ABSTRACT
The ability to read and comprehend texts is critical for successful functioning in society as well as for lifelong learning. Despite enormous efforts by researchers, educators, and policymakers, many children struggle to learn to read. In the United States, over one-third of fourth grade students and one-quarter of eighth grade students cannot read at a basic level (National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), 2005). These reading difficulties often persist into adulthood: approximately 23% of U.S. adults meet only basic reading proficiency levels (NCES, 2004). In Canada, although the average performance of students on measures of reading tends to be in the upper quartile (Coulombe, Tremblay, & Marchand, 2004), approximately 30% of all students tested every year perform well below their grade level. Similar situations are described in other countries, including in Europe. For example, in the Netherlands, where reading achievement tends to be near the top amongst European countries (Mullis, Martin, Gonzalez, & Kennedy, 2001), 10–15% of Group 6 (equivalent to fourth grade in the USA) children do not have adequate reading skills (Verhoeven, Biemond, Gijsel, & Netten, 2007).
