Improve Early Grade-Level Reading

Accountability

Measuring results through the fourth-grade reading and math scores (as measured by the NAEP) provides policymakers with two key indicators for tracking the impact of policies along the birth through early elementary school-age continuum. There is no one indicator of success. Healthy child development has many dimensions, including nurturing parenting, educational stimulation, and access to quality health care. Policymakers can begin to measure progress by examining third grade reading and math.

Using These Measures, Policymakers Can:

• Set broad outcomes (e.g. the percentage of children who read at grade level by the end of third grade) and track progress annually.

• Get commitment on indicators. Establish a set of specific measurable indicators that you want to improve in order to achieve measurable progress on the broad outcome goal.

• Use data. Using census data, national data sets, and state administrative data is key to tracking trends over time in the outcomes and indicators. Include trends at the local level and in high risk subgroups (i.e. by race/ethnicity, income, special needs, gender, etc.) as well as the state as a whole.

• Publicly report on trends over time for key outcomes and indicators.

Setting indicators.  To assess the many influences on early academic success, policymakers may want  to examine a range of indicators in addition to academic performance. The National Educational Goals Panel determined that measuring school readiness required three components: readiness in the child, readiness in the school, and readiness in communities and families. [i] To be most useful as a tool to inform policy decisions, each indicator selected should meet the following criteria: 

• Is something you care about enough to measure and track. Reflects an important child, family, or community outcome. Reflects access to service systems or programs that are “widely accepted” as important to child outcomes. (For example, health insurance coverage, early prenatal care, high quality child care).

• Has policy relevance. Can be influenced by program or policy changes. Helps to better understand the impact of investments or policy choices. Is something policymakers want to know.

• Enables states to assess gaps, with special attention to populations at high risk. Measures the conditions of children, by race/ethnicity and family income. Uses accessible data that is timely and available on an annual basis. Tracks data for the state as a whole and for local communities (county, city, town, school or, neighborhood).

• Uses measures that are developmentally-appropriate. Addresses special considerations by age group: birth to age 3, preschool and kindergarten to third grade. Addresses the special needs of children with disabilities.

• Uses measures that are relevant across all racial, cultural and language groups. [ii]