I appreciate the attention the editorial "To improve reading, go 'back to basics'" draws to the fact that 43 percent of Massachusetts third-graders read below grade level. This puts them at serious risk of not graduating from high school or contributing to the state's knowledge-based economy.

To reverse this problem, we must ensure that all children have access to high-quality early education, one of the few strategies with a proven positive effect on children's later performance in school. This means ensuring that early educators -- in preschools, center-based programs, and family child-care settings -- have the training to help young children develop the language skills that provide the foundation for successful reading. It means linking completion of that education and training to increased compensation for a field that has been traditionally underpaid. It means supporting the state's pilot Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS), which assesses program quality, offers incentives for improvement and, ultimately, will provide parents with valuable information. It means having communities align their public and private early-education curriculum and goals with the educational objectives and programs in grades one, two and three.

Working together, we can ensure that all children become strong readers.

MARCIA L. FARRIS, Executive Director

Mass. Association for the Education of Young Children