Teacher Preparation in Early Reading Instruction

An important part of the No Child Left Behind Act (PL 107-110) legislation is its statement that all students, regardless of the schools they attend, have the right to be taught by “highly qualified teachers.” The Reading First Program (Title I, Part B, Subpart 1), built on years of scientific research in reading, specifies the five components of reading instruction that research has linked to improved reading achievement. The current study seeks to answer two questions, a) to what extent does the content of teacher education programs focus on the essential components of early reading education, and b) to what extent are graduating pre-service teachers knowledgeable about the essential components of early reading instruction?

To answer the first study question, a survey will be developed and administered to a nationally-representative sample of pre-service teachers who are in the last year of their programs of study. To answer the second question, an assessment will be administered to this same sample.