An Elinet Blog by Colin Harrison
First published on the European School Education Platform, April 10 2025, by European Commission. We have permission to publish this article also as an ELINET blog post

Reading scores were down in almost every European nation that participated in the PISA 2022 tests – often by the largest margin ever. How can this trend be reversed?

Preschool child reading a picture book with simple words
Lina Kivaka / Pexels

This decline in international reading test scores is not new: in most nations reading scores had already been declining for more than a decade.

In response to this, the European Commission asked an international group of literacy experts to put together a report that would, drawing upon on the latest evidence-based research, provide guidance for policymakers and teachers on how reading should be taught. That report has now been published as Effective practices for literacy teaching.

Importance of early years literacy

The main focus of the report is on how reading should be taught in schools, but as dozens of research studies have shown, many of the skills that determine how quickly and how well a child will learn to read are developed before school begins.

To cite just one example, a Danish study found that data on three-year-olds’ language skills before they began school was a highly significant predictor of reading comprehension ability at the end of secondary schooling.

The report provides recommendations on support for parents during a child’s early years, and also argues for wider provision of early childhood education and care (ECEC) across Europe. It pays special attention to the needs of migrant and vulnerable communities, with publicly funded provision for all, and special attention given to accessibility, staff training, a coherent curriculum and careful monitoring and evaluation of ECEC centres.

From decoding to comprehension in reading

This report also recommends that the teaching of reading should be personalised in primary school, with reading and reading achievement celebrated as often as possible. Teaching decoding (i.e. letter-sound relationship) must be balanced with teaching the enjoyment of stories and writing, and the development of comprehension should be linked with developing speech and vocabulary.

The development of digital skills also begins in primary school. Support for struggling readers is vital, and every teacher should have some knowledge of how to deliver it.

The report places a new emphasis on the importance of children’s speech. The authors argue that every teacher (and every parent) must understand how valuable singing songs, hearing stories and poems read aloudand participating in conversations about what they have read and heard is for children who are learning to read.

Crucially, stories introduce children to other worlds, other children and other cultures, and invite them to find their place in those worlds. Literature develops the imagination, and as the events in a story unfold in the imagination, the child’s cognitive development is supported.

Research has also demonstrated that not only can small-group talk develop children’s independence and confidence, it can significantly enhance their vocabulary and their comprehension.

We have known for years that good teaching of phonics, coupled with positive experiences with books, can enable most children to be able to read, in the sense of being able to decode the text on the page.

But word-recognition is not enough. The ultimate goal of reading is not decoding – it is comprehension, and it turns out that this is much more difficult to teach. Comprehension is only possible if a reader has both adequate vocabulary knowledge and some knowledge of how texts work, at the sentence level and at the whole-text level. Once a child has a grasp of the basics of word recognition, it is really only through reading that these skills are developed further.

Reading while listening to a teacher read a story or listening to a text being read on a screen can be very valuable, but researchers all over the world have also found that children reading in a small group, without a teacher, can make astonishing gains in both comprehension and self-efficacy (a person’s confidence in their ability to complete a task or achieve a goal). This approach has been successful at primary and secondary levels, and with struggling or reluctant readers.

Effective practices: reciprocal teaching

However, it’s not a good idea to simply ask children to get in a group and read – most children will work well in a group only if they have a clear task and a role that they understand.

‘Reciprocal teaching’ is the best-known approach to this. The ‘reciprocal’ aspect involves the child taking a turn in the group at being the ‘teacher’. The method involves four strategies that are first demonstrated by the teacher and then gradually imitated by the pupils until they can do them independently.

1. Making predictions: making predictions about the text based on the title or other clues and then having all pupils read the first paragraph silently.
2. Formulating questions: pupil A takes on the role of teacher and formulates a question about the passage, with help from classmates if needed.
3. Summarising: pupil B summarises the passage.
4. Seeking explanations: pupil C gives explanations (if necessary).

Then, pupil D predicts what will happen in the next passage, and the cycle begins again.

While they are completing these tasks, the teacher guides the pupils as much as necessary and gives feedback at the end. A research review of over 800 papers on educational achievement reported that reciprocal teaching was one of the most valuable approaches available to teachers for improving comprehension.

Small-group reading improves comprehension and confidence

Improving comprehension is important not only in primary school. It is also essential in secondary school, across the curriculum. The good news is that small-group reading activities similar to reciprocal teaching have also been shown to improve pupils’ comprehension and deepen their understanding of complex concepts in high school lessons.

Research into the vital areas of digital and media literacy has also shown that small-group conversations can help pupils to learn with each other how best to evaluate the relevance and trustworthiness of internet sites.

Studies at both primary and secondary level have shown that pupils in small groups can demonstrate an awareness of the extent to which fake news and advertising can try to manipulate the internet audience. Furthermore, they can learn from each other how to move from seeking a single ‘truthful’ answer to accepting that in many cases, ‘truth’ is elusive, or dependent on an individual’s personal value system.

Conclusions

Clearly there are far-reaching social, educational and political implications that arise from this report. Most countries need to do more to support new parents as they help their child to prepare for school. There are also significant implications for pre-service and in-service teacher education. Changes to pedagogical and digital environments in education will continue to make exceptional demands of teachers and test their ability to adapt to new modes of learning and assessment.

However, willingness to bring about change to help improve literacy standards is evident across Europe, and this is both important and desirable. Improved literacy is associated not only with greater GDP, it is also life-enhancing: greater literacy leads to better employment opportunities, longer life expectancy and healthier, happier families.

References

Frost J, Madsbjerg S, Niedersøe J, Olofsson Å, Sørensen PM. Semantic and phonological skills in predicting reading development: From 3–16 years of age. Dyslexia. 2005;11(2):79-92.

Harrison C, Brooks G, Pearson PD, Sulkunen S, Valtin R. ‘Effective practices for literacy teaching’. EENEE-NESET report. 2025. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union. doi: 10.2766/485436.