ABSTRACT
The National Literacy Strategy (NLS) for England was launched at a London conference in 1997. During the conference, the opposition spokesperson for Education, David Blunkett, announced a target that, if his party came to power the following May, 80 per cent of 11-year-olds in England would reach Level 4 in reading by 2002 (the target was later adjusted to Level 4 in English). The ambitious nature of this target is underlined by the fact that in 1996 the percentage of pupils achieving Level 4 in reading was only 58 per cent. Level 4 is the standard in reading and writing expected to be gained by the average 11-year-old in their endof-year national test. Speaking at the same conference, Professor Bob Slavin commented that the announcement reminded him of President Kennedy’s 1962 target of getting a man on the moon by the end of the decade. Only, added Professor Slavin, the NLS target was more difficult.
