Reading disability and illiteracy are among the most pressing educational issues facing the United States today. At least 40 percent of America's fourth-graders are unable to read at grade level and a similar proportion of adults read at the lowest two levels of prose literacy. Here, the authors present an unflinching examination of the science and politics of reading disability in this country. This book sheds light on the philosophical, pedagogical, and cultural causes of reading failure and reveals the scientific findings that point to promising solutions. Included are: (1) The story of Oregon's Bethel School District where disadvantaged children are becoming top-notch readers and special-education referrals have been reduced as a result of using the "three-tier" model for preventing and treating reading disabilities; (2) The faulty assumptions underlying many current teaching practices; (3) An overview of the dangerous ideologies that hurt children and hinder educational progress; and (4) Studies showing an anomaly in the way disabled readers' brains process print. This book is organized into the following six chapters: (1) Reading Disability: The Biological and Instructional Roots; (2) The Reading Wars: Four Hundred Years of Stalemate; (3) Collateral Damage: How Failed Reading Policies Hurt Kids; (4) Bringing Reason to Reading: What Modern Science Reveals; (5) Before Kids Fail: The Three Tiers of Prevention; and (6) It's Never Too Late: Rescuing Struggling Readers at Any Age.