Progress in International Reading Literacy Study, 2011

The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study, 2011 (PIRLS 2011) is part of the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) program; program data are available since 2001 at https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/getpubcats.asp?sid=099. PIRLS 2011 (https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/pirls/) is a cross-sectional study that provides international comparative information of the reading literacy of fourth-grade students and examines factors that may be associated with the acquisition of reading literacy in young students. The study was conducted using questionnaires and direct assessments of fourth-grade students. In the United States a total of 370 schools and 12,726 fourth-grade students participated in 2011. The final weighted student response rate was 96 percent and the final weighted school response rate was 85 percent. The overall weighted response rate was 81 percent. Key statistics produced from PIRLS 2011 are how well fourth-grade students read, how students in one country compare with students in another country, how much fourth-grade students value and enjoy reading, and internationally, how the reading habits and attitudes of students vary.