According to the Florida Center for Reading Research, Renaissance Learning offers a seemingly endless list of Accelerated Reader books and quizzes. However, schools can only offer those titles for which they've purchased quizzes. The International Reading Association reports that among some researchers "the only disadvantage of using AR ... was limited book selections." This negative effect impacts good readers more, as those students are more likely to have specific reading interests.
While each school implements the Accelerated Reader program differently, a constant is the program's use of extrinsic motivators. Students earn points for correctly answered quiz questions and then turn in the points for individual or group prizes. Many schools also make quiz scores part of the students' reading grades. The academic journal Reading Improvement points out that with Accelerated Reader, "the focus is on the prize, not on reading." Good readers read because it is enjoyable and not because they win points, making this focus on extrinsic motivators potentially negative.
When discussing books read, good teachers allow subject exploration without bias. Students are free to engage creatively and critically with the text. According the the American Association of School Librarians, programs like Accelerated Reader can "focus too much on competition and social comparison between children and make little attempt to spark children's interest in different topics." Even if some students respond positively to the point system used by Accelerated Reader, there is "no evidence of higher-level thinking skills being developed" among these readers, according to librarian Shondra Brisco.
Another concern about Accelerated Reader is with program implementation. As Project Innovation notes, almost 55,000 schools have the program but only 279,000 people have received training. "This factor can affect the degree to which the program is successful in motivating readers and in improving reading achievement." Well-trained teachers can limit other negative effects of the program.