TY - JOUR T1 - Improving Reading Skills by Encouraging Children to Read in School: JF - Journal of Human Resources JO - J Hum Resour SP - 611 LP - 633 DO - 10.3368/jhr.49.3.611 VL - 49 IS - 3 AU - Ama Baafra Abeberese AU - Todd J. Kumler AU - Leigh L. Linden Y1 - 2014/07/01 UR - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/49/3/611.abstract N2 - We show that a short-term (31-day) reading program, designed to provide age-appropriate reading material, to train teachers in their use, and to support teachers’ initial efforts for about a month, improves students’ reading skills by 0.13 standard deviations. The effect is still present three months after the program but diminishes to 0.06 standard deviations, probably due to a reduced emphasis on reading after the program. We find that the program also encourages students to read more on their own at home. We find no evidence that improved reading ability improves test scores on other subjects. ER -