A study was conducted to test the revisionist theory which holds that students are channeled into good or poor reading groups, depending on the socioeconomic status of their parents as perceived by the teacher. The theory also maintains that there is a detrimental lack of mobility between groups within a given class and from grade to grade. The sample for the study involved primary school students and teachers, while a follow-up study one year later involved the same students and their new teachers. In the first year, teachers provided information pertaining to the reading ability of 2,362 students, and the teachers' perceptions of each child's background. A questionnaire was sent to each child's home requesting information on parents' occupations, education, and income. The next year, the new teachers provided information on each student's new reading status. The results indicated that reading ability and general ability were significant factors in reading group placement, but home background and physical attractiveness were irrelevant. The amount of time teachers spent with good and poor groups was about the same. The results also indicated that while there was little mobility between groups in a given year, there was significant mobility from one year to the next. Overall, the study did not support the revisionist theory. (HTH)