What Really Matters for Struggling Readers: Designing Research-Based Programs (2nd Edition) (What Really Matters Series)

book was in great shape and arrive super early. was very pleased with the service.

This an excellent book for reading specialist, Literacy Coaches or Title I teachers. It really explains how to detect the early signs of reading difficulties. GREAT BOOK!!

This book has helped me tremendously in redesigning my reading program. As a special education teacher I am always looking for new concepts when it comes to my struggling readers.

Dr. Richard Allington continues to provide a research-based perspective that goes beyond the quick fixes, commercial-for-profit programs, and the political rhetoric of the day. If you really want to understand reading and learn a variety of research-based strategies that can be used to enhance reading, this is the book for you. There are plenty of practical strategies for teachers as well as parents. However, if you are looking for simplistic fixes (more phonics, more tests, more homework), I would advise you to go to your conservative "think" tanks and listen to politicians who have never read a research study.

How beneficial you will find this book depends on your background. If you are a parent, teacher, or college student trying to learn about basic research on reading, then this book is for you. This book gave me a nice review, but if you are familiar with the original research, you may want to skip this as something you already know.

Allington presents education and cognitive psychology research in a way that is informative and makes it easy for anyone to understand. Due to my background in cognitive psychology, I've read a lot of the original research on which this book is based. I think Allington gives a good overview of other people's research, while still giving his own take on the information. He does not discredit research, but makes you aware of the limitations of some experimental designs. Reading research is a relatively new field, most of which has occurred in the last fifteen to twenty years. Some results may seem obvious now, but may not have been a decade ago. Also, even if you think something is true, you always have to test it using a good experimental design. Allington's summaries allow you to decide for yourself if you accept the experimental conclusions.

I also think Allington did a good job of making practical suggestions that incorporates the research, so you can use it in the classroom or at least make informed decisions. That is probably most people's purpose for reading this book-practical applications. I like that there is more and more of a collaboration between teachers and researchers. This book is a good steping stone to that end.


I hope Allington continues to upgrade this book and write more like it.