The Reading First Program is a federal program to help states and local school districts eliminate the reading deficit by establishing high-quality, comprehensive reading instruction in grades kindergarten through grade 3.The program is designed to select, implement, and provide professional development for teachers using SBRR programs and to ensure accountability through ongoing, valid and reliable screening, diagnostic, and classroom-based assessment

The United States Department of Education, Office of Inspector General
did an audit, entitled Review of the Georgia Reading First Program, to determine whether the Georgia Department of Education (GDOE) (1) developed and used criteria for selecting the scientifically based reading research (SBRR) programs in accordance with the law and regulations; and (2) approved the local education agencies’ (LEA) applications in accordance with the law and regulations.The audit covered the period May 1, 2002, through September 30, 2005. The Dept. of Education awarded GDOE about $90.8 million in Reading First funds during the audit period.

The findings were:
1. GDOE did not have written policies and procedures in place and did not adequately manage several areas of the LEA (local education agency) grant application process.GDOE’s policies and procedures for implementing the Reading First program were primarily based on the memory of the Reading First staff and were not always consistently applied.
2.There was no assurance that Grant Reviewer Qualifications met experienc requirements.The GDOE official responsible for overseeing the contracting of the grant reviewers stated that GDOE did not have time to verify all of the qualifications of grant application reviewers.
3.Adequate guidance was not provided to grant reviewers and grant reviewers’ comments were not reviewed.
4.LEA private school consultation was not verified or documented.

In addition,the program, which was intended to ensure that all lower-income children learned to read, awarded grants to states to buy reading textbooks and tests. It turned out to be a bonanza for certain textbook publishers and authors. A half-dozen experts setting guidelines for which reading textbooks and tests could be purchased by schools were also the authors of textbooks and tests that ended up being used.

Not to be too negative, but how is the summer school program any different than the program that has been shoved down the kids' thoats all year long??? If it didn't work the first time, why will it work now? The concept of children and/or people learning in different ways has been around for a long time. Clearly, there are multiple issues about these tests and scores, so why are they children bearing the brunt of the sins of the adults?