Literacy Development of Students in Urban Schools: Research and Policy

This collection of 26 articles from a conference of the International Reading Association in spring 2003 describes efforts to increase literacy in urban schools. These include the human context, such as poverty, school violence and health concerns; school contexts, including curriculum, students and teachers; and political and organizational contexts, including local and state agendas. Many of the findings show that progress is being made in some areas, including achievement in high-poverty schools and exemplary reading programs at both the elementary and high school levels. However, contributors also find that the gap between the achievement of students in poverty and those in more comfortable circumstances continues to widen, that programs and curricula are often imposed on schools without consideration of the students' needs and culture, and student health and violence affect the ability to learn. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR