Struggling Readers in Secondary Schools Survey

 Based on a national survey of teachers, principals, and district leaders, this report highlights widespread concerns—especially in higher-poverty schools—and examines key questions about training, resources, and family support. Data-driven findings point to solutions for strengthening secondary literacy. Topics include training on how to support middle and high school students struggling with basic reading skills, resources to help educators assist those students, and the role of parental support.

Struggling readers in secondary schools: Results of a national survey. (2026) Education Week.

https://www.edweek.org/research-center/reports/struggling-readers-in-secondary-schools-results-of-a-national-survey?utm_source=eb&utm_medium=eml&utm_campaign=RCReport&M=17140198&UUID=38915a68716182c0a0b20ace8b5219f7&T=22403136

Reading Aloud to Children Study

 Reading aloud to children, even after they can read independently, provides benefits beyond literacy, according to a recent study. It found that just 15 minutes of shared reading each night helped strengthen children's empathy and creativity, Furthermore, it doesn't matter if the reader asks questions or not. 

Winter, M. et al. (2026). Keep the bedtime story: A daily reading ritual improves empathy and creativity in children. PlusOne. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0340068

Family media use study

 A national study found that completing a family media use plan was not linked to statistically significant changes in media rule engagement among adolescents. An editorial that was published alongside the study delved into some of the reasons that can complicate using a family media use plan in adolescents including the increasing use of screens in both education and socialization as well as the urge to fight against parental expectations.

Moreno M, Binger K, Zhao Q, Eickhoff J. Effect of a family media use plan on media rule engagement among adolescents. JAMA Pediatrics. January 25, 2021. Epub ahead of print. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2020.5629

https://www.contemporarypediatrics.com/view/do-media-plans-impact-teen-media-use

Media Use by Tweens and Teens 2019

This census report is a big-picture look at how young people in the U.S. find entertainment and use devices. Beyond screen time, the report explores other critical challenges for families managing media use, from internet access for homework to unregulated, unrated online videos.

Common Sense Media. (2019). Common Sense census: Media use by tweens and teens 2019. San Francisco, CA: Common Sense Media.  

https://www.commonsensemedia.org/research/the-common-sense-census-media-use-by-tweens-and-teens-2019?j=7514895&sfmc_sub=168224478&l=2048712_HTML&u=137031445&mid=6409703&jb=220&utm_source=research_8-18census_2019&utm_medium=email 

 

Distributing Books to Support Children’s Learning

This study examines a community-wide effort to promote greater access to books through the mechanisms of physical and psychological proximity. It addresses the seasonal summer slide through an innovative book distribution program in neighborhoods identified as book deserts. Four low-income neighborhoods were provided with vending machines used to dispense free children’s books over the summer months. Within a design research framework, the study was designed to capture how, why, and in what ways these machines were used in communities. Results indicated that providing greater access through close physical proximity to books and greater adult support enhanced children’s opportunities to learn.

Neuman, S. B., & Knapczyk, J. J. (2018). Reaching families where they are: Examining an innovative book distribution program. Urban Education. https://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0042085918770722

School readiness report

Based on a comprehensive review of cognitive and developmental psychology studies, this paper finds that school readiness is multifaceted and not limited to early reading and mathematics skills, but rather includes a wide range of components including executive function skills, curiosity, language, socio-emotional well-being, motor skills, and health.  This position paper aims to highlight these skills and the conditions that best support children’s future success in school and life, and to guide educators and others (including families) in designing learning experiences and  environments to support this development.
Center for Childhood Creativity. (2016). Reimagining school readiness: A position paper with key findings.  San Francisco, CA: Center for Childhood Creativity.
 http://centerforchildhoodcreativity.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/03/SchoolReadinessPositionPaper_Issuu.pdf 

Social class changes research

The 2014 book The Long Shadow draws insights plucked from three decades spent diligently tracking nearly 800 Baltimore inner-city kids, from first grade to age 28 or 29. The  researchers found that the resources and strength of a child’s family tended to exert a powerful influence over a child’s future. Poor kids tended to become poor adults, with surprisingly few kids jumping up or down the socioeconomic ladder in Baltimore. Mostly, kids grew up only to arrive where they started.
The finding has major implications for health, too, since ample research has long shown that income and education levels – one’s socioeconomic status – are strongly linked to all sorts of health measures, including disease susceptibility and lifespan. The entrenched poverty and lack of social mobility that researchers found in Baltimore raises questions about the prospects for success of the battle to reduce class- and race-based health disparities.

Karl Alexander, Doris Entwisle, Linda Olson. (2014). The long shadow. Russell Sage Foundation.

Families, libraries and reading study

The vast majority of parents of minor children — children younger than 18 — feel libraries are very important for their children. That attachment carries over into parents’ own higher-than-average use of a wide range of library services. Parents (especially mothers) are also more likely than other adults in expanding library services, including tech-related services. Furthermore, lower income parents are more likely to view library services as very important. These conclusions reinforce the importance of families and libraries in children's reading habits.
Miller, et al. (2013). Parents, children, libraries, and reading. Washington, DC: Pew Research Center.
http://libraries.pewinternet.org/2013/05/01/parents-children-libraries-and-reading/

Achievement Gap reports

The Casey Foundation published a series of eight reports about closing the achievement gap. The Foundation advocates supporting quality school choices and strong connections between schools, families, and communities.
Read, T. (2008). Closing the achievement gap. Baltimore: Casey Foundation.
http://www.aecf.org/KnowledgeCenter/PublicationsSeries/ClosingAchievementGap.aspx