Are Latin American Children’s Reading Skills Improving? Highlights from the Second and Third Regional Comparative and Explanatory Studies(SERCE & TERCE)

Abstract

The document presents a summary of highlights from the TERCE reading results as an input to and stimulus for discussions of early grade reading in the region, and to demonstrate the ever more urgent need to improve reading outcomes in the early grades. The recent results across the region, particularly in the lower grades and in the LRCP priority countries generally, paint a disheartening picture in which the majority of children are not reaching satisfactory levels of achievement in this fundamental skill which serves as the foundation of future learning. The results underline the need for the prioritization of and commitment to understanding and implementing effective strategies for early grade reading to ensure better opportunities and a brighter future for the region’s children.