Every Child a Reader
Sometimes SHINE joins forces with other organisations to fund initiatives that tackle large problems on a grand scale and at a rapid pace. Poor literacy is a classic example, so Every Child a Reader places highly skilled Reading Recovery teachers in inner-city schools to provide intensive help to children with severe literacy difficulties.
The programme has proved hugely successful, with participating children improving much faster than normal; by 2011, it will have helped 30,000 primary children like Andrew get their reading back on track.
The grant recipient
The Every Child a Chance Trust aims to unlock the educational potential of socially disadvantaged children through the development and promotion of evidence-based, early intervention programmes. It was established in 2007 following the enormous success of the Every Child a Reader project.
The Every Child A Reader project
What it aims to do
The Every Child a Reader project was spearheaded by the KPMG Foundation and started as a £10 million funding partnership between charities, the business sector and government. Between 2005 and 2008 the project achieved all its main targets:
- to reach 5,000 children with the Reading Recovery programme, particularly those living in areas of high social deprivation
- to secure sustainable investment for widespread implementation of Reading Recovery
- to explore how intensive support in reading can be provided most cost-effectively in a national context
The Every Child a Reader project is currently being rolled out nationwide with the aim of reducing the 'long tail of under-achievement': those leaving primary school without even the very basic literacy skills, from 7% to a minimum of 2-3%
The government is funding delivery of the roll-out and The Every Child a Chance Trust continues to be involved:
- advising on delivery
- independently monitoring and evaluating impact
- reporting directly to the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families
How it works
The Every Child a Reader initiative funds and trains Reading Recovery teachers in inner-city schools to provide intensive help to children with severe literacy difficulties.
Reading Recovery is a teaching programme aimed at children who, after one year of schooling, show they are struggling to learn to read and to write. Children taking part in Reading Recovery receive individual tuition from specially trained teachers for half an hour daily over three to four months.
Results
The impact of the Every Child a Reader project is evaluated through:
- termly and annual data collection of reading levels
- formal research by the Institute of Education
- follow up at the end of key stages 1 and 2
Results for children taking part in the project since 2005 show:
- the average progress made in reading age was 21 months over a 4-5 month period - well over four times the normal rate of progress(in the first year of the project the Institute of Education tracked a control group of children not receiving Reading Recovery intervention and the average progress in reading age was 7 months over an 11 month period)
- 77% of children who have completed the programme(all who started with reading levels well below that expected for their age) now have literacy levels at least appropriate to their age
- writing has also improved markedly
- Reading Recovery children continue to be significantly ahead of their peers in reading
The funding
SHINE made a founding sponsorship grant for the Every Child a Reader project and an additional grant to contribute to monitoring the nationwide roll-out. Other funding is provided by the KPMG Foundation, DCSF and other trusts and foundations.
Funding: £300,000 to the KPMG Foundation, over three years (2005-08) and £10,000 to the Every Child a Chance Trust, over one year (2008-09)
Visit the Every Child A Reader website: http://www.everychildareader.org
Visit the Every Child a Chance Trust website: http://www.everychildachancetrust.org/
