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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 13, 2000

Statement

Statement of National Education Association President Bob Chase on the National Reading Panel Report on Reading Instruction

The National Education Association applauds today's report from the National Reading Panel and welcomes the attention that it focuses on the crucial role of teachers, parents, policymakers, and others in the teaching, learning, and love of reading.

Just as the panel found that there is no one way to teach reading, NEA's own task force of expert reading teachers agrees that reading success depends on the expertise of teachers and their ability to be flexible in making decisions about what instructional approaches to use, when, and with which students.

To ensure that the classroom experiences of teachers and students measure up to the expectations raised by the availability of clear, reliable, and tested reading research, NEA will continue its fight for smaller class sizes. Why? Because we know that student achievement in reading, as well as in other subjects, depends on the time and attention that teachers have to spend with each and every student.

The reading panel report highlights the need for high quality preservice and inservice professional development for reading teachers, as well as those in other subject areas. NEA agrees and is committed to quality professional development for teachers that starts with preservice education, continues with mentoring and other support for new teachers, and doesn't end until the teacher leaves the classroom.

We recognize that learning to read is the gateway to student achievement. But we also believe that the love of reading is a quality that can be nurtured as well. NEA will continue to advocate after-school and summer reading programs for students; provide parents with tips and advice for raising successful readers; and celebrate the joys of reading with NEA's Read Across America, which has become the nation's -- if not the world's -- largest literacy event.

Today's report is another exciting step in the challenge to create a nation of readers. We look forward to working with educators, health professionals, parents, students, businesses, community organizations, policymakers, and others in meeting this challenge.

Together we can make it a reality.

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing more than 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support personnel, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.