The Literacy Crisis: False Claims, Real Solutions

How dare Jeff McQuillan use reason along with research to come to a conclusion. Aren't we, in America, supposed to come to conclusions based on perception? Aren't we supposed to let long-winded talk show hosts describe our reality and define our values? A MUST read for any teacher, principal, reading specialist, literacy educatory, school board member, or politician who makes important decisions relative to education.

If you are looking for a book that tells it like it is based on research, rather political posturing, this is a must-read. McQuillan looks at prevalent myths that drive how teachers, parents, and policy-makers think and make decisions about literacy, and shows that the real problem is a paucity of books. This well-research, well-reasoned, and well-written book answered a lot of questions I had about why reading and writing is being taught using current methods and how we can improve what we are doing for our kids. I highly recommend it!

Don't miss this outstanding book on reading. It is clearly written and soundly argued. It is a must read for parents, teachers, and researchers.

How can children learn to read if there is nothing for them to read? This book points to the real reading problem in the U.S. and a way to improve reading scores!

This book provides a clear and concise critique of prevailing myths about literacy in the United States. Based on solid scientific research, McQuillan's book calmly but thoroughly exposes the falsehoods behind the current hysteria over our national "crisis" in reading in the public schools. Parents, teachers, and public officials will benefit greatly from McQuillan's impressive treatment of the research on how children learn to read and what really counts in reading achievement.The book begins with a powerful and persuasive examination of how well U.S. students read. The first chapter, "What Isn't Wrong With Reading: Seven Myths About Literacy in the United States," is alone worth the price of the book. In it, McQuillan shows (among other things) that reading achievement has NOT declined in the United States, that American children read as well or better than students in other countries, and that "whole language" teaching methods have not led to declining test scores. The rest of the book is equally thought-provoking and well-argued. Chapters 2 and 3 provide an explanation of how children learn to read, and how they get the necessary knowledge to do so. Chapter 4 looks at the relationships between age and reading, and Chapter 5 takes on the controversial issue of sound and reading. McQuillan's use of the research evidence in this latter chapter is particularly compelling, demonstrating that much of the enthusiasm for phonics in the teaching of reading is misplaced. The sixth chapter takes on a variety of thorny questions, but as usual McQuillan handles the complex array of studies with aplomb and clarity.The final chapter of the book, Real Crises, Real Solutions, is a powerful expose on the desperate inequalities that lie at the heart of what is the real crisis in American reading: a woeful lack of access to reading materials. McQuillan shows the importance of a "print rich" environment for children of all ages, and how children attending many of our inner city schools are being deprived of that critical element in their schooling. It is this lack of resources, McQuillan correctly notes, that we should be most concerned about.In short, The Literacy Crisis is a fascinating book, well supported and documented by an expert researcher.