Letter

<Date>

<Name>

<Address>

<Address>

RE: Study of Teacher Preparation in Early Reading Instruction

Dear Dean <Name>:

<Institution Name> has been selected at random to be among a nationally-representative sample of 100 colleges and universities invited to participate in the Study of Teacher Preparation in Early Reading Instruction sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences of the U.S. Department of Education. The importance of a strong reading foundation has been well documented by rigorous research and is one of the primary goals of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, as is the development of highly qualified teachers. In the spirit of this legislation, Congress has mandated a study of the preparation of pre-service teachers related to early reading instruction.

The data gathering mechanism for the study is the Teacher Preparation Program and Knowledge Survey, which has been designed to measure pre-service teachers’ exposure to and knowledge of the essential components of early reading instruction.

If your institution agrees to participate in the study, we would ask you to allow us to select approximately 25 graduating pre-service teachers at random and recruit them to take the survey. All data will be collected on campus and will be kept confidential. The study has been approved by the American Institutes for Research’s Institutional Research Board (IRB). The IRB approval is included as an attachment.

We hope you will consider participating in this exciting study, and the study team welcomes your questions. We have enclosed materials about the study, and we urge you to share the extra copies with your colleagues. A member of the study team will contact you regarding your institution’s participation within the next week. In the meantime, you may contact a member of the study team at 1-866-380-READ (7323) or visit the project website at www.EarlyReadingInstruction.org if you have questions about participation.

Sincerely,

Terry Salinger, Ph.D.

Principal Investigator

Chief Scientist for Reading Research

American Institutes for Research

Optimal Solutions Group: 8100 Professional Place, Suite 312 |Hyattsville, MD 20785

American Institutes for Research: 1000 Thomas Jefferson Street, NW |Washington, DC 20007

Phone: 866-380-READ (7323) | Fax: 443-378-7443

E-mail: info@EarlyReadingInstruction.org | Website: www.EarlyReadingInstruction.org