International Citations relating to Reading Together®

IEA PIRLS 2021 Encyclopedia

The International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) is an international cooperative of national research institutions, governmental research agencies, scholars, and analysts working to research, understand, and improve education worldwide.

One of the core studies of IEA is the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS), an educational research study on children's reading literacy achievement conducted in countries around the world.

Excerpts from the PIRLS 2021 Encyclopedia: Education Policy and Curriculum in Reading:

The PIRLS 2021 Encyclopedia: Education Policy and Curriculum in Reading presents a profile of reading and language instruction in PIRLS 2021 countries and benchmarking systems. ...

Special Reading Initiatives
Some countries report reading initiatives that target families and emphasize parental involvement in the development of children’s literacy skills. In Chinese Taipei, multiple programs aim to increase the amount of time parents spend reading to young children, including Bookstart (sponsored by libraries) and Reach Out and Read Taiwan, in which pediatricians teach parents the benefits of reading aloud to children. Another example of this is in New Zealand, where a program called Reading Together® strives to promote coordination between parents and schools to improve students’ reading achievement. In Poland, parents are also encouraged to read to their children through the All of Poland Reads to Kids initiative.

Examples of successful parental-involvement programmes throughout the world

The OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) provides examples of successful parental-involvement programmes throughout the world, including Working with Māori extended families. The following is a quotation from Let's Read Them a Story! The Parent Factor in Education:

New Zealand: Working with Māori extended families
... The Ministry of Education also promotes the Reading Together® programme among whānau. Through this programme, whānau learn the reading strategies that teachers use to teach children how to read and are introduced to literacy resources available in their community. By improving the extended family's understanding of how children learn to read, they will be in a better position to work in a learning partnership with both their children and their children's teachers and schools. [p.47]

Note: Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) reports are the gold standard in educational achievement, attitudes and well-being across the OECD.