that influence early reading
success, contact Connie Juel at (804) 924-1380 or via
clj3r@virginia.edu. 

Because poor readers face long-term academic and societal
difficulties, a current emphasis in reading instruction is on early
intervention, says Peter Dewitz, who directs U.Va.'s TEMPO Reading
Program, which yearly provides graduate courses in literacy
education to approximately 750 educators at more than 40 sites.

Another emphasis in reading instruction is on comprehension and
passing such tests as the Literacy Passport, Dewitz noted.  Many
states, including Virginia, have considered requiring more frequent
reading testing. 

"In states where schools may be required to administer more testing,
it is critical that tests be designed to give teachers information
that can help students," Dewitz said.

Through his tutoring, research and training, Dewitz is convinced
that teachers need literacy education.  "Teachers need to understand
how children read and design strategies that will encourage students
to become active readers. Students' reading comprehension soars when
they feel engaged in the learning process," he said.

For more information, Peter Dewitz can be reached at (804) 924-0752.

Both educators hope the Nation's Report Card will focus parents' and
educators' attention on the fundamental importance of reading.

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March 6, 1996