For grades one through three, the training is focused on implementation of the reading program. An advisory committee, composed of the school principal, the program facilitator, teacher representatives, a social worker, and Johns Hopkins research staff, meets weekly to review program progress. Research scientists have conducted a series of assessments of Success for All participants which indicate significant improvement in test scores, especially for those students whose pretest scores placed them in the lowest quarter of their grade. In fact, only 3.9 percent of third-graders in the program since the first grade are currently performing 2 years below grade level, compared with 11.7 percent of the matched control group students. Retention and special education placements have also declined significantly since the program was implemented.
Some critics question whether the program can really afford success for all.
This criticism notwithstanding, the assessment results indicate that Success for All can have substantial, positive effects on student achievement. Thus, while less expensive forms of Success for All can significantly increase the achievement of students in general, guaranteeing the success of every student requires more funding. These costs could be offset considerably by the savings realized from reductions in retention and special education placements. Other approaches to early intervention have similar costs and objectives. The most successful of these all have elements in common with Success for All.