Reading First was an educational initiative with a goal that every California student be reading at grade level by the end of the third grade. Part of the federal No Child Left Behind Act, Reading First was an intensive reading instructional program that was implemented in 649 California schools in 2003-2004. Reading First specifically targeted schools that appear to be experiencing the greatest difficulty in reading development.

Educational Data Systems was the Reading First program evaluator for the state of California. Our evaluation model includes combining a variety of test data with site visit interviews, surveys and program data to calculate both degree of implementation and student outcomes.