Associated Press - November 1, 2009 1:35 PM ET

GILLETTE, Wyo. (AP) - A program put in place by the Campbell County School District intended to improve student reading skills by hooking kids on reading appears to be having mixed success.

The district in 1996 added what it calls sustained silent reading, where students for 20 minutes each day concentrate on reading books, magazines, newspapers or class material.

But for the last four years, statewide tests of Campbell County High School juniors found that only 65 to 69 percent are reading at a proficient or advanced level.

That put Campbell County in the middle of similarly sized Wyoming schools.

And last spring, the number of Campbell County High School students deemed "advanced" readers in a statewide test was 5.64 percent.

That's the lowest among 12 similarly sized Wyoming schools.

Laramie High School was the highest with 25.60 percent of students deemed advanced readers.

Information from: The Gillette News Record - Gillette, http://www.gillettenewsrecord.com

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