Inner-City Children Struggle To Read. "Most 4th graders who live in U.S. cities can’t read and understand a simple children’s book, and most 8th graders can’t use arithmetic to solve a practical problem." (Education Week, "Quality Counts ‘98, The Achievement Gap," January 8, 1998)

In The Highest-Poverty Schools, 68 Percent Of Fourth Graders Could Not Read At Basic Level In 1998, As Measured By The National Assessment Of Educational Progress (NAEP) Reading Exam. (National Assessment of Title I, National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education)

43 Percent Of Our Fourth-Graders Can’t Pass A Basic Reading Test. (Merrill Lynch & Co., The Book of Knowledge: Investing in the Growing Education and Training Industry, April 9, 1999)

Only About One In 10 High School Graduates Can Write A Reasonably Coherent Paragraph. (Merrill Lynch & Co., The Book of Knowledge: Investing in the Growing Education and Training Industry, April 9, 1999)

42 Million Adults In This Nation Are Functionally Illiterate. (Merrill Lynch & Co., The Book of Knowledge: Investing in the Growing Education and Training Industry, April 9, 1999)

Illiteracy Costs U.S. Businesses About $250 Billion Per Year In Lost Productivity. (Merrill Lynch & Co., The Book of Knowledge: Investing in the Growing Education and Training Industry, April 9, 1999)