Build a strong foundation
Reading is such an important function (all academic skills feed off of it), that I feel basic reading skills need to be mastered early in a student's development. Once basic reading skills are mastered, the likelihood of a student's success in every aspect of life increases.
The ability to read well positively affects the student and the learning environment. Not only can a student better understand material, but they are more likely to project proper classroom behavior and make the learning environment better for themselves, other learners and teachers.
Reading is a WIN WIN situation.
An elementary student should not be scoring C's & D's in their reading classes. They need to be allowed to be highly successful before moving on to a new stage of reading. The skill of reading needs to be instilled at this early age, so it is not an issue when the student reaches middle & high school.