'Segregated' schools hinder reading skills

CHAPEL HILL, N.C., June 20 (UPI) -- A U.S. study finds children from low-income families attending schools in which most students are minority group members under-perform in reading.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers said the majority of black and Hispanic U.S. children attend schools in which the minority population exceeds 75 percent of the total enrollment. The study found such children under-perform in reading, even after accounting for the quality of the literacy instruction, literary experiences at home, gender, race and other variables.

Researchers examined reading developmental skills exhibited from kindergarten to third grade by 1,913 economically disadvantaged children.

"Good instruction is essential, but it's not enough," said Kirsten Kainz, a senior research associate in the university's School of Education and author of the study. "Most current reading instruction initiatives and policies are aimed at improving classroom instruction.

"This research shows that characteristics of the child, the home, the classroom and the school influence reading development, and that maximally effective reading policy should address all four systems simultaneously."

The study showed the percentage of struggling readers in a classroom negatively influenced every student's reading performance, erasing any benefits of comprehensive literacy instruction.