Key points:

• A fun twist on a reading assignment boosted student engagement
• Revolutionizing storytelling with AI: Empowering ELLs
• We are just beginning the uphill climb to improve student reading scores
• For more news on reading engagement, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

When students become literacy influencers, reading transforms from a classroom task into a global conversation.

When teens take the mic

Recent studies show that reading for pleasure among teens is at an all-time low. According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), only 14 percent of U.S. students read for fun almost every day–down from 31 percent in 1984. In the UK, the National Literacy Trust reports that just 28 percent of children aged 8 to 18 said they enjoyed reading in their free time in 2023.

With reading engagement in crisis, one group of teens decided to flip the narrative–by turning on their cameras. What began as a simple classroom project to encourage reading evolved into a movement that amplified student voices, built confidence, and connected learners across cultures.

Rather than writing traditional essays or book reports, my students were invited to create short video book reviews of their favorite titles–books they genuinely loved, connected with, and wanted others to discover. The goal? To promote reading in the classroom and beyond. The result? A library of student-led recommendations that brought books–and readers–to life.

Project overview: Reading, recording, and reaching the world

As an ESL teacher, I’ve always looked for ways to make literacy feel meaningful and empowering, especially for students navigating a new language and culture. This video review project began with a simple idea: Let students choose a book they love, and instead of writing about it, speak about it. The assignment? Create a short, personal, and authentic video to recommend the book to classmates–and potentially, to viewers around the world.

Students were given creative freedom to shape their presentations. Some used editing apps like Filmora9 or Canva, while others recorded in one take on a smartphone. I offered a basic outline–include the book’s title and author, explain why you loved it, and share who you’d recommend it to–but left room for personal flair.

What surprised me most was how seriously students took the project. They weren’t just completing an assignment–they were crafting their voices, practicing communication skills, and taking pride in their ability to share something they loved in a second language.

Student spotlights: Book reviews with heart, voice, and vision

Each student’s video became more than a book recommendation–it was an expression of identity, creativity, and confidence. With a camera as their platform, they explored their favorite books and communicated their insights in authentic, impactful ways.

Mariam ElZeftawy: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
Watch Miriam’s Video Review

Mariam led the way with a polished and emotionally resonant video review of John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars. Using Filmora9, she edited her video to flow smoothly while keeping the focus on her heartfelt reflections. Mariam spoke with sincerity about the novel’s themes: love, illness, and the fragility of life. She communicated them in a way that was both thoughtful and relatable. Her work demonstrated not only strong literacy skills but also digital fluency and a growing sense of self-expression.

Dana: Dear Tia by Maria Zaki
Watch Dana’s Video Review

In one of the most touching video reviews, Dana, a student who openly admits she’s not an avid reader, chose to spotlight “Dear Tia,” written by Maria Zaki, her best friend’s sister. The personal connection to the author didn’t just make her feel seen; it made the book feel more real, more urgent, and worth talking about. Dana’s honest reflection and warm delivery highlight how personal ties to literature can spark unexpected enthusiasm.

Farah Badawi: Utopia by Ahmed Khaled Towfik
Watch Farah’s Video Review

Farah’s confident presentation introduced her classmates to Utopia, a dystopian novel by Egyptian author Ahmed Khaled Towfik. Through her review, she brought attention to Arabic literature, offering a perspective that is often underrepresented in classrooms. Farah’s choice reflected pride in her cultural identity, and her delivery was clear, persuasive, and engaging. Her video became more than a review–it was a form of cultural storytelling that invited her peers to expand their literary horizons.

Rita Tamer: Frostblood
Watch Rita’s Video Review

Rita’s review of Frostblood, a fantasy novel by Elly Blake, stood out for its passionate tone and concise storytelling. She broke down the plot with clarity, highlighting the emotional journey of the protagonist while reflecting on themes like power, resilience, and identity. Rita’s straightforward approach and evident enthusiasm created a strong peer-to-peer connection, showing how even a simple, sincere review can spark curiosity and excitement about reading.

Literacy skills in action

Behind each of these videos lies a powerful range of literacy development. Students weren’t just reviewing books–they were analyzing themes, synthesizing ideas, making connections, and articulating their thoughts for an audience. By preparing for their recordings, students learned how to organize their ideas, revise their messages for clarity, and reflect on what made a story impactful to them personally.

Speaking to a camera also encouraged students to practice intonation, pacing, and expression–key skills in both oral language development and public speaking. In multilingual classrooms, these skills are often overlooked in favor of silent writing tasks. But in this project, English Learners were front and center, using their voices–literally and figuratively–to take ownership of language in a way that felt authentic and empowering.

Moreover, the integration of video tools meant students had to think critically about how they presented information visually. From editing with apps like Filmora9 to choosing appropriate backgrounds, they were not just absorbing content, they were producing and publishing it, embracing their role as creators in a digital world.

Tips for teachers: Bringing book reviews to life

This project was simple to implement and required little more than student creativity and access to a recording device. Here are a few tips for educators who want to try something similar:

• Let students choose their own books: Engagement skyrockets when they care about what they’re reading.
• Keep the structure flexible: A short outline helps, but students thrive when given room to speak naturally.
• Offer tech tools as optional, not mandatory: Some students enjoyed using Filmora9 or Canva, while others used the camera app on their phone.
• Focus on voice and message, not perfection: Encourage students to focus on authenticity over polish.
• Create a classroom premiere day: Let students watch each other’s videos and celebrate their peers’ voices.

Literacy is personal, public, and powerful

This project proved what every educator already knows: When students are given the opportunity to express themselves in meaningful ways, they rise to the occasion. Through book reviews, my students weren’t just practicing reading comprehension, they were becoming speakers, storytellers, editors, and advocates for literacy.

They reminded me and will continue to remind others that when young people talk about books in their own voices, with their personal stories woven into the narrative, something beautiful happens: Reading becomes contagious.

Key points:

• Books featuring licensed characters can instill a love of reading
• We are just beginning the uphill climb to improve student reading scores
• NAEP scores show disheartening trends for the lowest-performing students
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

Holden, my 21-month-old, has fallen in love.  His early morning snack and “couch time” includes a dose of “Tiger!”  This is toddler for, “Mom, turn on Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.”  It inevitably leaves me singing whatever jingle is repeated throughout the episode–ALL DAY… “won’t you ride along with me… ride along…”

We’re also attempting potty training, and Holden’s favorite “potty book” (yes, we have a basket of potty books) is about Daniel Tiger having to turn the trolley around to go back home to go potty.  Is it literary genius?  Hardly.  But the jingle is just as sticky: “Do you have to go potty?  Maybe yes.  Maybe no.  Why don’t you sit and try to go.”  

Children’s books based on toys, television, or movie characters rarely win any official medals or literary awards.  And often, librarians and teachers shy away from them because there is a perceived lack of literary quality and a feeling that they are just pushing parents to buy more toys. 

In some cases, they do lack meaningful storylines.  And most certainly, the brands are licensing books to market their characters and further their brand affinity among children.  But Robin Pearson, the former head of publishing at The Lego Group, makes some excellent points in this blog: “If you give kids the choice over what they want to read, many will pick books or mags about their favourite shows, games, toys or characters.  Licensed publishing–both books and magazines–can prove to be powerful incentives for kids who don’t really like reading.”

I would take Pearson’s thoughts a step further.  I can certainly argue why a child who doesn’t like to read may be more compelled to pick up a book featuring one of their favorite characters.  But books have been a part of Holden’s life every day since he came home from the hospital.  If five potty books are available, he picks Tiger nearly every time.  And I say, as long as he’s picking up a book, that’s a WIN!

Amy Pihl, a school librarian in Salina, Kansas, agrees: “As a librarian who shifted from public libraries to a school library, I believe in the inherent value of books featuring popular licensed characters.  Curating a love for reading in young learners can be challenging as our world becomes more and more digital, so when a student asks me if we have this book or that book from a certain movie or series they’ve watched at home, I’ll immediately look into book options when they’re available.  My number one job is to connect kids to books they’ll love.  If they’ve made a connection with a licensed character enough to want to continue that connection crossing over to reading, then you bet I want to facilitate that.  I want my students to love reading and view it as something they enjoy–not an academic obligation.  Allowing them access to the books–and characters–they are interested in is imperative to building a culture of reading in schools.”

Reading books about favorite characters can be an easier introduction into independent reading for little ones, as well.  For starters, they already have context about the storyline and supporting characters.  Some licensed content books repeat story lines from episodes of TV shows; others expand on them or tell new stories.  Licensed nonfiction books explain more complicated topics like science or history through the voice of a known and loved character.

Simply engaging in reading practice is foundational.  And we know if a kiddo selects his or her own book, they are much more likely to stay engaged while being read to or reading themselves.  Ashley Healey says the students who visit her library in Stratham Memorial School in New Hampshire gravitate towards books like these: “Our books with licensed characters are BY FAR some of our most checked out resources. Even the most reluctant of readers’ faces will light up when they see Bluey or Marshall from Paw Patrol. It’s comforting to them. It’s also a great way to encourage reading skills–a student who has seen the episode “Barky Boats” a million times can easily identify key vocabulary and retell the story with ease. We have entire sections dedicated to trademarked characters (Pokémon, Star Wars, every princess you can imagine, etc.) and their bins are nearly always empty, which is a win-win for my librarian heart.”

You might have landed on the same popular licensed character, but there are hundreds out there by a variety of publishers, including:

• Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood (PBS Kids), PJ Masks (Disney Junior); Cocomelon (Netflix) from Simon Spotlight, imprint of Simon & Schuster
• Molly of Denali (PBS Kids), Roblox (online game), Baby Shark (Pinkfong), My Little Pony (Hasbro), FGTeeV (YouTube); PopularMMOs (YouTube) from HarperCollins
• Peppa Pig (various platforms), Clifford the Big Red Dog (PBS Kids); Julie and the Phantoms (Netflix) from Scholastic
• Sesame Street (various platforms), Crayola; Garfield (various platforms) from Lerner Publishing Group

Dr. Katie Hoving, a reading and English teacher at Hampshire High School in Illinois, notes that similar to licensed characters, students of all ages also connect with movie tie-ins: “My daughter went through a Stranger Things phase and was obsessed with the show. So, of course we found Stranger Things books for her to read. Now, it’s Outer Banks, so we’re on the hunt for books related to that show.  I also have some of these types of books in my classroom. When students go for these types of books, I think it’s because there’s something comforting about a familiar character and storyline. It’s like being welcomed home into a world you already know!”

I honestly don’t know if the Daniel Tiger’s potty book is based on an episode of the show or just something the producers felt would make a good topic for a book.  Either way, it’s getting a lot of love.  And this book lover, and librarians around the world, love that.

Librarian Amanda Chacon shares in her excitement when a licensed character helps with a reading breakthrough: “I’ve seen even the most reluctant readers light up when they discover a book featuring a familiar, licensed character. It’s like finding a trusted friend in a space that can otherwise feel overwhelming with choices. You can almost see the neurons firing with excitement as they connect reading to something they already love, forming a new relationship with books–one that becomes a gateway to a lifelong love of literacy.”

This is why you’ll see many of these books available in online book fairs, through vendors and bookstores, and in a basket next to the potty. Because if these characters can make it easier for kiddos to pick up in a book at a time when our Nation’s Report Card is still reporting that average scores in reading are declining, then I’m all for it.

Key points:

• Educators can’t give up, despite hard work to be done in reading instruction
• Science, math, history teachers–we’re all reading teachers now
• NAEP scores show disheartening trends for the lowest-performing students
• For more news on reading scores, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

Millions–probably billions–of dollars invested. Not to mention the blood, sweat, and tears of hundreds of thousands of teachers. And yet, we are facing yet another heartbreaking report on student performance in reading.

By now, you have probably heard or read about the just-released 2024 NAEP reading scores, which reveal a continued downward trend. Reading scores dropped five 5 points for both 4^th and 8^th graders from 2019 to 2024, and two points just from 2022, with no evidence of recovery from pandemic-era learning loss.

The question on everyone’s mind is “why,” and it would seem the answer is a complex one, with myriad factors named, including: absenteeism, overuse of devices, teacher burnout, student behavior, lack of motivation, lack of parental involvement, poverty, continuing effects of virtual learning, misuse of funding, teacher shortages, and lack of resources. While most, if not all, of these are likely factors, and the analyses of “why” will continue, the prominent question for many of us is: Why, with so many states now signed on to the science of reading, do we still have this significant literacy crisis?

Those of us immersed in the science of reading research and in putting evidence-aligned resources into the world feel like we have been working hard, that we’ve made gains, that the more than 41 states where science-of-reading legislation is in place are moving the needle, that professional learning is changing practice, and that balanced literacy resources are no longer being used. And let’s not forget the conferences, podcasts, publications, and media reporting that would seem to indicate that all roads lead to the science! But is that actually true?

So, while we have all been WORKING HARD, the truth is that we still have a long way to go. There are still many levers that need to be pulled before we are ALL rowing in the same direction. There are institutions of higher education in which teachers are not learning instructional practices aligned with the research. There are balanced literacy and whole-language instructional resources that dominate the market. While there is legislation, it may be too new, too vague, or lacking accountability to really measure the impact. Leadership, community, targeted funding are all areas which need our attention.

So where do we go from here? Here are some suggestions for how we move forward:

1. Stay the course on following the evidence. While the evidence is not static or unchanging, continuing to humbly follow the evidence will ultimately serve us well.
2. Attend to success stories. There are a lot of them out there. Learn from places where they have moved the needle, such as South Western School District in Hanover, Penn. 
3. Form coalitions. Louisiana is the only state that showed an upward trend in 4^th grade scores, and its comprehensive approach included partnerships between organizations such as the DoE, Louisiana Literacy Advisory Committee, The Center for Literacy and Learning, and school districts committed to change.
4. At a school-district level, honestly appraise all students’ reading performance and commit to transformative literacy change, knowing that this is a multi-year commitment. It takes courage to lead change like this and knowing the phases for change based in implementation science helps.
5. Be relentless in choosing evidence-aligned (with the science of reading research) and evidence-based (proven to work through rigorous efficacy studies conducted by independent researchers in real schools and classrooms) instructional resources and to give up what is not working. Pull weeds to plant flowers.

You know the adage that change takes time. Well, it is true. For some of us, our somewhat myopic worldview would lead us to believe that the research on reading is well-known and dominates practice, but that just isn’t true. Many places are just instituting evidence-aligned instruction in the early grades, which WILL reap benefits. We have a long way to go, as these recent scores illustrate. But the stakes are too high to give into the heartbreak. There is work to be done.

Key points:

• Schools can help teachers provide systematic writing instruction by providing coaching and professional development
• 5 ways we used our literacy platforms to engage students
• Science teachers, math teachers, history teachers–we’re reading teachers now
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

With educators under enormous pressure to make sure students meet grade level standards in reading and math, writing often takes a back seat in the curriculum, as many literacy experts have observed. Yet, this omission has a profound effect on students’ literacy skills.

According to one analysis, half of U.S. eighth graders struggle with long-form writing on tests and classwork. Not only does this affect their ability to communicate effectively, it also affects their reading skills, because writing and literacy are closely linked.

Writing improves students’ reading fluency. When students are writing words and sentences, they’re making deeper connections to letter patterns, which makes it easier for them to recall similar patterns when they read. Writing also sharpens reading comprehension as the process of crafting arguments or narratives helps students better understand and interpret an author’s intent when reading.

Building foundational literacy skills through systematic writing instruction in the early grades is critical for students’ long-term success. And while this has always been true, it has become even more urgent in the wake of the pandemic, as data suggests that our youngest students are entering school with poorer literacy skills than before COVID.

As the Wall Street Journal reports, kindergarten students tested in 2023 were about 2 percentage points less likely to begin school at grade level in reading, compared to 2019 data. Although many of these students missed out on preschool experiences during the pandemic that would have prepared them for grade level reading, implementing systematic writing instruction in the early grades can help bridge this gap.

What systematic writing instruction looks like

Learning how to write should go hand-in-hand with learning how to read. As students begin recognizing individual letters and letter sounds, for instance, they should simultaneously practice writing those letters by hand to reinforce their understanding.

Although today’s students are digital natives who have grown up with keyboards and screens, research shows that writing by hand has positive effects on the developing brain. MRI scans at Indiana University found that when children practiced writing letters by hand, their neural activity was far more enhanced than those who’d simply looked at their letters, which helps the learning “stick” more effectively.

As children learn to decode words and sentences, teachers can reinforce this skill by teaching sentence structure, engaging students in sentence-building activities while providing structured handwriting practice.

Once students progress to reading full paragraphs and passages, teachers can have students write short summaries of what they’ve read in their own words, which also improves their comprehension. In addition, teachers can use prompts, journaling, and other guided writing exercises to ensure that students are getting the practice they need to further develop their writing skills.

Effective writing instruction shares many of the same characteristics as high-quality reading instruction. It should include logically sequenced lessons, aligned with literacy standards and curriculum. It should provide scaffolded opportunities for students to learn with supports in place. And it should enable students to practice in small groups, receive feedback, and receive additional intervention as necessary, such as one-on-one instruction.

Schools can help teachers provide systematic writing instruction by providing coaching and professional development, as well as supplemental curriculum tools that support writing instruction.

Extending writing practice beyond school

Students learn most effectively when they have opportunities to practice and apply their skills beyond the school day. Teachers can facilitate the development of students’ writing skills by giving parents simple yet practical ideas for supporting their children’s writing at home.

For instance, parents can have their children practice writing by labeling household items or creating a daily to-do list. Parents also might work with their children on writing letters to family members or creating their own books or stories.

In addition, schools can encourage at-home writing practice by sending students home with flash cards or other manipulatives that help them build sentences and by using supplemental online curriculum platforms that students can log into from home.

Poor writing skills can have a compounding effect on student achievement, while also limiting students’ ability to communicate effectively. By integrating systematic writing instruction into the K-2 curriculum, educators can close early literacy gaps and give students the foundation they need for future success.

This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Sign up for their newsletters at ckbe.at/newsletters.

Most American students are still performing below their pre-pandemic counterparts in reading and math, while the yawning gap between high-achieving and low-performing students got even wider, data from “the nation’s report card” shows.

Results released from the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress, or NAEP, paint a sobering picture of academic haves and have-nots. Scores are increasing for many students who already do well, while struggling students stagnated or fell even further behind their peers. That’s making a trend that began about a decade ago even more pronounced.

In some cases that divide was historic: Lower-performing fourth and eighth graders posted the worst reading scores in over 30 years. In eighth grade math, the gap between the highest- and lowest-performing students was the widest in the test’s history.

“The news is not good,” Peggy Carr, commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, told reporters. “Student achievement has not returned to pre-pandemic levels, reading scores continue to decline, and our lowest performing students are reading at historically low levels.”

Scores saw a dramatic decline in 2022 after students endured two disrupted pandemic school years marked by closures, quarantines, and remote learning. But in 2024, reading scores declined even more for both fourth and eighth graders.

“This is a major concern–a concern that can’t be blamed solely on the pandemic,” Carr said. “Our nation is facing complex challenges in reading.”

Fourth grade math was the lone bright spot, with average student scores ticking up two points on the 500-point scale. But much of that increase was driven by improvement among top performers.

Eighth grade math scores held steady, with gains among higher-performing students canceling out declines among lower-performers.

All of the children who took the NAEP last year had at least some of their education affected by the pandemic. The fourth graders were in kindergarten when schools closed in March 2020, while eighth graders were in fourth grade.

The results are sure to fuel ongoing debate about whether schools are doing enough to help struggling students, especially those who are the farthest behind, the role that school closures played in exacerbating learning gaps, and whether schools effectively spent the nearly $190 billion they received in federal COVID relief dollars.

The new NAEP scores have landed as conservatives push to expand private school choice, public schools grapple with budget cuts, culture war skirmishes persist, and chronic absenteeism remains at historically high levels. Students who performed the worst on the NAEP test were more likely to be frequently absent from school, Carr noted.

“We have a larger-than-in-recent-memory share of American students who are failing to demonstrate even partial mastery of the types of skills educators have defined as important,” said Martin West, a professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the vice chair of the NAEP Governing Board, which decides the test’s content and approves questions. “That doesn’t bode well for their futures or for our collective futures.”

The new data come from tests taken in early 2024 by nearly half a million students across thousands of U.S. schools.

Worrying decline in NAEP reading scores continues

On average, fourth and eighth grade students scored two points lower in reading than their counterparts in 2022 and five points lower than students in 2019. Only in Louisiana, where the state superintendent has put a major focus on reading, did fourth grade reading scores rise above 2019 levels.

The share of fourth graders who scored at the very bottom of the NAEP scale was at its highest point in 20 years. The share of eighth graders scoring at the lowest level was the highest ever. And in both grades, students who did not reach the NAEP Basic level–relatively low performers at the 25th percentile and under–had lower scores than in 1992, when the first NAEP test was given.

When a fourth grader can’t meet the NAEP Basic level, it doesn’t mean they cannot read. But it likely means they would struggle with easier skills, such as sequencing events in a story or stating an opinion using supporting evidence from a text. Eighth graders who fall below NAEP Basic would have trouble identifying basic literary elements, such as character motivation and the main idea.

NAEP results show how many students score below, at, or above two thresholds: NAEP Basic and NAEP Proficient. Proficient is considered a high bar, above what most states set as grade level expectations. Reaching the NAEP Basic threshold indicates students have achieved partial mastery of fundamental skills and knowledge for that grade level.

The rise in students who don’t meet that mark is of particular concern.

The dips in reading come as dozens of states overhaul their reading instruction with materials that better align with the science of reading. And while federal education officials are usually reticent to explain what caused a particular increase or decrease in scores, Carr cautioned that the near-universal dips in reading should not be taken as evidence that reading reforms have not worked.

She pointed to the example of Louisiana, where fourth graders are scoring better in reading than they did in 2019, bucking the national trend. That state has focused heavily on the science of reading “but they didn’t start yesterday,” Carr said.

“They were able to pull this off, and not only improve to pre-pandemic levels, but exceed them, and bring their lower-performers along,” she said. “I would not say that hope is lost.”

Still, Lesley Muldoon, the executive director of the NAEP Governing Board, said the growing share of children who cannot read at the NAEP Basic level, which generally corresponds with state proficiency standards, is concerning.

If a fourth grader can’t meet that in reading, “we’re saying that they’re unlikely to determine the meaning of a familiar word using context from the text,” Muldoon said. “That is a crucial skill that students really need for entering middle school.”

NAEP math scores show recovery–but also stagnation

In fourth grade math, average scores increased two points from 2022 but were still three points lower than pre-pandemic levels. Only in Alabama did fourth graders have higher scores than their 2019 counterparts. The average score was lifted by high-performing students who saw greater gains, while lower-performing students did about the same as in 2022.

Fifteen states and 14 urban districts saw improvements compared with 2022. District of Columbia Public Schools posted 10-point gains, well above the national average. D.C. schools also showed improvements for both low- and high-performing students, as did schools in Atlanta, Baltimore, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami-Dade County, and Guilford County, North Carolina.

Eighth grade math was a different story. There was no change in average scores because while high performers did better than their counterparts in 2022, low performers did worse.

Middle school math has been a problem area in the pandemic’s wake. Some students struggled to learn key concepts virtually, such as how to divide fractions or graph a line. That lack of knowledge followed them. Others may have had content repeated often because their classmates were absent a lot, which put them behind in their lessons.

West, the NAEP Governing Board member, said it appeared the pandemic accelerated the decline among low-performing eighth graders in math, but it was even more striking that “the bottom continued to fall out” from 2022 to 2024.

“The main takeaway is that: What we’ve done as a nation, including the federal recovery dollars, has been insufficient,” he said.

Students who struggle in middle school often end up locked out of more advanced math in high school that can open doors to higher-paid careers in STEM fields.

Mark Miller, who teaches eighth grade math in Colorado’s Cheyenne Mountain School District, said declining student motivation and “stick-to-it-ness” might be contributing. In recent years, struggling students in his classroom have needed a bigger nudge to dig in on difficult problems than when he started teaching nearly two decades ago.

“The coach in me has had to reach into my coaching motivational speeches in my classroom just as much as I have had to on the court or on the field,” said Miller, who is also a former NAEP Governing Board member. Many students think: “If I want to know something, I can look it up in two seconds, why do I need to persevere through learning how to solve systems of equations or learning how to solve a word problem?”

One thing his school is trying: Keeping kids who did not meet certain math standards in the same classes as their peers while providing extra support, instead of moving them to remedial math. The hope is that teachers can fill in gaps with mini lessons along the way, and that struggling students will feel more confident in their math abilities if they’re learning alongside their peers.

NAEP score gaps have consequences for ‘equitable society’

While the pandemic surely has had a lasting impact on students, the gap between high- and low-performers appears to have started growing about a decade ago. Similar gaps have appeared on international tests and are more stark for American students than for those in other countries that also experienced pandemic disruptions.

Theories abound: The federal government eased up on school accountability measures, and school leaders took their eyes off the lowest performers. The Great Recession, with its economic traumas followed by deep spending cuts, left a lasting scar on American education. Phones are sapping our attention span and cognitive abilities.

Nat Malkus, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, highlighted the trend in an analysis posted in advance of the NAEP release. He noted that the growing divide between high and low performers even shows up on a recent skills test for adults who haven’t been in school in years, complicating the idea that something school-related is the main driver.

The trends defy easy explanations and likely have multiple causes, he said.

Tests such as NAEP can’t answer the why. But Malkus hopes that researchers with access to student-level data can start digging in more. Are low-performing students concentrated at certain schools? Do they share certain characteristics? Or are they enrolled in schools with both high and low test scores?

He also hopes that superintendents and principals seek out this data about their own schools and find ways to support low-performing students even when average test scores look good.

“What this means for the story for an equitable society is enormous,” he said.

Yet there doesn’t seem to be enough urgency to get to the bottom of the problem, said Dan Goldhaber, who directs the Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research at the American Institutes for Research.

While his research and others found that federal pandemic aid helped academic recovery, Goldhaber said it’s reasonable to ask if it could have done more. In the rush to get money out the door, a real opportunity was missed to collect data that would have shown which interventions really move the needle for struggling students, he said.

“I think we will look back in 25 years, and we will see all these kids have these outcomes in life that were predicted by this major decline,” he said. “The message is everywhere, but I don’t see much appetite to address it.”

Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.

Related:
Chronic absenteeism threatens to derail K-12 education
Here’s what will drive K-12 innovation in 2025
For more news on district management, visit eSN’s Educational Leadership hub

On average, about 25 percent of children in the early grades struggle with reading. These students are often reluctant readers because they find the process complicated, and they lack confidence in their abilities.

At the same time, the percentage of students who say they read for pleasure is declining: Fewer than half of all children ages 8-18 (43 percent) say they enjoy reading in their spare time, down from 58 percent in 2016. Reaching reluctant and disinterested readers can be challenging, frustrating, and discouraging for teachers, who fully grasp the importance of literacy skills. Educators need creative and authentic ways to engage students in reading without it seeming forced or gimmicky.

In a TEDx talk titled “The Super Mario Effect–Tricking Your Brain into Learning More,” Mark Rober highlighted how video games like Super Mario can motivate people to achieve their goals by viewing failures as learning opportunities. Educators can apply the same principle to improving literacy outcomes through gamified learning in schools. By incorporating game elements, such as rewards, levels, and challenges, learning can become a more engaging, interactive experience. 

This approach especially helps reluctant readers. They’re encouraged to embrace mistakes, stay motivated, and deepen their understanding of the material.

5 benefits of gamified learning for literacy education

Gamified learning offers several benefits that can significantly enhance literacy education, including: 

1. Reduced fear of failure

Gamified learning transforms failure from a source of shame into a normal part of the learning experience. Similar to how video game players repeatedly try to overcome obstacles, students in gamified environments can attempt literacy learning tasks multiple times without feeling embarrassed. Research shows that gamification encourages students to fail and reattempt learning tasks without embarrassment. This persistence goes hand-in-hand with literary academic progress, and it also develops important durable life skills like resilience.

2. Increased visibility of learning

Gamified learning platforms provide clear progress indicators, such as points and progress bars. This visibility allows students to see their literacy achievements and understand the steps required to advance. By making progress tangible and in-the-moment, students are motivated to continue developing their reading skills and can easily track their growth.

3. Amped-up motivation

Research shows that games naturally drive motivation through the desire to achieve, socialize, and explore. Gamified learning plays to these instincts in young readers, encouraging them to excel and actively engage with the material. When it comes to reading and literacy instruction, seeing a reluctant reader become a motivated reader is a moment educators cherish.

4. Improved cognitive development

Other studies have found games that encourage critical thinking and problem-solving can improve students’ ability to process and retain information–essential components of literacy education. Many educational games fall into this category. Furthermore, skills derived from video games have the potential to transfer to success in other disciplines, such as STEM. 

5. Authentic personalized learning

In the video game world, many players willingly spend hundreds of dollars on custom outfits, tools, and accessories for their in-game characters. Why spend real money on a tiger suit for a video game character? Because doing so makes the game uniquely theirs. It gives a sense of pride, ownership, and identity.

Gamified learning environments allow for these kinds of personalized literacy education experiences. Students can control avatars, set their own goals, and track their progress. This personalization makes the reading journey unique and deeply personal to each student.

Gamified literacy education in action

North Carolina Virtual Academy (NCVA) is seeing compelling results using a gamified learning program to boost reading proficiency. Under the state’s Read to Achieve law, students who score at Level 1 or 2 in reading on the third grade End-of-Grade (EOG) test and do not qualify for a “good cause exemption” are required to attend a summer reading camp.

Educators at NCVA saw high levels of student engagement with gamified learning, so they decided to incorporate the program into their summer camp instruction. After using the program for 30 minutes each day, 77 percent of students showed significant improvement in reading, allowing them to progress from grade three to grade four. The camp also yielded noteworthy results on the DIBELS 8th Edition Reading Assessment. Seventy-three percent of participants showed improvement in key areas, such as phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.

“When we asked students about their favorite part of the summer reading camp, the majority told us it was the gamified learning program,” said NCVA Principal Kelly Shanahan. “It’s rewarding for the educators to see how engaged students are with the program, and the measurable literacy gains are evidence of that engagement.” 

When done effectively, gamified learning can motivate even the most reluctant readers. It allows students with varying abilities and inclinations to try, fail, and repeat the process until they get it right in a safe and rewarding environment–while giving them evidence of their progress. As students advance in the gamified platform, they’re enhancing their skills while also building their confidence and enjoyment of reading.

Join eSchool News for the 12 Days of Edtech with 2024’s most-read and most-loved stories. On the 5th Day of Edtech, our story focuses on post-COVID reading instruction.

This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Sign up for their newsletters at ckbe.at/newsletters.

I’m in my fifth year teaching science to fifth and sixth graders, but, like every other teacher at the K-8 charter school where I work, I also teach reading.

Literacy is a foundational skill for learning new content and as an upper elementary science teacher, my soon-to-be middle schoolers have ideally made the vital transition from “learning to read” to “reading to learn.” But pandemic-era school closures drastically cut into learning time, and literacy skills have been slow to recover.

Imagine–and if you’re a science teacher, you won’t have to–trying to get through a lesson on the water cycle with students struggling to sound out keywords like “condensation” and “precipitation.” These are longer, multisyllabic words that students can sound out if they have a basic mastery of phonics, but they become impossible if students lack this foundation. I’ll never forget the frustration I felt when I had planned to teach a lesson on food webs and had to spend the first half of the class teaching struggling readers how to sound out “interdependence,” and “ecosystem.” I can only imagine how frustrating it was for my students!

In pre-pandemic days, it was normal to have a few struggling readers per class. Post-COVID, it has often felt like there are few readers who are not struggling. It was clear that a new approach to literacy instruction was needed–one that leveraged every teacher in our building and gave us ways to catch our older students up on second grade skills without infantilizing the content.

Luckily, training offered by my school, Springfield Prep in Massachusetts, has provided me with tools to help get students reading proficiently again. The school brought in John Bennetts, who specializes in foundational reading skills, to lead the professional development sessions, coach teachers and administrators, model lessons, and work one-on-one with struggling students.

He began by sending a handful of teachers out of the room. One by one, we were each brought back in to read a passage in which a certain percentage of words had been changed to nonsense words.

When I entered the room and read the passage out loud, I struggled to pronounce the unfamiliar words. And when John hit me with rapid-fire comprehension questions, it was clear that I had derived no meaning from the text. All I remembered was trying not to sound like an idiot and feeling like a failure.

To make meaning from a passage, John told us, a person needs to be able to read 95-98% of the words. I read the passage at 85% proficiency and couldn’t guess its topic. At 97%, the next volunteer was able to take some educated guesses and get most of the comprehension questions right. Suddenly, what my students had been experiencing over the past two years made perfect sense to me.

The message was clear: We needed to start teaching older students how to sound out and read unfamiliar words. But how could I do this without making my fifth graders feel like they were back in first grade? How could we embed these skills into our classes without falling further behind in our curriculum?

John taught us a word routine that day that gave us and our students a step-by-step process to follow when encountering unfamiliar words. I started using the routine in class the next week. “How many vowels do you see?” I would ask. Students could then figure out how many syllables the word contained by grouping adjacent vowels into one syllable and subtracting a syllable if there was a silent “e” at the end. This allows students to split the word into chunks they can sound out and then put together to pronounce the whole word. After a few months of daily practice, my students weren’t looking at me helplessly as often.

“Challenging” doesn’t even begin to describe the circumstances teachers were confronted with coming out of remote learning. Our school’s approach to reading instruction may not be perfect, but we are trying with everything we have to help our kids get back on track. The resilience and creativity of educators, students, and school leaders nationwide make recovery possible. It makes me proud to be a science teacher who teaches reading, too.

Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.

Related:
6 tips to help educators support young readers
States need to strengthen reading instruction policies
For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

See previous 12 Days of Edtech:
1st Day of Edtech
2nd Day of Edtech
3rd Day of Edtech
4th Day of Edtech

Key points:

• Connecting STEM to literacy begins with an engaging topic that leads to questions
• Using robots to teach creativity, collaboration, and self-confidence
• 5 ways we used our literacy platforms to engage students
• For more news on STEM trends, visit eSN’s STEM & STEAM hub

As a former middle school math teacher, I’ve witnessed firsthand how STEM education and literacy can work together to create powerful learning experiences. This understanding has deepened through my collaboration with Kathy Renfrew, whose journey from a self-proclaimed “science-phobic” classroom teacher to renowned STEM educator and leader illustrates the transformation that happens when educators break down traditional subject-area barriers and create truly interdisciplinary units.

Kathy’s attitude toward STEM changed when she met a physics professor who introduced her to hands-on, inquiry-based science education. That transformative experience led her to pursue a master’s degree in science education, launching a 30-year career that would include innovative projects such as building a log cabin with her students as part of their science learning. An active advocate of the Next Generation Science Standards, (NGSS), she eventually became Vermont’s Science Assessment Supervisor and has served as an NGSS curriculum reviewer and president of the board of the NSF’s Society of Elementary Presidential Awardees. I suspect I am not the only one who affectionately thinks of her as the “mother of NGSS.”

I’ve observed that many elementary teachers, like Kathy, are curious about how to teach STEM–but with the strong emphasis on ELA in early education, they need engaging resources that bridge the gap between science instruction and literacy development.

The engaging power of phenomena-based STEM

Through our collaboration, Kathy and I have focused on making NGSS more accessible and practical by helping educators understand how to teach STEM effectively without having to reinvent implementation strategies. Our work culminated in the development of The Water Princess unit–a phenomena-based, multi-day interdisciplinary resource that combines literacy and STEM learning. The unit is designed for 2nd-grade students for two very specific reasons: 1) early elementary schools are eager for age-appropriate STEM resources; and 2) 2nd-graders have the literacy skills to write questions, to read content, and to note their own observations. In short, they have the foundation and academic independence to benefit from interdisciplinary lessons.

In creating the unit, we started with Kathy’s conviction that phenomena inspire curiosity by providing students with intriguing and relevant experiences to investigate and to question. That phenomenon could be an engaging story like The Water Princess, which tells the story of a young girl’s quest to bring clean drinking water to her African village. Phenomena can be based on any common experience that is meaningful to every young learner, such as the playground on a hot day. There are a number of questions for students to explore here: Why is the slide so hot? Why is the blacktop hotter than the grass? What can we do to make it cooler? Anchoring lessons in something familiar and yet still mysterious prompts critical thinking and exploration. Phenomena-based STEM lessons are engaging for students and for teachers, who can express their creativity by creating their own lessons and units or exploring ones that have been crafted with intentional interdisciplinary objectives.

When we shared the unit at NSTA (National Science Teaching Association) and later in Kathy’s home state at MSTA (Massachusetts Association of Science Teachers), the feedback included appreciation and excitement.

How to design and teach units that combine STEM and literacy

Kathy has a number of guiding principles when she’s designing units. She always starts with the standards, while at the same time remembering that she’s teaching children, not the curriculum. This means that she adjusts her curriculum to meet the needs of the kids she’s teaching. She says it’s not always true, but often “what’s good for struggling learners is good for most of the kids in my classroom.”

Of course, not all teachers have the time to design their own units and may need a variety of resources to help them bring STEM to their elementary classrooms. Just as effective teachers meet students where they are, the most helpful schools provide teachers the inspiration or guidance they need through professional learning opportunities. The Water Princess Unit, for example, includes a video of an educator bringing the unit to life with students. In addition, if an educator is struggling with content areas such as NGSS or the science of reading, they have access to a vast array of professional development offerings spanning dozens of topics.

Kathy recommends that, when adopting high-quality instructional materials, teachers think about how they can implement the instruction while taking student interest and identity into account. They may choose to start small by adapting small pieces of a unit, rather than following it “as is,” therefore making it more meaningful for the students. It is critical that teachers make the unit their own so that they feel excited about implementing it in their classrooms. Their excitement will serve as a model for the students.

To incorporate literacy skills such as reading, writing, speaking, and listening into any STEM lesson a teacher chooses, Kathy recommends frequent interactive read-alouds. She also has every student write in a science notebook. The notebooks help students build coherence, teach them writing skills, and empower them to assess their own learning. It also makes students’ thinking visible, a practice Kathy also supports by using a “KLEWS chart” made up of students’ observations written on a notecards and posted on the wall for everyone to see and use throughout the unit. KLEWS is an acronym based on these questions:

• What do we think we Know?
• What are we Learning?
• What is our Evidence?
• What are we still Wondering?
• What Scientific words, principles, and connected phenomena have we learned?

Kathy also reminds educators that practices like a “word wall” that are often isolated to ELA lessons are also great supports for a STEM lesson and can help normalize interdisciplinary learning.

Connecting STEM to literacy begins with presenting students with reading that inspires them, makes them want to understand something, and drives them to ask questions. When students become curious, science starts to happen. My collaboration with Kathy was driven by a desire to support teachers, especially those who are “science-phobic,” in feeling more comfortable and confident teaching science. As Kathy says, “Through breaking down the classroom walls and showing quality teaching in action, we can elevate educators everywhere.”

Key points:

• Literacy and STEM offer engaging learning experiences
• 3 tips to authentically engage students in real-world STEM learning
• 5 approaches that boost middle school student STEM engagement
• For more news on STEM trends, visit eSN’s STEM & STEM hub

In the world of education, we can sometimes make the mistake of branding STEM and literacy as opposing disciplines. Reading is seen as a creative subject. It’s colorful, artistic, and filled with imagination and wonder. STEM, by contrast, has a more clinical reputation. It’s a subject of hard equations, facts and logic, which depends on technical expertise.

As most educators know, however, these notions couldn’t be further from the truth. STEM and literacy frequently appear together in our daily lives. Cooking, infographics, even science fiction novels are evidence of how these two subjects often combine to create something extraordinary.

With more and more schools looking to bridge the gaps created by COVID learning loss, there has never been a better time for educators to merge the two disciplines into engaging, hands-on activities. One easy strategy to help K-12 educators get started is to build creative lessons around the books in their classroom. Just take the book Flight School by Lita Judge as an example. It’s the story of a lovable little penguin who dreams of flying but struggles to master the technical aspects of air travel. The story features determination, setbacks, and triumph, making ideal for young readers. Best of all, it can serve as a launchpad for STEM learning simply by following five easy steps.

Step 1: Identify the problem

Ask students to identify the primary problem in the story. This creates an opportunity for students to explore things like character, theme, setting, plot, and conflict–all of which are necessary for understanding literature. From there, an activity can be built using the students’ questions and observations. For Flight School, an easy STEM activity would be to have students construct a paper airplane capable of sustained flight. However, don’t be afraid to try another idea if it proves popular with the class!

Step 2: Determine criteria and constraints

Once you’ve settled on your STEM activity, it’s time to set some criteria and constraints. First, students should have a specific objective, such as building a paper airplane that can stay aloft for 10 seconds. With that established, give students a framework under which to work. Let them know that they can only use a certain number of supplies or that their airplane can’t be too big. This step emphasizes the need for clear goals and creative problem-solving within limits, the same conditions under which most professional engineers work in the real world.

Step 3: Create possible solutions

Now it’s time to start brainstorming. It’s important to remind students that they shouldn’t begin building until they have a plan (just like professional engineers). Have them start by sketching out their designs, examining the supplies, and sharing their observations with other students. Once they have a clear idea of what they want to build, have them collect their materials and begin construction. Collaboration and communication among students should be encouraged. After all, most big discoveries are made by teams working together rather than by individuals.   

Step 4: Conduct a solution test

Set up a space where students can test their paper airplanes and determine the success of their designs. If time allows, offer students the chance to improve their work. A key part of being an engineer is refining designs based on how well they perform during tests, so giving students this extra opportunity will allow them to practice like professional engineers. While this is going on, share inspiring stories of inventors like the Wright Brothers or Thomas Edison to remind them that great discoveries often require many attempts before they are successful.   

Step 5: Share your learning

Close out the lesson by having students share their projects with their peers and reflect on the results of their design. How well did it work? What was the most important criteria for success? What would they like to do differently if they had the opportunity to keep building? Take a moment to congratulate them on all their hard work and ask them if they can think of any other books that could serve as a basis for a fun STEM activity (if you’re in need of ideas, here are 30 read-aloud titles with 30 corresponding STEM activities.)      

By integrating literacy and STEM, educators can supply engaging learning experiences that complement both disciplines. Students will see how reading sparks their creativity, and how STEM can turn their ideas into tangible solutions. It only takes a little work and imagination for this combination to provide an activity that students will remember long after they have departed the classroom. So, let’s get reading, and give our students a learning experience that’s memorable, meaningful, and fun!     

Key points:

• AI tools give dyslexic students a chance to learn without the constraints of traditional methods
• Understanding dyslexia: Why early diagnosis and intervention matter 
• AI is the solution to costly and ineffective dyslexia programs
• For more news on dyslexia interventions, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

As a student who has personally navigated the challenges of dyslexia, I understand the obstacles learners with this condition face daily. For dyslexic students, the traditional educational system–often reliant on heavy reading loads and conventional assessments–can be particularly overwhelming. Thankfully, advancements in educational technology, particularly in artificial intelligence (AI), are offering new ways to bridge these accessibility gaps and provide meaningful support for learners who need it most.

The challenge of dyslexia in traditional learning

Dyslexia is one of the most common learning differences, affecting approximately 10-15 percent of students worldwide. It impairs a person’s ability to read and process written text, which can lead to struggles with comprehension, confidence, and academic achievement. For years, many schools have attempted to accommodate dyslexic learners with supplemental reading aids or by providing extra time on tests. However, while helpful, these approaches are often limited and fail to address the full spectrum of learning needs.

Many traditional methods lack customization and don’t empower students to fully engage with content on their terms. Every dyslexic student experiences challenges differently, so a more personalized approach is essential for fostering comprehension, engagement, and academic growth.

The role of AI in personalized learning for dyslexic students

Artificial intelligence is increasingly recognized for its potential to transform educational accessibility. By analyzing individual learning patterns, AI-powered tools can tailor content to meet each student’s specific needs. For dyslexic students, this can mean summarizing complex texts, providing auditory support, or even visually structuring information in ways that aid comprehension.

One particularly promising application of AI in this field is the use of personalized learning recommendations. AI-driven systems can adapt in real time to students’ progress, suggesting activities or content that suit their pace and comprehension levels. This customization not only aids in comprehension but also fosters a sense of accomplishment and confidence, because students are able to interact with material at their own level.

Visual mind mapping and customized summaries

Visual mind mapping is another AI-powered tool that has proven effective for dyslexic learners. Visualizing information in mind maps helps students break down complex topics into smaller, more digestible parts, which is crucial for building understanding and memory retention. Paired with text summarization tools, which condense lengthy content into essential ideas, students are empowered to focus on key concepts without feeling overwhelmed.

Furthermore, by providing text-to-speech options with customizable pacing and tone, AI enables students to process information audibly, which is particularly useful for those who struggle with traditional reading. The ability to control these elements allows dyslexic learners to customize their learning experience, creating a more supportive and engaging environment that encourages continuous improvement.

Moving beyond one-size-fits-all approaches

AI’s biggest contribution to educational accessibility is its ability to move beyond one-size-fits-all solutions. For dyslexic learners, technology that adapts to their unique needs and learning styles is a game-changer. We’re now witnessing a shift toward tools that empower students with independence, providing them with resources that are tailored, responsive, and flexible.

As schools continue to adopt AI-driven tools, educators have an opportunity to close the accessibility gap and ensure dyslexic students have the support they need to thrive. By integrating these technologies thoughtfully, schools can foster inclusive environments that accommodate diverse learning styles and abilities.

The future of accessible learning

The development and implementation of AI in education is just beginning, but its impact on accessibility is already evident. For dyslexic students, these tools represent a chance to learn without the constraints imposed by traditional methods. The journey toward a fully accessible education system is ongoing, but with AI as a driving force, we are moving closer to creating classrooms that embrace every learner’s potential.

Key points:

• What makes a popular (or a nearly unknown) book an award winner?
• To start the school year off right, invest in literacy
• Dog Man vs. To Kill a Mockingbird
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

My husband and I have matching Emmy awards. During my decade as a television news reporter, I was the Susan Lucci of the Emmys. I was nominated multiple times for what I would consider extremely high-quality journalism, only to come home empty-handed. Yet, the story that finally led to the matching trophies was hardly what we expected. And sometimes that’s exactly how award selections come to fruition.  

Now, in my second act in life in the book business, I am still enamored with awards! From individual state awards to American Library Association’s Youth Media Awards (YMA), they truly celebrate excellence in content. They are the Emmy/Grammy/Academy Awards of the book business. 

The best of the best are ALA’s YMA-winning titles, announced every January and selected by committees composed of librarians and other literature and media experts. They encourage original and creative work in the field of children’s and young adult literature and media. Some of the big awards are as follows: 

1. Caldecott: The Randolph Caldecott Medal is awarded to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children.  
2. Belpré: The Pura Belpré Award is presented annually to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience in an outstanding work of literature for children and youth. 
3. Printz: The Michael L. Printz Award is an award for a book that exemplifies literary excellence in young adult literature.  
4. Newbery: The John Newbery Medal is awarded to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children. 
5. Scott King: The Coretta Scott King Book Awards are given to outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values.  

But much like television, what is it that makes a story stand out? Sometimes, it’s not what we think…   

We know what librarians are buying for their students. But those top sellers don’t always equal award-winning. For example, four of the 10 top-selling elementary school books are part of The Baby-Sitters Club, I Survived, and Dog Man series. All are fabulous, much-loved books by students and librarians, but don’t have the coveted medals on their covers.  

On the flip side, award-winning quite often leads to best-selling. This year’s number two top-selling title, Big, about a little girl the world thought was too big to be a ballerina, won the Caldecott and Coretta Scott King, among many more awards.  

School librarian Tom Bober has served on several award selection committees. He says, “Of course, the criteria, different for every award, are the driving force behind all decisions of a book being award-winning. What I find amazing are the books every year that end up with two, three, or even more shiny stickers on their covers. There is something special happening with those books that, in some way, transcends the awards themselves when it is speaking to so many different award committees and meeting so many different sets of award criteria. There are also books that are highly regarded amongst an award committee that came so close to becoming an award-winning or honored book that those of us not on that committee will never know about, but my guess is that those books also have a special place in the hearts of so many librarians and on the shelves of so many libraries. Ultimately though, I think that it is the books that tell us engaging and intriguing stories and information in unique and impactful ways that can make a book award-winning.” 

Top trends and themes among young readers often lead to award-winning. High school librarian Alexandra Cornejo says, “An award-winning book is one that tells a gripping story while gently guiding readers to think critically. I love to see fresh perspectives where the story leaves a lasting impression on the reader by evoking thought and conversation.”  

Mysteries are hot right now for elementary and upper elementary. The most popular often involve some elements of mystery but also bring forward social issues, like the Mighty Muskrats series by Michael Hutchinson. I believe these are popular because the mystery element keeps students actively thinking about the plot, and STEM and social issues topics tie into what students are currently learning. Series are a great way for educators to ease the “picking a book” stress that can happen for students with limited library time. 

Bober says, “I don’t know that book awards lead these trends as much as they reflect them. The book committee that selects award-winning titles is not the same one that sat on the committee for that same award decades ago. Those committees, which follow the criteria of the award, interpret those criteria and evaluate books through their understanding of the literary world.” 

In high school, many of the top-selling titles have won awards and as a result, have become required reading–such as The Giver, The Outsiders, and The Hunger Games–thus becoming “classics” for the next generations. 

With 16 years of service to education in the Rio Grande Valley, a tapestry of Hispanic heritage and bilingual culture, Cornejo, a 2024 Library Journal Mover and Shaker, expects this year’s award winners will reflect the trends she’s seeing in her school library. “Contemporary stories with real-life experiences, like coming-of-age, coping, and mental health, are trending. Students appreciate characters and settings that reflect their own lives, while still leaving room for humor and a bit of romance. This balance of escapism and real-world relevance is resonating with my high school students. These trends reflect a need for students to see themselves in literature.” 

Later this year, I will be putting my journalist hat back on to interview Bober and Cornejo, along with a licensed teacher and certified librarian, about this year’s award contenders, make some predictions about what books may be donned with the coveted medals next, and discuss these and more trends in children’s literature expected to continue in 2025 and beyond.

P.S. Looking for your next favorite personal read? Follow me and my #BritReads adventures on your favorite social channel.

Key points:

• Evidence-based programs help children become confident, lifelong readers
• 4 components of an effective literacy ecosystem
• Empowering young minds with a proven literacy program
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

November marks National Family Literacy Month, a fitting occasion as concern about reading instruction in U.S. schools goes from a simmer to a boil. For years, parents and educators around the country have been warning that prevalent approaches to literacy are not working, and state legislatures are responding. Just last month, Michigan enacted two literacy and dyslexia bills mandating evidence-based strategies, interventions, and resources for young readers. 

This is a positive sign. As the mom of a child with dyslexia, I’ve come to understand just how vital this awareness is for children struggling to read. My son’s journey with dyslexia started when he was just four years old and in preschool.  

I know the painful impact delayed intervention can have on dyslexic children. It wasn’t until I shared my worries about my son’s reading ability countless times throughout kindergarten and into first grade that his school finally acted. Educators assured me that his needs were being met with a 12-week Reading Recovery program based on the “whole language” approach. However, despite the hours of pull-out sessions every week, his reading progress was minimal. After sitting in on one of these sessions, it became clear to me that he was merely guessing words from picture cues rather than learning to decode them. 

A “wait and see” approach wasn’t right for my son, and it isn’t right for any student with dyslexia. As with many other learning differences, experts agree that early intervention for dyslexia produces better outcomes. Some researchers have found interventions are twice as effective if they are made before fourth grade. In some cases, early, effective literacy instruction can shrink the gap between typical reading and dyslexia so much that it doesn’t appear on diagnostic tests. 

My son didn’t know how to actually read; he was just smart and very good at guessing. And his teachers simply weren’t equipped with the right tools–approaches based on the science of reading–to help him.

Eventually, I felt I had no choice but to finally take my son for a thorough evaluation that revealed not only ADHD but also dyslexia and dysgraphia, a writing-related learning disability. It was a costly evaluation that wouldn’t have been necessary if educators were equipped to identify the early signs of dyslexia and act quickly, providing intervention to reduce deficits in reading.

After my son’s evaluation, I knew I had to take action. In 2018, I founded the Idaho chapter of a national network of parent-led movements to raise dyslexia awareness and inform policymakers on best practices for identifying, remediating, and supporting students with dyslexia. It was clear that too many families were being left in the dark, unaware of the crucial importance of early identification and appropriate interventions, and unsure how to advocate for their children effectively. 

One of the biggest misconceptions about dyslexia is that it’s rare. In fact, nearly 1 in 5 learners may have some degree of dyslexia. Yet, despite its prevalence, schools in the U.S. are largely unprepared to meet the needs of these students.

The National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) found that only about a quarter of teacher preparation programs comprehensively cover all five critical components of reading instruction–phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Even more alarming, almost 60 percent of these programs spend less than two hours total on dyslexia. This gap in training explains why many kids slip through the cracks. Yet research shows that if students had access to scientifically backed reading instruction, over 90 percent of them could become proficient readers.

This is especially urgent because dyslexia often goes undiagnosed. More than 40 million adults in the U.S. are estimated to have dyslexia, but only 2 million have been formally diagnosed. Many children, like my son, start showing signs of dyslexia as early as preschool. But without teacher knowledge, proper screening, and early intervention, these kids can struggle with reading well into adulthood. 

Thankfully, there are solutions. The Orton-Gillingham approach, for example, a method of literacy instruction invented in the 1930s by neuropsychiatrist Samuel T. Orton and educator Anna Gillingham, shows special promise for students with dyslexia but also benefits other children. Modern variations on Orton and Gillingham’s work employ a multi-sensory focus that caters to each child’s unique needs. By engaging a student’s senses–auditory, visual, and kinesthetic–these kinds of structured, sequential literacy programs help readers make meaningful connections between letters and sounds.

When teachers are empowered with the right tools, students thrive. But, in order to implement such a solution in the classroom, teachers will need ongoing support and professional development. Teaching dyslexic students requires more than just following a curriculum. It’s about making ongoing adjustments and understanding each child’s unique needs.

In my son’s case, what finally helped him succeed was this type of targeted, structured instruction. Through evidence-based programs, the education system can give children the tools they need to become confident, lifelong readers. 

Dyslexia isn’t going away–it’s something children and adults will live with for their entire lives. But schools can ensure every child learns to read by adopting early screening and equipping teachers with the right tools to help their students. I urge parents and teachers to push for early school screenings and more access to science-backed reading instruction.

The sooner educators intervene, the more successful kids will be–not just in reading, but in life.

Key points:

• Look for a literacy platform that meets students where they are
• 4 components of an effective literacy ecosystem
• To start the school year off right, invest in literacy
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

With a student population that’s roughly 85 percent Hispanic, our K-8 academy faces some interesting-but-not-insurmountable literacy challenges.

Our main program is HMH Into Reading for younger students and HMH Into Literature for the older students. A few years ago, we also adopted the SIPPS program, which provides systematic instruction for phonological awareness and sight words but required a lot of work on the teacher’s part.

Two years ago, our district started using Lexia English for our English Language Learners (ELLs), also with its Core5 and PowerUp programs. Each of the platforms were very effective for our ELL students, so we wanted to also open it up to students in need of general literacy remediation, and who needed a platform that met them where they were in the learning process.

Our students were pretty excited about using the literacy platform and our teachers liked the “low prep” nature of it. Once we saw that the students and classes using the platform were showing growth, we decided to apply its use as a school-wide goal. This is our second full year of having 100 percent of our school using these platforms.

Of course, technology itself is only as effective when it’s engaging, enlightening, and educational. Here are five steps we took to ensure that we covered all of those bases and more with our literacy platform:

1. Reward students for their hard work. We like to do things big here at Valley View. We put a “Lexia Spin the Wheel” in Larry’s office, where students spin as they hit milestones and win everything from ice cream to dress-down days to other prizes. This really gets the students involved and excited about learning. Jessica is the “Lucky Lexia Lady” with whom students share their accomplishments (I’m on level five, they’ll say as they’re rushing to get to their buses). Once the students started buying into the literacy platform, teachers followed suit because they saw just how excited their students were about it.

2. Carve out time during the school day. We noticed that the platform was being used quite often by the primary grades, but not as much with the older grades. We carved out time every Friday to make sure teachers were building the platform into their weekly centers or activities. And if they have an extra 15 minutes here or there, it’s also a great cool-down activity and perfect reset after recess. Having the time carved out on Fridays supports our schoolwide goal and ensures that we have systems in place to help kids be successful. This is important because we don’t have a take-home computer program, so we can’t rely on continued usage at home. We had to make sure they had that time to be successful during the actual school day.

3. Track progress on every level. We track activity and set “wildly important goals” (WIGs) focused on word study, grammar, and/or comprehension growth. This helps create a very consistent approach to literacy instruction. We show students how to practice a bit in each area and then stop to assess their progress. We’ll ask them questions like: What are your goals? Did you accomplish your goal for today? What did you like the most? What did you learn? Having a platform that offers very granular tracking systems has been extremely helpful. We use it to track school, classroom, grade level, and individual student goals. Our literacy platform then supports the latter by encouraging students to track, own, and celebrate their individual progress in the program.

4. Celebrate success as a team. We average out everyone’s progress and the teacher with the highest average gets a pizza party. We also have Title I paraprofessionals who identify specific students and celebrate their accomplishments. Just the other week, we had a schoolwide assembly where we announced the top student with the most units gained in every grade (those students get to spin the wheel). Highflyers are rewarded and anybody who meets the goal is rewarded with the monthly food truck. We’ll be barbecuing about 400 hamburgers next week for the kids who met their literacy goals. These are just some of the ways we celebrate success as a team across the whole school.

5. Don’t forget the soft skills. There are also some soft skills that are outside of the actual literacy and grammar that our students take away from the online literacy programs. They learn how to self-pace, motivate themselves, and manage their time, for example. They also learn stick-to-itiveness and grit. These are some of the soft skills that come with using the right literacy program and getting everyone “rowing in the same direction,” so to speak. Everyone’s working together, and it really shows.

That’s the beauty of it

Overall,we saw impressive results in both unit and level progress. It was important for us to set goals for our K-8 students to complete units in their respective literacy programs. So far, 75 percent of our students met the school goal, and that’s huge.

For our emergent bilingual students in particular, reclassification is a major milestone. Statewide, 10-11 percent of students reclassify with the Arizona English Language Learner Assessment (AZELLA). At Valley View, the school average is 18 percent reclassification in 2024 and 20 percent in 2023.

Before we partnered with our literacy provider, our ELA scores were stagnant. But for the last couple of years, we are enjoying remarkable growth in reading proficiency. With continued platform development, we expect this progress to accelerate even further. A few years ago, about 25 percent of our student population was three or more grade levels below in reading. We got that number down to just 13 percent within a year of implementing our literacy platforms.

This just goes to show that the systems we have in place are positively impacting our students and giving them the foundational skills they need. 

When selecting a literacy platform, schools and districts should look for one that truly meets the children where they’re at. That way, you can focus instruction on increasing student achievement. If you’re truly focusing on instruction, you’re not teaching to the middle–you’re teaching to the high, medium, and the low. We know for a fact that during reading intervention time, each child is actually at their level. That’s the beauty of it.

Key points:

• The decoding threshold is a crucial benchmark for assessing reading ability
• 4 components of an effective literacy ecosystem
• To start the school year off right, invest in literacy
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

Despite expectations that students master basic reading skills by third grade, many continue to struggle with reading into upper elementary school and beyond.

A new study commissioned by the Advanced Education Research and Development Fund (AERDF), a national nonprofit pursuing evidence-based breakthrough innovations to improve PreK-12 education, found that grade 3-8 teachers report that 44 percent of their students frequently have difficulty reading the instructional materials used in their classrooms.

To gain deeper insight into why so many older students continue to face reading challenges, AERDF’s Reading Reimagined program partnered with ETS Research Institute to further study an intriguing relationship between older students’ foundational literacy skills and their reading comprehension, which ETS scientists first identified in a landmark 2019 study. 

The new findings elaborate on a key factor contributing to the challenges older students face: the decoding threshold. The new report, The Decoding Threshold: Measuring the Roots of Older Students’ Reading Difficulties: New Evidence, shows that this threshold is a significant barrier to older students achieving reading proficiency.

The “decoding threshold” refers to the point at which students can read text accurately and efficiently, allowing them to independently comprehend grade-level text. It represents a crucial benchmark for assessing student reading ability, as it uncovers a potential barrier to comprehension, as the texts older students are expected to read are increasingly complex. The new analysis indicates that students whose decoding skills are below this threshold struggle with reading comprehension and are often unable to show growth in comprehension, even with continued direct instruction.

“We know that many students nationwide are struggling to comprehend grade-level text after third grade – and this study provides critical insight into why some students are struggling, and where they’re getting stuck,” said Rebecca Sutherland, associate director of research for AERDF’s Reading Reimagined program and a co-author of the report. “If a student is unable to decode longer, more complicated text, all of their attention will be devoted to decoding text, and they won’t be able to comprehend what they’re trying to read. The findings give us a clearer understanding of what supports many older students need to read on grade-level.”

Research findings: The impact of the decoding threshold

AERDF’s Reading Reimagined program, a research and development initiative focused on ending illiteracy by improving instructional resources, collaborated with ETS to explore the importance of decoding skills in reading development. The report was co-authored by ETS Research Scientist Zuowei Wang, ETS Managing Principal Research Scientist Tenaha O’Reilly, and Rebecca Sutherland, associate director of research at Reading Reimagined, a program of the Advanced Education Research and Development Fund. The research used ReadBasix®, a reading assessment developed by ETS, to assess students’ decoding abilities and the impact on their overall reading skills.

Why early identification matters

According to the report, identifying students who need help with decoding skills early is essential for providing effective interventions. Without these foundational word recognition skills, students are unlikely to improve their reading comprehension, regardless of how much time they spend in the classroom.

“It truly takes a village to solve the literacy crisis,” said Kadriye Ercikan, vice president of research at ETS. “This partnership demonstrates the immense impact we can make when research is combined with actionable solutions. The report highlights the critical importance of identifying students who need help with decoding skills. With these insights, teachers can better target interventions–bringing us one step closer to ensuring every student can read proficiently.”

For students struggling with decoding, targeted interventions that focus on foundational reading skills are critical. That is why foundational reading skills assessments designed and validated to measure older students’ decoding abilities are essential for identifying students who need support in this crucial domain. Students whose decoding skills are strong enough to be past the threshold may still need explicit instructional support in other aspects of reading, such as building background knowledge, vocabulary, fostering metacognition, and developing the critical thinking and digital literacy skills that will allow them to comprehend texts of increasing complexity.

For more information on the decoding threshold, visit AERDF’s website. For a detailed explanation of Reading Reimagined’s research base supporting its efforts, read the concept paper here.

This press release originally appeared online.

Key points:

• Learning to read is critical–and so is the right literacy program
• How to ensure your literacy program gets results
• Parents prioritize science of reading in classrooms
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

Literacy is arguably the most important skill needed to ensure students reach academic and professional success. It’s also important that students establish strong literacy skills from the get-go–because with them, many students may not learn to read.

This is where a high-quality literacy ecosystem matters. The right literacy program can make all the difference for your students. And while overhauling existing systems and implementing new programs may seem daunting, the effort is well worth it for the right literacy solution.

Moving through the following components in detail may be overwhelming, but experts recommend planning implementation via a strategic multi-year approach (as outlined here).

Here are four components every high-functioning literacy ecosystem should have:

1. A high-quality Tier 1 core curriculum: It should be effective and easy for teachers to use, and should address the critical skills students will need to develop to become fluent readers.

2. High-quality assessments: A high-quality curriculum-based measurement will help you determine if the core curriculum is working for students. You’ll need to know if what you’re doing is working–and if it’s working, is it working in all areas? A consistent approach to assessing student progress helps you see where pockets of strength are in your district, as well as which areas need a bit more support.

3. A framework for Tier 2 and Tier 3 supports: Some students will need more help than others. Having high-quality assessments in place (see #2) will help you execute Tier 2 and Tier 3 supports effectively.

4. Teacher and school leader development: Professional learning for teachers and school leaders will be essential in forming the foundation for your literacy program’s success and impact on students.

Key points:

• Many student groups are a full year behind their pre-pandemic counterparts
• Empowering young minds with a proven literacy program
• Parents prioritize science of reading in classrooms
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

As a country, we are at a pivotal time. Recent national test scores found that our country’s eighth graders are still a full school year behind pre-COVID levels in their reading and math achievements. This is tough news to swallow, but I’m choosing to view this as motivation. 

As the executive principal at the Emma Donnan campus of Adelante Schools in Indianapolis, I want my students to be successful. My goal is for students to gain essential academic skills and build a robust social-emotional toolkit so they are set up to thrive in an ever-changing world. At Adelante Schools, one of the key ways we’re pursuing that goal is by going all in on literacy. Reading is foundational to everything in a young person’s life–in and out of the classroom. 

This year’s Indiana IREAD scores proved that far too many students–about one in five–are struggling to hit their grade-level reading benchmarks. However, these scores also showed that Adelante’s investments in literacy are working: The percentage of our third graders who passed the assessment increased from 57.5 percent to 71.9 percent in a year. 

I’m proud we have implemented initiatives that are proving effective for student achievement. Here’s what we have done, and what I implore other school leaders to explore so we can all work toward student success together.  

Invest in early reading and the science of reading in a holistic manner. Students are struggling to read, and it’s a crisis. Working with support organizations like We Are Lit and Relay Graduate School of Education, we have developed a professional development system to provide teachers with deep dives into the cognitive science of reading, individualized support, ongoing coaching, real-time feedback, and practice clinics. It’s not enough just to provide some one-time workshops–we must continually invest in building teachers’ skills. Teachers also observe and track the minute data of student reading skills that often go overlooked.  

Bring data to life and prioritize planning. It’s important to dive into annual test scores and national reports, but if we want to be effective educators we need to be conducting real-time data analysis and adjusting as we go.  As a member of the Relay Leadership Leverage Institute Fellowship, I have the privilege of meeting with school leaders from all over the country to learn from experts and hone in on our leadership priorities. This year, data and planning have been at the forefront. One poignant recommendation is to engage in deep analysis of student work weekly. Not quarterly, not yearly. Weekly. This is not about just pulling up test scores but rather, looking at what students authentically produce to get into the weeds of what they know and don’t know. This will allow leaders and teachers to effectively identify brights spots or gaps in student understanding, plan to reteach the gaps, and build on the mastered concepts. When you’re on the road and you hit a roadblock, do you stop and turn around? No; you find another way to reach your destination. That’s what we need to do with our teaching. To implement effective instruction, we must be checking in regularly and planning based on real-time needs.  

Build your A-team. As a school leader, I know I need to delegate. We have created and invested in specialized roles; we have a dedicated Chief Literacy Officer who is responsible for overseeing and driving the school’s literacy initiatives. We also have a chief mathematics officer. We know we need the right people who are committed and knowledgeable–this is especially pertinent for our staff and leadership. When we have this strong bench in place, we are better set up to support our teachers. When teachers are better set up for success, that trickles down to students. And aren’t students what this is all about? 

I call on school leaders to look under the hoods of their schools. The start of the school year allows you to model best practices to set your staff, teachers and students up for success with renewed energy for the year to come. As we model teamwork for our students, let us school leaders learn from each other to ensure that every single student knows their school is providing them with an excellent education. 

Key points:

• Early literacy struggles negatively impact students throughout their lives
• 6 ways we boosted literacy platform usage and engaged students
• How we can improve literacy through student engagement
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

When students reach middle or high school, their attention spans are short, screens are ubiquitous, and reading takes a backseat to many other responsibilities. This is unfortunate because reading truly is the cornerstone of academic success, and students who didn’t master the skill during their elementary years can face a significant uphill battle as they complete their education.

The consequences of early literacy struggles have been well documented. In my role as a secondary interventionist and curriculum specialist, I’ve witnessed these consequences firsthand. With a focus on students in grades 7-12, I’ve made it a mission to help struggling readers become proficient. More specifically, our secondary teachers help our struggling students get a three or better on the Florida Assessment of Student Thinking (FAST)–a milestone that effectively liberates them from having to take intensive reading coursework.

Leveraging the power of technology

One tool I’ve used in this journey is Lexia LETRS (Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling), a structured literacy training course based on the science of reading that provides knowledge and tools teachers can use with any reading program.

Before enrolling in the course, I didn’t know anything about Scarborough’s Rope (a visual metaphor used to explain the complex nature of reading) or the simple view of reading (a model that explains the core components of reading comprehension).

I also learned that the three areas of the brain need to be connected by specific, explicit, systematic, and sequential approaches to reading instruction, developing phonemic awareness, and implementing multisensory intervention.

This newfound knowledge helped me open a whole new world for my students. Now, I’m doubling down and sharing those insights with all of our teachers, whom I want to help understand what we’re doing, how we’re doing it, and the positive impacts of those actions.

4 steps to a successful literacy program

Students are the ultimate beneficiaries of professional learning, technology investments, and other efforts that schools make on the literacy front. Students often came into my classroom for the first time with their hoodies pulled over their heads, apprehensive about what was in store and what to expect. They don’t want to interact with anyone, and by the time they reach 7^th grade, they definitely don’t want to be reminded of their reading struggles.

Here are four steps we’ve taken to work through these barriers and create a successful literacy program for students in middle and high school:

1. Give them a safe space to learn. The kids have to feel safe, welcomed, and engaged in the process. I offered snacks and drinks to help them feel more comfortable. We used the Lexia PowerUp literacy platform to accurately gauge every student’s individual path, access resources, and watch videos together–all with the goal of creating that “safe space” for the learning to transpire. These steps may seem basic, but they’re critical because many of my students had been mentally beaten down over time. My goal was to create an entirely different vibe in the classroom that makes the kids say: “Wait, Ms. Sado is actually going to do something for me. This curriculum is actually going to do something for me.” When they started to see their name on the board–in a positive light–for having reached certain program milestones, the energy was palpable, and they really got into it.

2. Emphasize progress.  I had two large whiteboards on my classroom walls. I used all of the available space to list out my students’ names and their “biggest” accomplishments, recording the number of minutes, units, and “level ups” that students finished and accomplished. The students love seeing their names up “in lights” and love the recognition. This just makes them want to achieve more. When they see their streaks grow and grow, it boosts their confidence, which has rarely, if ever, happened for them in their academic careers. 

3. Get your teachers on board. I created professional learning for the summer literacy session and in-service day; I pulled together a training session where 25 teachers understood why we do what we do at the secondary level. The teachers were so excited about it. I had people sitting in the room with me–whom I know are resistant to what we’re doing and don’t agree with it–and by the time we finished, they were asking me to share my slide deck with them. They got what we were doing, and they understood. This approach can help both districts and teachers understand that secondary reading teachers don’t know that they have to operate like elementary reading teachers (all while determining how to make it work for pre-teens and teenagers).  

4. Leverage data to conduct the reading orchestra. Our literacy platform helped me go from “really not understanding what any of my students needed to know” to being able to look at each student individually to determine whether they’re at the second-grade or foundational level on word study. Using data, I’m now like the orchestra conductor in the classroom, where I can get the string section going here, the bass section playing at this point, and making everything happen. I have a folder for every student, so I can also do quick data chats with them and talk privately about where they are, their progress, and their future goals.

The rising tide lifts all boats

The modern teacher’s job is multifaceted, and the rising tide lifts all boats. Today, about 60 percent of our students are proficient at reading, and in some cases, we’ve increased those percentages by 10 points (up from 37 percent-40 percent in the past). The positive benefits extend well beyond the walls of my classroom: overall behaviors improve, and because they can now read proficiently, students also do better in classes like science, social studies, and math–all areas where our test scores have also improved.

For me, the rewards also extend beyond the school day and standardized tests. I have had my former students come back to me, bragging about how they passed their classes and how excited they are to graduate from high school. They also talk to me about their college and career aspirations, and those conversations warm my heart.

For example, I recently ran into a former student at Home Depot, where he’s currently working as a manager and in college, earning his medical technologist degree. It’s just phenomenal to see this happening right in front of my eyes.

Key points:

• Few parents say their child’s school implements science of reading strategies
• How to combat misuse of AI in student writing
• Science teachers, math teachers, history teachers–we’re all reading teachers
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

More than eight in 10 (86 percent) parents say it is very (55 percent) or somewhat (31 percent) important that their child’s school implements the science of reading and principles of structured literacy in their curriculum, according to a national survey of more than 1,000 U.S. parents of children ages 3-17.

Despite this enthusiasm, only 33 percent of parents say their child’s school is doing so, according to the survey, which was commissioned by Lexia, a Cambium Learning Group brand, and conducted by The Harris Poll.

“Over the last 11 years, 38 states and DC have enacted laws or policies related to evidence-based reading instruction. This shift has increased awareness about the science of reading, which means that more parents now want to see these best practices implemented in their child’s school,” said Lexia President Nick Gaehde. “In addition, a rapidly growing number of parents would like to see a greater investment in reading resources to help their children both inside and outside of the classroom.”

When asked to think specifically about their child’s current reading and language abilities and what the school could improve upon, 50 percent of parents say their child’s school could improve upon investing in reading-specific technology resources. Further, 54 percent of parents want to ensure that their child’s literacy curriculum includes features that personalize it for each student, up from 43 percent last year.

Among other findings in the June 2024 survey are parents’ awareness of and support for artificial intelligence (AI).

• Nearly three-quarters (73 percent) of parents are very (23 percent) or somewhat (49 percent) familiar with the different types of AI such as generative AI and machine learning.
• A majority of parents support their child’s teacher using generative AI to develop activities in the classroom (65 percent) or create their lesson plans (60 percent).
• In addition, 55 percent of parents support their child using generative AI to help with assignments and/or homework.

“As schools roll out new technologies and new resources that are grounded in the science of reading, it is important to inform and educate parents about them. This will allow parents to see exactly how the district and school are supporting state reading initiatives, implementing evidence-based practices, and supporting the individual success of their child,” said Gaehde.

Other findings from the survey provide additional insights into where parents think their child’s school is doing well and where it can improve.

• Just over half (51 percent) of parents say that their child’s school has done well supporting their child’s academic needs, up from 46 percent in 2023.
• Only 42 percent of parents are very satisfied with the literacy program at their child’s school, down from 48 percent last year.
• Fewer than half think their child’s school has done well engaging their child in classroom activities (46 percent) or ensuring their child is performing at or above grade level (45 percent).
• About two in five parents (42 percent) worry about school staffing shortages for the 2024-25 school year, which coincides with the 65 percent of parents who say they have seen or heard about teacher shortages in their child’s school or district in the past 12 months.

This post originally appeared on the Reading Horizons blog and is reposted here with permission.

Key points:

• Every teacher can use support, and paraeducators are just that
• Paraprofessionals: The unsung heroes of the classroom
• How to ensure clear communication with your paraprofessionals
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

Could Harry Potter have defeated Voldemort without the skill and support of Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley? Not a chance. Can you imagine Lucy without Ethel? It’s unthinkable.

While main characters receive most of the attention, their sidekicks often work behind the scenes–planning, strategizing, and executing–so the dynamic duos can overcome challenges and achieve their goals.

Successful classrooms are no different. Across the country, teachers and students benefit from the skills, support, and knowledge of classroom super sidekicks: paraeducators.

With the ongoing teacher shortage, mixed-ability classes, and more students needing intervention, now is the time for districts, schools, and individual classrooms to elevate paraeducators for maximum impact.

Yes, paraeducators are there to assist teachers; however, that doesn’t mean they’re just an extra set of hands. An effective Structured Literacy classroom uses a combination of direct instruction, independent and collaborative practice, and self-guided software, creating ample opportunities for paraeducators to come to the rescue!

The more paraeducators know about the content and curriculum, class routines, and software programs, the more they can expand instructional options. Administrators must include paraeducators in training and ongoing professional learning to effectively support literacy instruction based on the science of reading. When paraeducators have knowledge and specific responsibilities, they offer greater flexibility and differentiation as true partners in the classroom.

Here are six proven ways to maximize paraeducator impact in Structured Literacy classrooms:

1. Multilingual learners (and other special populations)
Multilingual learners, especially newcomers, need additional support with oral language and pronunciation as they move through foundational literacy skills. By leveraging paraeducators for one-on-one or small-group support, these learners can move at the appropriate pace. As a bonus, bilingual aides are especially helpful with translating to support instruction, vocabulary development, and comprehension–especially if you seek out paraeducators with bilingual skills in the languages you commonly see in your classroom.

2. Intervention or enrichment
Whether working with a small group of striving readers (intervention) or excelling readers (enrichment), two heads are always better than one! Dispatching your paraeducator to work with a small group frees the teacher to remain with the rest of the class or work with a small group. For example, your paraeducator can read a decodable passage with a small intervention group (supporting their understanding); the teacher uses text with the rest of the class, working on more complex skills like finding evidence in the text to answer comprehension questions.

3. Stations
Paraeducators can serve as an additional station on days when you do rotations! For instance, in a three-station rotation, the students can move between direct instruction with the teacher (one), self-guided skill-check software (two), and transfer activities with the paraeducator, such as decodable text, authentic text, and writing (three).

4. New students
Getting a new student in your classroom in the middle of the year may be exciting for your students–but disruptive for your instruction. How can you get the latest student acclimated and up-to-speed without sacrificing progress for the rest of the class? Paraeducators can work with new students on diagnostic assessments, teach previous skills, and onboard them to the required software.

5. One-on-one practice
Sometimes, students need just a little extra support and attention to overcome roadblocks in their learning. When the primary teacher determines that students need additional practice with a skill, the paraeducator can work with an individual or small group. For example, if two students struggle with a decoding skill, the paraeducator could check for understanding and then reteach and reinforce the skill until the students have a solid grasp–and can apply it in reading and spelling. This tip is especially pertinent when a student is out for an extended period and needs one-on-one instruction to get caught up!

6. Self-guided software
If the software is self-guided, why do you need a paraeducator involved? Well, self-guided software can be a mixed blessing in a classroom. It’s highly effective when students use it to practice skills on their own–but less so when they leave the software and begin browsing the web! Rather than monitor usage, the paraeducator can optimize software usage in your class. They can float to support independent software usage, check reports, and monitor real-time data. This tip is beneficial when the primary teacher provides direct instruction or conducts a reading group.

What are other ways that paraeducators could provide support in your Structured Literacy classroom?

Teachers are heroes

We can all agree on that. However, every hero needs a sidekick, and paraeducators are just that. When you properly train and enrich your paraeducators–and have a dedicated plan for them in the classroom–it makes everyone more effective. And your student outcomes will prove it.

Key points:

• Encouraging reading is a top priority, no matter how the material is presented
• Boycotting book fairs no more
• Science teachers, math teachers, history teachers–we’re all reading teachers
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

I love a good classic. After all, I named my son Holden. 

But the definition of a classic in literature may be changing. Breaking news… (insert dramatic music) last year, librarians and teachers bought more than 17,000 copies^* of Dog Man: Twenty Thousand Fleas Under the Sea. It surpassed To Kill a Mockingbird as the most-sold book of the year for the first time in Follett history.

Is it because it’s funny? Probably.

Is it because it’s a graphic novel? Quite possibly.

Is it because the popular series is an escape from reality for kiddos? Might be.

The award-winning Dav Pilkey graphic novel series, published by Scholastic, featuring a crime fighting part-dog, part-man protagonist has taken student readers by storm in recent years and each new title is almost guaranteed to be a best-seller even before it’s released.

According to New York librarian Thomasine Susengill Mastrantoni, “My students (and I) love the control and power Dav Pilkey hands over to the KIDS at the beginning of the story,” she explained. “At the age of Dog Man readers, so much of children’s lives is run by adults. Allowing the two main characters–kids–to make the decisions is amazing. We also like filling in the blanks. Figuring out what happens in the gutters between the panels increases our inferencing and critical thinking skills. Plus, we laugh out loud so often throughout the stories.”

Graphic novels have come a long way from a time not too long ago when educators and parents didn’t consider them “official” books. That’s changed. A quick survey of parents in my social media feed confirmed a love for Dog Man and Dog Man-like titles because they are simple and fun.

One parent shared with me that Lily, who is headed into second grade this fall, loves Dog Man, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Big Nate, and Cat Kid Comic Club because there are pictures to accompany the words, and the stories are action-filled. 

Another parent told me that Finn, who is third grade-bound, thinks Dog Man is hilarious but also loves that he can be a character, his mom can be a character, and they can read together. He’s expanding his reading list to FGTeeV graphic novels.

Educators agree. According to some research, across grades 3-6, 64 percent of top-selling titles are graphic novels. Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Baby-Sitters Club and Dog Man are the top three best-selling series–all of which are graphic novels. Add Manga to the mix and you’ll find a cult following among kiddos. 

Whether it’s a graphic novel or a traditional book genre, librarians and teachers know their students fall in love with the characters in a series. Sixty-eight percent of the top 25 selling titles are part of popular series like:

• Amulet
• The Last Kids on Earth
• Wings of Fire
• I Survived
• Dog Man
• The Bad Guys
• The Wild Robot
• The Pigeon
• The Food Group

Why are these education book sales trends important?  As a country, we have a literacy crisis.  According to the Nation’s Report Card, “the 2022 National Assessment of Educational Progress revealed that two-thirds of fourth and eighth graders are unable to read proficiently. The average reading score for fourth graders is the lowest it has been in over 20 years. For eighth and twelfth graders, average scores are near a 30-year low.”

If you can’t read, learning will be a lifelong struggle. And in a world where reality can be scary, books can provide an escape. Which is why, even in an education setting, I’m not surprised, 23 of the top 25 selling titles this past quarter were fiction. So, while school pranks, fart jokes, and an underwear-clad principal may not be Pulitzer Prize-winning literature, these popular graphic novels are getting students reading, which is half the battle.

What are education publishers doing about it?  They are producing more of what educators are looking for. Every publisher I’ve spoken to in the past year is publishing more decodables to help early readers decipher new words and build a foundation for literacy. And for the elementary and middle school readers, publishers are all on the lookout for the next Dog Man, Captain Underpants, or Manga-like graphic novel series. 

Does this mean To Kill a Mockingbird is less relevant in the education landscape?  Absolutely not.  It’s still one of the most-read books on middle and high school required reading lists. 

But hopefully, because of the industry’s continued investment in books, students who are learning to read, want to read, more students are going to be ABLE to read To Kill a Mockingbird when the time comes.

^*According to Follett Content Solutions’ 2023 Annual and 2024 Quarterly Trend Reports

Key points:

• AI isn’t going anywhere–but students still need to develop their own writing abilities
• AI’s role in the future of learning
• AI is the solution to costly and ineffective dyslexia programs
• For more news on AI in education, visit eSN’s Digital Learning hub

As AI cements itself firmly into classrooms, one large and lingering question concerns when and how students can use it appropriately. It takes only seconds to plug a writing prompt into a generative AI tool and receive a completed assignment. Instead of forbidding generative AI tools, it’s critical that teachers show students how and when it’s appropriate to use AI in student writing.

The bottom line: When students are confident in their writing skills, they will be less tempted to run directly to AI to generate a writing assignment. Then, teachers can demonstrate how and when it’s appropriate for students to use AI to their benefit.

During an ISTELive 24 session, Sarah Mauel, Amy Miller, and Tahlia Remer, instructional technology trainers in Arizona’s Tempe Union High School District, shared strategies to help students improve their writing skills, thereby improving their self-confidence, along with sharing examples of how to appropriately use AI tools in student writing assignments.

It’s generally easy to determine if students have used an AI tool to generate a response to a writing assignment or to generate an entire essay. The biggest tell is that the writing will sound nothing like any of the student’s other submitted assignments. Teachers can also look for:

• Flawless writing: The grammar is nearly error-free, and the longer the response, the more bloated sentences that repeat the same concept
• Lack of original/authentic thinking: AI can only compose what it finds on the internet
• Advanced language: Use of uncommon vocabulary terms when trying to write at a higher level, or using obvious casual language to tone it down
• Format and structure are traditional and robotic: Consider what a 5 paragraph essay typically looks like when using an outline
• Use of lists or outlines: AI likes to create subtopics, label them, and then provide encyclopedia-type responses

The advent of generative AI also raises the issue of plagiarism–and how educators can (and should) rethink plagiarism and cheating.

Teachers should include an AI use chart (like this one from Ditch That Textbook) with their course descriptions and have clear-cut discussions with parents and students about when AI use is and is not acceptable.

Before bemoaning students’ urge to rely completely on AI, it’s important to identify and address the reasons students use AI to write. Those reasons may include: lack of writing skills, insecurity around writing skills, struggles with time management, confusion about the topic, missing grammar and organizational skills, having no motivation or interest, missing real-world relevance, poor work ethic, lack of access to resources, and home/personal life stress.

It’s important to make the writing process less intimidating.

“Accepting late work and allowing revisions can really determine if students use AI,” Miller said. “If you’re not going to accept it late and they’re not going to have any time [to do the work], they’re going to go ahead and use AI.”

Revisiting the steps of the writing process, particularly because students are still struggling with learning losses post-pandemic, can help students build stronger writing skills so that they don’t immediately turn to AI to complete writing assignments.

Offering students different options through which to demonstrate their understanding and their writing skills is another way to discourage them from automatically using AI.

“We have to rethink the full-length essay as the end-all, be-all for assessing student writing skills,” Miller said. “It’s intimidating. We can assess their understanding of what they read and their ability to write through shorter bursts of writing. I still think there’s value to [the full-length essay], but they don’t have to do it all the time.”

For an in-depth exploration of different writing assignments to help students build confidence and demonstrate skills, watch the recorded version of the session. Examples include small-group brainstorming and “Mini Socratics” (small-group Socratic Seminars), gamification methods giving students points for each component they’ve completed in an assignment, small-group peer reviews where students reflect on each other’s ideas instead of correcting errors, and more.

Although students should develop their own writing skills and abilities, AI is not going away, so it’s worthwhile to identify the things AI can do in the writing classroom. AI can help personalize content for students based on their level of knowledge, learning speed, and desired learning goals; provide one-on-one learning experiences outside the classroom; give students quick responses to questions to save time; and serve as a 24/7 chatbot for learning to provide learning equity, Mauel said.

Creating assignments that require things AI is not good at is one way to circumvent widespread student AI use. For example, AI is good at conducting research, synthesizing information, using different levels of vocabulary, and adopting a particular tone. AI is not good at offering subjective explanations, evaluative critical thinking, sharing personal experiences, and offering personal reflections. (MagicSchool.AI offers a tool to make assignments AI-resistant.)

Teachers can use AI to craft assignments for special student populations, as well, including creating writing prompts designed for different student needs, for idea generation, to simplify language and directions, and to use speech-to-text and/or text-to-speech for language translation.

If you do suspect a student has submitted an assignment entirely generated from AI, approaching the issue carefully can ensure open conversations:

• Recognize your biases and don’t assume the student’s intention
• Come from a place of support rather than words/actions that shame the student
• Consider how much AI assistance was used to write the assignment
• If the piece is 100 percent AI, offer zero credit for that assignment and give the student an opportunity to rewrite it

It’s important to communicate with families about AI writing, too. Define what AI-generated writing is, provide a range of acceptable use of AI within your classroom, provide a discipline matrix showing actions for AI use violations, and emphasize that AI has some great tools to assist students with writing, but not in generation of entire assignments

Important considerations for classroom AI include:

• AI is here to stay–it’s a companion and helper, not a replacement for humans
• Revamp and revise your approach to teaching with AI in mind
• Try something new, like shorter bursts of writing and/or collaboration, to assess skills
• Train your students on how to use AI ethically–when is it appropriate to use AI?
• Work on helping students gain confidence in their writing

“AI’s going to be there–we have to go back to best practices in teaching,” Miller said. “We need to look at it again. Best practices are going to help us help our students to gain that confidence.”

Key points:

• More states now mandate dyslexia screening, but the tools aren’t always effective
• 6 tips to help educators support young readers
• States need to strengthen reading instruction policies
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

About two-thirds of American students fail to meet reading standards every year when tested in 4^th, 8^th, and 12^th grades.¹

Within this larger pool, a core group is considered to have a reading disability or dyslexia. This group makes up at least 20 percent of the general population.² Researchers call 5-10 percent “non-responders” to intervention.³

Advocacy groups, backed by dyslexia authorities at universities, have pushed for dyslexia legislation across the country with these outcomes:⁴

• 40 states now mandate dyslexia screening, and more than 30 list approved screeners that schools must use.
• 29 states require dyslexia training for teachers; 14 states for teachers-to-be.
• Of the 32 states that mandate dyslexia intervention, 12 require the multisensory approach.
• 20 states require interventions to be evidence-based.

Remaining states like New York are considering similar requirements to pass into law.⁵

Dyslexia screeners

Problem: Dyslexia screening results with the approved tools do not provide the blueprint for intervention. This is because these screeners cannot perform error analysis on why a student made a certain error and what the source of the difficulty may be.

These brief screeners use a sample of disconnected test items that are just as likely to miss a student’s problem areas as to find them.⁶ Moreover, the student’s answers are not integrated together in analysis to understand how this person’s linguistic system in the brain is functioning as a whole. Even lengthy evaluations by specialists have all the same limitations.

Worse, some screeners do not even test students’ skills. For example, the Shaywitz DyslexiaScreen (Yale) is a survey that asks teachers to make judgments on how often they think a student displays problems in their language behaviors such as oral expression.⁷

Given the screening mandate, some publishers have fashioned screeners out of their reading assessment instruments designed for the typical population. This ignores the language processing differences between typical and exceptional brains.

Schools are wary about dyslexia screening for their own reasons:

• Schools do not have the resources to provide special services to more students if screening identifies additional at-risk readers (see Cost below).
• Schools have to pay for the screeners and teachers to get trained in administering the screening.
• Teachers and students have to take time out to do the screening, in addition to other assessments (state and quarterly/trimester reading and math assessments, plus additional testing for special ed students).
• Teachers have to interpret screening results manually, one student at a time, to differentiate instruction.

Multisensory intervention

Multisensory intervention is promoted by the U.S.-based International Dyslexia Association (IDA).⁸ The IDA was formerly the Orton Society, named after neuropathologist Samuel T. Orton. Orton’s work on dyslexia started in the 1920s and led to multisensory teaching techniques due to his (incorrect) hypothesis that dyslexia was vision-based. (Dyslexia was later proven to be language-based.) Later, Anna Gillingham incorporated spelling rules to this multisensory Orton-Gillingham (OG) approach. Students use multiple senses to try to remember the sound of a letter, e.g., by tracing and feeling letter shapes.⁹

In conjunction with multisensory intervention, the IDA promotes structured literacy(multisensory structured literacy – MSL). The latter involves systematic instruction, from sounds and spelling to other language components (parts of words, sentences, meaning, plus reading).

Popularity: OG/MSL is the most popular dyslexia/reading intervention in the U.S. It is mandated in some states and required in teacher training programs. Schools purchase OG-based commercial programs and/or pay for OG training and certification for their teachers.¹⁰ Prominent dyslexia researchers support MSL. Some are IDA award recipients and/or members of IDA’s Council of Advisors and Scientific Advisory Board. Some also served on dyslexia task forces or literacy-focused committees at the state and federal levels. The IDA publishes several academic journals on dyslexia and literacy.¹¹

Research evidence lacking: Despite OG/MSL’s popularity and backing, research evidence of its efficacy for students with dyslexia beyond 3^rd grade is lacking, despite almost a century of application. This is the conclusion of meta-analytic reviews of rigorous clinical trials. A 2014 review by Durham and Yale University professors echoes this finding (Cambridge), as did other 2006, 2021, and 2022 reviews.¹² The reviews find that many studies lack scientific rigor. The U.S. Department of Education’s What Works Clearinghouse for literacy does not contain any study that has a significant positive effect on broad reading achievement for this group.¹³ Positive effects only show in narrow areas such as alphabetic knowledge in younger students.

Evidence-based

Yet, proponents call their methods and screeners “evidence-based.” According to the DOE’s Institute of Education Sciences, this term can be used when there is a rationale, based on research findings, that the practice is likely to improve student outcomes, with ongoing efforts to examine such effects.¹⁴ That is, methods and tools called “evidence-based” do not necessarily have evidence of positive effects.

Feasibility of implementation

Cost

Special ed: U.S. schools collectively spend over $120 billion a year on special education.¹⁵ The largest category is learning disabilities, mainly dyslexia.¹⁶ Reading difficulties also occur across other disabilities such as autism and ADHD.¹⁷ In some states like Connecticut, the cost of educating a student in special ed is twice as much as general education ($40k+ v. $20k+ per year).¹⁸ Due to this high cost, less than half the students with reading difficulties across the country get special ed.¹⁹ Often, only half of the bottom third of chronically failing students get services.

Teacher training: Dyslexia/reading interventions are expensive because teachers work one-on-one or in small groups. Also, teachers have to complete extensive coursework over at least 2 years and 100+ hours of practicum to be certified to use OG.²⁰ Some schools pay $10k for each teacher to get OG training.²¹ Schools also pay for teacher training to use dyslexia screeners and commercial programs.

Long-term cost: As OG cannot correct the reading difficulty, the same students still need services throughout school.²² Thus, the total cost for each special ed student in states like Massachusetts may be over $200k ($20k x 10 years – grades 3-12).

Literacy initiatives: There have been many intensive, well-funded initiatives to address this problem, which is the biggest and costliest in education. The Bush administration’s 3-year, $3 billion initiative did not produce statistically significant impact on reading comprehension.²³ Ohio state’s 4-year Dyslexia Pilot Project on grades 1-3 did not reduce the risk of reading failure in 3^rd graders ($960,000).²⁴ Various grant-supported, university-run interventions similarly had negligible impact.³

Fiscal pressures: In some states, such as New York and Minnesota, special ed spending is increasing by double digits, sometimes more than 20 percent.²⁵ This expansion is likely to affect more states post-pandemic as a result of learning loss due to school shutdowns.¹ The impact on young children during their most critical years of language development is still unclear at this point.

The federal government underfunds special ed and leaves states with a $10 billion shortfall every year.²⁶ School districts are forced to make up this deficit with tax increases. As a result, residents on fixed income in some cities such as Columbus, Ohio, are forced out of their homes.²⁷

If the current path of covering half the students in need is already unsustainable, how can we cover all students in need?

Fidelity of implementation

Research shows that a 3^rd grader with dyslexia will likely read below grade level throughout school regardless of intervention.²⁸ When reading outcomes are poor, fidelity of implementation is often blamed: hence the constant call for more teachers to get trained and for them to get trained adequately. However, it is time to re-examine the method itself if no one has been able to get this group to read on grade level consistently for almost 100 years. Moreover, even high-fidelity interventions run by university professors have not succeeded.

Scalability

Workflow bottlenecks: Bottlenecks at every stage of the process, from dyslexia identification through intervention, have created the current situation. Presently, dyslexia is diagnosed through lengthy one-on-one neuropsychological evaluations by certified specialists that cost about $5,000-10,000 per pupil.²⁹ Schools cannot afford to evaluate all at-risk students in this way. And there are not enough specialists to evaluate everyone.

Thus, a brief universal screening was introduced (to suggest risk of dyslexia, not diagnose). But the disjuncture remains between identification and intervention, whether with screeners or evaluations. Teachers have to interpret the results student by student to differentiate instruction.³⁰ And differentiated instruction can only serve one or just a few students at a time.

Dyslexia schools: Mainly OG-based, dyslexia schools can only serve small groups due to this labor-intensive method. At over $70,000 a year per pupil at the Windward School, this model is not feasible for wide adoption.³¹ Despite their supporters’ testimonials, they lack research evidence of efficacy as noted above.

Dyslexia classification

There is no consensus among researchers on the definition of dyslexia.¹² It is not classified as a disorder in the American Psychiatric Association’s authoritative diagnostic guide, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5^th ed. (DSM-5).

Disjuncture due to historical accident: Dyslexia was initially mistaken to be an eye problem.³² Due to this historical accident, diagnosis still remains with the medical profession. However, since physicians do not know how to resolve language difficulties, treatment is passed on to teachers. Up to now, families still go to pediatricians to get a dyslexia diagnosis in order to qualify for intervention at school.

Dyslexia or reading difficulty? Some researchers equate dyslexia with reading difficulty, while others consider dyslexia as a subset of reading difficulties. Because of this confusion, some researchers suggest dispensing with the term “dyslexia” and instead focus on reading difficulties.¹² The latter can be identified with norm-referenced measures in state and standardized reading assessments. Thus, the 25^th-30^th percentile in these assessments have been used as the dyslexia threshold in research.³³

This confusion permeates the school system:

• Many educators think of dyslexia as a rare condition that is not commonly found among their struggling readers.
• Teachers avoid using the term in fear of liability issues – dyslexia as a disability is covered by the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), which mandates free, appropriate education for students with disabilities.
• Some quarters discriminate between students who have been diagnosed (through expensive neuropsychological evaluations) and economically disadvantaged students whose poor reading skills are assumed to be environmental instead.¹²

Artificial intelligence

Game-based AI systems can evaluate and correct language processing deficits autonomously. These processing deficits underlie conditions such as dyslexia. Users play the language-based evaluative and corrective games generated by AI. A user typically goes through thousands of games in the course of a year of intervention.

The micro data collected on their game responses yielded new, detailed information about the linguistic-cognitive processes of dyslexic brains. Some findings:

• Dyslexia can be defined operationally in terms of language processing inefficiencies. These inefficiencies can be measured precisely (Efficiency = Accuracy x Speed).
• Below a certain level of efficiency in key areas of literacy development, reading difficulty or dyslexia manifests on the surface.
• The linguistic system in the brain is highly fragile and requires 90-100 percent efficiency in core areas for a person to function effectively as a speaker, listener, reader and writer. It is not unusual to find some struggling readers operating at 20 percent efficiency in some areas when they first start.
• Language processing efficiencies can be improved with weekly intervention (corrective training). Improvements in brain processing remain latent for the first several months of intervention (i.e., not noticeable overtly). When the user reaches 90-100 percent efficiency in core areas consistently, then, within a 2-month window, academic improvements follow, e.g., in spelling tests and eventually in state and standardized reading assessments.
• The effect is not gradual but shows a sharp knee-of-the curve upward trajectory. This improvement in brain efficiency often affects the whole person, in terms of learning behaviors, attitude and motivation.

Early results: AI generates an individually customized evaluation and intervention for each user. All games are single use, built specifically for that one user at that moment. Users who complete their programs have been able to get to grade-level reading within 1-2 years. They often start at below the 25^th percentile in state or standardized reading assessments.

Integrating screening/evaluation and intervention: AI evaluation results form the blueprint for intervention. AI tracks a student’s errors to get to the source of processing difficulties. To respond intelligently in this way, the AI system comprises massive complex databases and custom-built, domain-specific algorithms. The user’s own database, which includes all their game responses, grows as they progress. The system’s autonomous decision-making on what game to build for a user next is based on continuous, real-time analysis of all information in their own database, cross-referenced with other relevant databases.

To be an effective evaluator-interventionist, AI can be built to switch language modalities flexibly. For example, if a student misspells words with the “th” sound, AI may ask them to catch this sound in heard words in the next game.

Multisensory: This AI does not make struggling readers learn what they cannot learn. It first determines whether they can actually process a particular part of language. For example, when they start, many struggling readers say that their teachers’ instruction on phonics “does not make sense” (letter-sound relations). Because these students cannot process speech sounds, the letter shapes hold no meaning to them, no matter how many sensory activities they experience.

Structured literacy: For the shortest intervention possible, AI can target specific inefficient processes in each student’s linguistic system. Moreover, AI does not merely consider the structural components of language but also the non-typical ways in which exceptional brains operate.

Cost: This program currently costs less than 10 percent of what states spend on special ed per pupil. In New York, it is 1 percent.

NY special ed = $20k/pupil/year x 10 years of intervention = $200k.³⁷

AI program = $1k/pupil/year x 2 years = $2k (to get to reading proficiency).

Teacher training: The program is plug-and-play and web-based. It does not require installations, downloads, upgrades or teacher training. In fact, children require minimal supervision, which can be from any adult. It can run for 2 years or longer automatically without human intervention.

Scalability: AI can provide evaluations and interventions to millions of students today.

Dyslexia or reading difficulty: Different authorities in the field carve out “dyslexia” differently on the spectrum of language processing difficulties (or inefficiencies). Instead of focusing on this labeling issue, AI prioritizes getting all readers who are performing below the 50^th percentile to passing. This means identifying each person’s processing inefficiencies and correcting them.

Why does AI work? And why does it work so fast?

The dyslexia problem required AI to overcome 3 major obstacles that human specialists could not:

• Complexity of the linguistic system in the brain and the wide individual variation in the population with language processing difficulties.
• Speed of language processing in the brain (often in hundreds of milliseconds in parallel).
• Capacity to document and cross-reference billions of datapoints per student and do the same for millions of users.

AI is effective and efficient because it only generates the data that it needs to read at that point. Yet every decision is based on all relevant data at its disposal. Through AI, we have found a way to read individual brains at the level of granularity needed to correct brain processes.

NOTES AND REFERENCES

1. National Center for Education Statistics. (2022). National achievement-level results. NAEP Report Card: Reading. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/reading/nation/achievement/?grade=4
2. National Institute of Child Health & Human Development, NIH, U.S. Dept of Health & Human Services. (2012). How many people are affected by/at risk for reading disorders? https://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/reading/conditioninfo/pages/risk.aspx
3. Fuchs, D., Compton, D.L., Fuchs, L.S., Bryant, V.J., Hamlett, C.L., & Lambert, W. (2012). First-grade cognitive abilities as long-term predictors of reading comprehension and disability status. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 45(3), 217-231.
4. National Center on Improving Literacy. (2024). State of Dyslexia. https://improvingliteracy.org/state-of-dyslexia/
5. New York State Senate. (2024). Senate Bill S5232.
6. University of Oregon. (2023). DIBELS 8^th Ed. https://dibels.uoregon.edu/dibels8
   Illuminate Education. (2023). Fastbridge Dyslexia Screener. https://www.illuminateed.com/products/fastbridge/reading-assessment/dyslexia-screening/
   Lexercise. (2023). Free Dyslexia Test for Children. https://www.lexercise.com/tests/dyslexia-test
7. Pearson. (2023). Shaywitz DyslexiaScreen. https://www.pearsonassessments.com/store/usassessments/en/Store/Professional-Assessments/MTSS-RTI-PBIS-Benchmarking/Shaywitz-DyslexiaScreen/p/100001918.html
8. International Dyslexia Association. (2024). IDA moves beyond matrix. https://dyslexiaida.org/update-on-idas-matrix/
9. Cox, A.R. (1985). Alphabetic phonics: An organization and expansion of Orton-Gillingham. Annals of Dyslexia, 35, 187-198.
10. Shresta, P., Tracy, T., Mazal, M., Blakeney, A., Kennedy, N., & May, H. (2022). A cost analysis of Reading Recovery and alternative interventions under the i3 Scale-Up. Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the American Education Research Association (AERA). San Diego, CA, Apr 23.
    Orton-Gillingham Academy. (nd). Orton-Gillingham practitioner certification. https://www.ortonacademy.org/training-certification/individual-certification/
11. Perspectives on Language & Literacy, The Examiner, Annals of Dyslexia, Reading & Writing
12. Elliott, J. G., & Grigorenko, E. L. (2014). The dyslexia debate. New York: Cambridge.
    Ritchey, K.D., & Goeke, J.L. (2006). Orton-Gillingham and Orton-Gillingham-based reading instruction: A review of the literature. The Journal of Special Education, 40(3), 171-183.
    Stevens, E.A., Austin, C., Moore, C., Scammacca, N., Boucher, A.N., & Vaughn, S. (2021). Current state of the evidence: Examining the effects of Orton-Gillingham reading interventions for students with or at risk for word-level reading disabilities. Exceptional Children, 87(4), 397-417.
    Sayeski, K.L., & Hurford, D.P. (2022). A framework for examining reading-related education research and the curious case of Orton-Gillingham. Learning Disabilities, 27(2), 1-11.
13. What Works Clearinghouse. Search results: Literacy topic. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/Search/Products?searchTerm=&Topic=3
14. Institute of Education Sciences. (2024). Building and using evidence in data science education – What is an evidence-based practice? Evidence Based Practice. https://ies.ed.gov/EvidenceBased/dataliteracy/ds-ebp.asp
15. Graves, K. (Nov 20, 2023). Funding falls short for students with disabilities. The Principal Advocate. National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP). https://www.naesp.org/blog/funding-falls-short-for-students-with-disabilities/
    National Center for Education Statistics. (2024). Current Expenditures for Public Elementary and Secondary Education: School Year 2003-04. https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2006352
16. Office of Special Education Programs. (2023). 44th Annual Report to Congress on the Implementation of the IDEA. Washington, DC: U.S. Dept of Education.
17. Germano, E., Gagliano, A. & Curatolo, P. (2010). Comorbidity of ADHD and dyslexia. Developmental Neuropsychology, 35(5), 475-493.
18. EdBuild. (2024). FundEd: State policy analysis. A detailed look at each state’s funding policies. http://funded.edbuild.org/state
19. Compare the 20 percent with dyslexia to the 9 percent of student population in special education for all disabilities – see Annual Reports to Congress on the Implementation of the IDEA.
20. Orton Gillingham Online Academy. (2022). Practicum for Level 1 with OG certification. ortongillinghamonlinetutor.com
21. Personal communication, Principal, Mill Road Intermediate School, Red Hook Central Schools, NY
22. Donegan, R. E., Wanzek, J., & Al Otaiba, S. (2020). Effects of a reading intervention implemented at differing intensities for upper elementary students. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 35(2), 62-71.
23. Gamse, B. C., Jacob, R. T., Horst, M., Boulay, B., & Unlu, F. (2008). Reading First Impact Study Final Report Executive Summary (NCEE 2009-4039). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.
24. Morrison, J.Q., Collins, T.A., & Hawkins, R.O. (2016). Evaluation of the Dyslexia Pilot Project: Year 4. Cincinnati, OH: University of Cincinnati.
25. Wastvedt, S. (May 16, 2018). As schools struggle with costs, special education takes a toll. NPR News. https://www.mprnews.org/story/2018/05/16/specialeducation-takes-toll-as-schools-struggle
26. Lieberman, M. (Apr 20, 2023). Special education is getting more expensive, forcing schools to make cuts elsewhere. EducationWeek. https://www.edweek.org/leadership/special-education-is-getting-more-expensive-forcing-schools-to-make-cuts-elsewhere/2023/04
27. Cleary, I. (Mar 26, 2024). Columbus residents speak up about property taxes in the city. NBC 4i. https://www.nbc4i.com/news/local-news/columbus/columbus-residents-speak-up-about-property-taxes-in-the-city/
28. Fiester, L. (2010). Why reading by the end of third grade matters. A KIDS COUNT Special Report from the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Baltimore, MD: Annie E. Casey Foundation.
29. Columbia University Irving Medical Center. (2024). Neuropsychological evaluation service. https://www.columbiadoctors.org/childrens-health/pediatric-specialties/psychiatry-psychology/our-services/neuropsychological-evaluation-service
30. Liewinko, K.N. (Mar 25, 2024). Dyslexia breakthrough: AI powered. Assembling Inclusion podcast. https://www.youtube.com/@assemblinginclusion/podcasts
31. Windward School. (2024). Affording a Windward education. https://www.thewindwardschool.org/admissions/tuition-financial-aid
32. Shaywitz, S.E. (2003). Overcoming dyslexia. New York: Knopf.
33. Snowling, M.J. (2000). Dyslexia. Oxford, UK: Blackwell.
    Wanzek, J. & Roberts, G. (2012). Reading interventions with varying instructional emphases for fourth graders with reading difficulties. Learning Disability Quarterly, 35(2), 90-101.
34. Hoh, C.P.S., & Haruta, E.Y. (2018). Dyslexia dissolved: Successful cases with learning disabilities, ADHD and language disorders. https://www.amazon.com/Dyslexia-Dissolved-Successful-Disabilities-Disorders/dp/173278860X
35. https://www.dysolve.com/press/
36. Registry of Efficacy and Effectiveness Studies, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan
    https://sreereg.icpsr.umich.edu/sreereg/subEntry/21840/pdf?action=view
37. Office of the New York State Comptroller. (2020). Special report update: Education revenues and expenditures with a highlight on special education for regions outside New York City. New York: Office of the New York State Comptroller.

This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Sign up for their newsletters at ckbe.at/newsletters.

I’m in my fifth year teaching science to fifth and sixth graders, but, like every other teacher at the K-8 charter school where I work, I also teach reading.

Literacy is a foundational skill for learning new content and as an upper elementary science teacher, my soon-to-be middle schoolers have ideally made the vital transition from “learning to read” to “reading to learn.” But pandemic-era school closures drastically cut into learning time, and literacy skills have been slow to recover.

Imagine–and if you’re a science teacher, you won’t have to–trying to get through a lesson on the water cycle with students struggling to sound out keywords like “condensation” and “precipitation.” These are longer, multisyllabic words that students can sound out if they have a basic mastery of phonics, but they become impossible if students lack this foundation. I’ll never forget the frustration I felt when I had planned to teach a lesson on food webs and had to spend the first half of the class teaching struggling readers how to sound out “interdependence,” and “ecosystem.” I can only imagine how frustrating it was for my students!

In pre-pandemic days, it was normal to have a few struggling readers per class. Post-COVID, it has often felt like there are few readers who are not struggling. It was clear that a new approach to literacy instruction was needed–one that leveraged every teacher in our building and gave us ways to catch our older students up on second grade skills without infantilizing the content.

Luckily, training offered by my school, Springfield Prep in Massachusetts, has provided me with tools to help get students reading proficiently again. The school brought in John Bennetts, who specializes in foundational reading skills, to lead the professional development sessions, coach teachers and administrators, model lessons, and work one-on-one with struggling students.

He began by sending a handful of teachers out of the room. One by one, we were each brought back in to read a passage in which a certain percentage of words had been changed to nonsense words.

When I entered the room and read the passage out loud, I struggled to pronounce the unfamiliar words. And when John hit me with rapid-fire comprehension questions, it was clear that I had derived no meaning from the text. All I remembered was trying not to sound like an idiot and feeling like a failure.

To make meaning from a passage, John told us, a person needs to be able to read 95-98% of the words. I read the passage at 85% proficiency and couldn’t guess its topic. At 97%, the next volunteer was able to take some educated guesses and get most of the comprehension questions right. Suddenly, what my students had been experiencing over the past two years made perfect sense to me.

The message was clear: We needed to start teaching older students how to sound out and read unfamiliar words. But how could I do this without making my fifth graders feel like they were back in first grade? How could we embed these skills into our classes without falling further behind in our curriculum?

John taught us a word routine that day that gave us and our students a step-by-step process to follow when encountering unfamiliar words. I started using the routine in class the next week. “How many vowels do you see?” I would ask. Students could then figure out how many syllables the word contained by grouping adjacent vowels into one syllable and subtracting a syllable if there was a silent “e” at the end. This allows students to split the word into chunks they can sound out and then put together to pronounce the whole word. After a few months of daily practice, my students weren’t looking at me helplessly as often.

“Challenging” doesn’t even begin to describe the circumstances teachers were confronted with coming out of remote learning. Our school’s approach to reading instruction may not be perfect, but we are trying with everything we have to help our kids get back on track. The resilience and creativity of educators, students, and school leaders nationwide make recovery possible. It makes me proud to be a science teacher who teaches reading, too.

Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.

Related:
6 tips to help educators support young readers
States need to strengthen reading instruction policies
For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

Key points:

• It’s critical for students to have access to reading opportunities
• 6 tips to help educators support young readers
• 3 keys to successful summer reading
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

When I was a kid, my dad never let me shop the Scholastic Book Fair. The avid reader in me didn’t really care that he saw the Book Fair as competition to our family business and an unnecessary purchase. I just wanted the new Baby-Sitters Club book! Yet, this is hardly a ‘woe is me’ story. Growing up, I had more than my fair share of books in my home library and my mom took us to the public library regularly. And just because my family didn’t support the book fair fundraiser, they found different ways to contribute to my elementary school. 

A generation later, I know I won’t force my son Holden into a book fair boycott because I know how important it is for schools to supplement their funding through fundraisers. In a recent market study, librarians shared that they get approximately $10 per student to spend on books. To better meet the needs of their school communities, they run fundraisers and partner with nonprofit organizations with the goal of adding as much as an additional $5 per student.  From that study, an anonymous librarian in Michigan said, “We lost our budget during COVID because we were remote for a long time. The workaround I’ve found is that now a big part of my job is fundraising.” 

Headlines since 2020 have highlighted the federal investment of ESSER Funding in schools. In a nation where an unprecedented amount of funding was bestowed upon public schools across the country, why is fundraising still necessary? 

Many districts initially used pandemic relief dollars on PPE to get students back into the classroom, and then they transitioned to large capital projects like HVAC and improved school security. A second unnamed librarian, this time in New Jersey, explained, “My school got a significant amount of funding from ESSER, but funds earmarked [by my district] for libraries ended up being used for other purposes like air purifiers and other infrastructure and tech.”

When I asked William Schaller, an Information Literacy Specialist in Houston, how he used ESSER dollars to replace print books lost when schools shut down during the pandemic and students went home, he said, “Many of our materials were misplaced when students were at home learning or moved away from our school.” He added, “We will continue to advocate for school libraries to be included in our school district’s budgets, sharing the positive impact libraries have on our students. We will continue to write grants to hopefully be funded by literacy supporters in the community, and advocate and promote all the powerful literacy events taking place in the heart of our school, the library! You can never have too many relevant, new, and inclusive books in the library.”

As ESSER Funds face expiration later this year, districts like Schaller’s that previously used pandemic relief funds on book purchases are finding new ways to ensure a continued investment in reading materials, because given the reading scores reported in the nation’s report card, no principal or superintendent wants to be seen as investing less in books.

But as with any operation, the expiration of ESSER Funding will force districts to do more with less. John Chrastka, the Executive Director of Every Library explains, “The costs of running and maintaining a library have risen since the pandemic and show no signs of slowing down. Post-ESSER, schools will have to rethink how they operate, but administrators and principals should not be allowed to balance the budget by cutting libraries and librarians given the value they bring to the community.”

Meredith Hill, with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, encourages district leadership to take a hard look at how they allocate their budget dollars post-pandemic and continue to make reading materials a priority. “The criticality of funding school libraries during the upcoming expiration of ESSER funding cannot be understated,” said Hill. “District-level decision makers must prioritize ongoing, annual funding of school libraries to maximize the impact certified school librarians can have on every student and teacher in the district. Not providing that reliable annual budget and asking school librarians to seek their own funding through grants, book fairs, or other funding sources leads to increased inequities in the services and resources available to staff and students at different schools within the same district. This is antithetical to the philosophy of equitable access that underlies the foundation of library service.”

Yet, school librarians recognize fundraising is now simply part of their job description and it’s never been more important to demonstrate and advocate for the value libraries and librarians bring to the education system. “Schools with well-funded school library media centers, updated collections, and certified school library media coordinators are able to spark student learning in high-impact ways,” said Hill. “These include providing curriculum-aligned resources, collaborating on research and tech-rich projects with teachers, sparking student curiosity and problem-solving with Makerspace, guiding the ethical implementation of AI, and creating a school-wide culture and lifelong love of reading.”

Being well-funded can take work and creativity on behalf of the librarian, but can be accomplished through effective community partnerships–a cornerstone of the Future Ready Library Framework. Schaller relies on various funding sources outside of district allocations. “Grant writing is another wonderful way for libraries to collect diverse titles,” said Schaller. “Our school has received grants from author James Patterson and Scholastic Book Clubs to help get more books into our schools, granting literacy to our readers. DonorsChoose is a fast way our library has been able to write specific projects for materials. Donors can select projects that inspire them by searching keywords, such as ‘library books’ or ‘STEM’ and donate to schools across the country. Through DonorsChoose, our library has received grants for books in November about voting and the importance of elections, many Spanish translations of popular titles for our Libros en Español section of the library, and even Young Sheldon from CBS has funded STEM and makerspace projects for our library’s hands-on learning area!”

Johnna Gregory, the Librarian at Trinity Lakes Elementary School in Hurst-Euless-Bedford ISD in Texas, recently put community partnerships to work to put the “fair” in her book fair.  Each of the 650 students on campus had the opportunity to choose TWO books to take home, for free. To make the book fair “fair,” Gregory solicited donations from the community, PTA, and board members; took advantage of vendor book sales; and used the rewards from her for-profit book fair to purchase the books so every student left with a book in each hand.

Whether the funding comes from municipal tax dollars, state or federal allocations, grants, physical book fairs, eFairs, bake sales, DonorsChoose, corporate partnerships, or combination of them all, access to books changes lives–and that’s an investment each of us can’t afford not to make.

Key points:

• An innovative approach to literacy yields encouraging results for students
• 6 tips to help educators support young readers
• How we can improve literacy through student engagement
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

I became a reading specialist in 2015, at which point our school’s previous reading specialist was already using an online literacy platform. This was right about the time a leading literacy vendor was rolling out its new literacy program for struggling adolescent readers, so the following year I decided to integrate that program into our English curriculum.

As soon as we did the training for our new program, Lexia PowerUp Literacy, the teachers loved that they could see which students were and weren’t working in the program. Plus, they had the resource hub with everything in it, including all of the lessons. At that point, teachers really began to understand the value of using the literacy tool.

Our county funded our literacy program purchase, and because our elementary schools were already using another program from our literacy partner, they were able to transition to the former as soon as they entered sixth grade. That’s a big plus, because it’s basically a “grown up version” of a literacy platform that they were already used to.

6 ways to boost literacy platform usage

We have almost 1,000 students here in grades 6-8, and they use the program every other day in their PACK class as part of our new “Wit and Wisdom” 5-day/90-minute curriculum program. Everyone is enrolled in it and the students split their time between math and reading.

Here are six ways we’ve been working to increase usage of our literacy platform:

1. Train every teacher. Like many school systems, Stafford County is struggling with teacher staffing and retention. We have so many long-term substitute teachers this year that we’re requiring them to take training for the literacy program as well. We also have PLCs where grade-level teachers meet to discuss student progress. We had regular meetings with our representative and we talked a lot about goal setting for both teachers and students. We had full staff meetings with our software vendor to make sure all our teachers were well-versed in the program. 

2. Focus on more than minutes. We really pushed the minutes in the beginning. Then when we had another meeting, we realized that we also needed to see progress in the units, and not just have the minutes. We started to see the minutes accumulating, and we had kids with 383 minutes in “other,” which meant they were watching videos or just letting the time roll through. To solve the problem, we started putting together weekly morning announcements that revealed the top 10 winners in the grade level, in both minutes and units. That really helped, because kids just wanted to see their names up there. They wanted to be in that top 10.  

3. Give students autonomy. Having an online literacy platform helps with students’ self-esteem and independence, knowing that they have the power to make changes. They have the power to get in there and fill the gaps they may have that are impeding their reading comprehension. It seems like they know someone’s looking, and they want to do more. I love that about our platform. During the COVID-19 years—when the teachers were looking and making comments because everything was virtual—students would actually try to log in and do more when they knew someone was looking.

4. Use the program as an intervention tool. Last year, our county’s eight middle schools all had a reading skills and strategies class where everyone used our literacy platform. As the class kicked off, people kept coming back to me asking why our students were doing better than some of the other schools. Some principals thought they could put a sub in there every day and that it would be great, and as long as they just logged in there, everything would happen. They didn’t realize all the resources that we have at our fingertips in the platform, including skill builders. When the kids are working, their teachers can see their progress (or lack thereof) and intervene as needed.

5. Recognition is key. We have our own certificates and our platform awards certificates and badges as students achieve their goals. If they’ve finished one strand, they earn one badge. And if they finish two, they earn the second badge. If they finish the whole program, they’re inducted into the Lightning Club. They get a little crown with a wolf (our mascot) and a lightning bolt. We always offer a big prize, which this year was sunglasses with lightning bolts on them. We encourage the kids who have finished to continue working, but we also give students a lot of recognition because they’ve worked so hard. Students who have finished even give others advice on how to excel in the program, which is cute. It’s part of the culture.

6. Get parents involved. It’s really important to make sure all teachers tell the students that “this is part of their instruction,” and that you can’t just leave it out. Students have to know that their teachers are going to see what they’re doing, make comments on their work, and help them when they struggle. We do share the reports with parents, and I think that’s really powerful when we have a child who is struggling. We call their parents and I email the report to them so that they can see where the student is working. We tell them the more time your child spends in this program, the better it will be, and you’ll see them grow.

Success by the numbers

The students who are using PowerUp are also scoring better on their NWEA® MAP Skills®, which even further proves the value of augmenting literacy instruction with a robust, science-backed literacy platform. In fact, over 70 percent of our students using the literacy program finished the 2022-2023 year in intermediate or advanced zones in each of the three strands. Ninety percent of students using it finished the year in intermediate or advanced zones for comprehension.

Other notable stats:

• Over 80 percent of the students who met usage targets reached the advanced zone in each of the strands by the end of the year.
• Of all 926 middle school students, 55 percent, or 507 students, moved up at least one zone throughout the year and 269 students moved up 2+ zones.

Not only has our literacy platform helped our students advance academically, but it has also helped to build their independence and self-esteem as they fill in the gaps that are impeding their reading comprehension.

Key points:

• It’s important to move beyond sight words and focus on foundational skills
• 3 keys to successful summer reading
• More than a passion project, literacy advocacy takes a village
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

In school, many kindergarten and first-grade students are asked to memorize lists of common words, which are sometimes called “sight words.” This practice skips important steps. The idea that children learn to read by memorizing whole words is a misconception. Research shows that teaching students individual letter-sound correspondences and having them sound out words is more effective.

Defining sight words

In research, a sight word isn’t merely one of several on a list of high-frequency words. It is any instantly recognizable word. We now know students learn to read by mapping individual sounds to letters that represent them. The more opportunities students have to practice decoding and spelling words, the more these letter–sound correspondences make sense to them. Once a word can be recognized within a fourth of a second, reading scientists call it a sight word: a word that can be read as if by sight.

The problem with emphasizing whole words

Some children’s books that are used to teach reading use repetition. For example, a book may say, “I see the police officer. I see the firefighter. I see the mail carrier.” Repetitive books are designed based on the outdated notion that students learn to read by memorizing whole words rather than sounding out words based on phonics skills. Prioritizing high-frequency words can lead students to believe that reading is a practice where they must memorize words rather than using their phonics knowledge to sound the words out. This approach to reading instruction inadvertently teaches students the habits of poor readers, leading to an over-reliance on guessing at words based on the first letter, picture, or sentence context.

Learning to read irregular words
Even irregular words have parts that can be mapped to sounds. Take the high-frequency word “said,” for example. In this word, the letter “s” spells the sound /s/, and the letter “d” spells the sound /d/. The only part of the word students need to learn is the middle two letters, “ai,” which spell the sound /e/.

When teachers call attention to the parts of the word rather than presenting the word as a whole, it can help students gain a better understanding of reading. This approach allows students to see the parts of the word they know and do not know. Students can memorize the part of the word that is irregular based on the phonics patterns they have learned. Some teachers call these “heart words” because students learn the irregular part of the word by heart. When students use their phonics knowledge to decode unknown words, they will run into words with irregularly spelled parts.

Teachers and administrators can support young readers in a variety of ways.

3 tips for teachers to support young readers

1. Provide opportunities for students to practice flexible decoding strategies with irregularly spelled words. Begin by teaching them to ask questions that help them tap into what they already know: “I sounded this word out but it doesn’t make sense. What word do I know that sounds close to that word? Does it make sense in this context? Does it make sense with these letters and sounds I know?” Research suggests encouraging students to use a flexible decoding strategy after sounding out the word using their phonics knowledge will help them become problem solvers while reading. It may also help them to acquire new phonics knowledge.
2. Use decodable texts that align with your curriculum’s phonics scope and sequence. Buyer beware: Many companies market books as “decodable,” but without alignment with your curriculum’s phonics scope and sequence, it’s unlikely the text is decodable for your students.
3. Examine high-frequency word lists and determine which words are phonetically regular (“can,” “his,” “me”) and which words have irregular parts (“said,” “there,” “would”). Use this information to plan for your phonics and fluency instruction.

3 tips for administrators to support teachers and students

Administrators can also play a role in helping to support literacy. Based on my experience, below are three tips for administrators to support students and teachers.

1. Supply classrooms with appropriate materials for phonics, including a wide range of decodable texts that align specifically with your school’s phonics scope and sequence.
2. Do not create goals that include a set amount of sight words to reach by the end of the year. Instead, measure student progress on brief, predictive measures, including foundational skills assessments, such as word-recognition fluency in kindergarten or oral-reading fluency in first grade.
3. Support teachers with time for professional learning. Teachers need ample time to gather resources to plan for instruction, learn new professional practices, collaborate with colleagues, and reflect on their learning and growth.

To help students become truly fluent readers, we need to consider how we teach reading. Instead of focusing on memorization, we need to provide strong foundational skills that students can use to understand how to sound out words. By helping students to understand letter–sound correspondences, pointing out parts of words that are irregular, and encouraging flexible decoding strategies, we can help students build a solid foundation in learning to read and spell.

Key points:

• Learning to read is a lifetime activity that pays dividends for children, youth, adults, and our communities
• 5 things you need to know about the science of reading
• More than a passion project, literacy advocacy takes a village
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

The United States is arguably in the midst of its most profound shift ever over how children learn to read.

Since 2013, according to an analysis, policymakers in 37 states have passed laws or implemented new policies related to reading instruction and stakeholders from scholars and journalists to teachers and parent coalitions have weighed in.

This intense focus on early literacy is significant and making a difference in student proficiency in states like Mississippi, but we contend it may be too narrow.

From the point of view of education organizations like the National Center for Families Learning and the Southern Regional Education Board, early reading is only one piece of the much larger literacy puzzle—a puzzle we must solve as a nation. Learning to read is a lifelong process, and our efforts should aim to improve standards and outcomes at all stages of life, embracing a longitudinal perspective.

Our society cannot wait for this year’s fourth graders, who are benefiting from recent changes in the way we teach reading, to grow up and enter the workforce in 2032. We must act to ensure that children, youth and adults are receiving the literacy education that enables middle-skills workers—those who need more than a high school diploma but less than a college degree—to achieve success. Doing so ensures all workers have the skills to support their families and contribute meaningfully to their communities.

Research shows that about 43 million Americans—nearly one in five adults—read below a third grade reading level. Additionally, fewer than 10 percent of all adults in need of literacy support are currently receiving education services, according to a 2023 report by the Adult Literacy and Learning Impact Network of which NCFL is a member.

Meanwhile, a 2020 study found a significant connection between average yearly income and average reading levels. According to the study, the average income of adults who read at the equivalent of a sixth grade level is $63,000. In contrast, the study found, adults who read at a third to fifth grade level earn an average of $48,000 and those at the lowest literacy levels earn just $34,000 on average.

To sustain and increase economic growth, we need literacy improvements across the age continuum—preschool to adulthood. Only with a comprehensive multigenerational approach to literacy learning will this country see the greatest economic gains at both the micro level, in terms of individual income, and macro level, where an increase in qualified human capital can drive growth nationally.

Early childhood

Investment in early childhood education shows an average return over time of $4 for every dollar spent, thanks in part to reduced needs for special education and increased productivity for families, according to the multiple studies summarized by the Buffet Early Childhood Institute.

To support family relationship-building and child development through play-based learning, NCFL created Play with Purpose, a facilitated playgroup designed for children birth to five and their caregivers. Children and adults learn together alongside other families during weekly sessions and are provided books and supplemental materials to help ensure that learning continues between sessions. Participating families can set and achieve goals around their children’s development and see an increase in their social and emotional skills and language acquisition, both of which support emerging literacy.

Middle and high school

The most recent National Assessment of Educational Progress found that 30 percent of both eighth- and 12th-graders were unable to meet basic reading standards such as determining the meaning of familiar words or identifying explicit details from a text. NAEP long-term trends data also show that average scores for 13-year-old students in 2022 declined 4 points in reading from the previous assessment report in 2020.

To counter this trend, SREB developed the Literacy Ready curriculum and coaches teachers on best practices in helping students read and understand complex texts in different subject areas. A preliminary study of the program in three states during the late 2010s, found that students showed significant improvement on the ACT English and reading exams, with the average score increasing by 1.3 points and 1.5 points, respectively.

Postsecondary, workforce and adult learning

As our nation continues to automate basic retail and manufacturing jobs, we are seeing an increase in middle-skill jobs. These workers will need stronger literacy skills to train for more advanced positions and to read instructions and guides for the technology they will manage.

Learning to read is a lifetime activity that pays dividends for children, youth, adults and our communities. That’s why NCFL developed the four-component model of family literacy, which meets families where they are to support adults in achieving their education and workforce goals, provide educational programming to children, and bring both generations together for joint learning activities. In one study of the model in action, over 90 percent of parents made progress towards their adult education or employment goals.

Now, more than ever, it is critical that we acknowledge the vital role literacy plays at every stage of life. Together, we can do more than improve fourth grade reading scores; we can commit to focusing on literacy gains longitudinally, from young children to adults reskilling for new careers, as an investment in the workforce of tomorrow.

This article on the science of reading originally appeared on Purdue University’s site and is reposted here with permission.

Key points:

• The science of reading refers to a vast body of research exploring how children learn to read
• States need to strengthen reading instruction policies
• How we can improve literacy through student engagement
• For more news on the science of reading, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

Purdue University has begun work to improve the reading abilities of K-12 students in Indiana by strengthening teacher preparation using science-based methods. The work is funded in part by a $1.5 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. awarded to Purdue in August as part of Lilly Endowment’s Advancing the Science of Reading in Indiana initiative, which launched in 2022.

The science of reading refers to a vast body of research that explores how children learn to read and includes explicit, systematic and cumulative instruction methods focused on phonics, phonemic awareness, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and writing and oral language. Purdue is one of 28 Indiana colleges and universities that received grants from Lilly Endowment to support efforts that integrate science of reading-aligned principles into teacher preparation programs.

From working with external consultants to diving deeper into the research on the science of reading to surveying former students about science of reading concepts, faculty across three campuses in the Purdue system — West Lafayette, Northwest and Fort Wayne — as well as two colleges, the College of Education and the College of Health and Human Sciences (HHS), are collaborating to bring together their diverse perspectives and elevate literacy teacher preparation at the university.

Six months in, the Purdue faculty have already made strides in their initial planning for revamping the curriculum. In early fall, the faculty gathered to review the results of a survey that would allow them to assess how prepared alumni and preservice teachers felt about literacy. Beyond the survey, the team met with external consultants and partnered with The Reading League Indiana to develop a common understanding of the science of reading and evaluate how this information would take shape in curriculum adjustments.

Purdue’s interdisciplinary approach is overseen by Jenna Rickus, vice provost for teaching and learning, and the grant is co-led by Christy Wessel Powell, associate professor of literacy education and the director of the Center for Literacy and Language Education and Research, and Catherine (Cammie) McBride, professor of human development and family science and HHS associate dean for research. Mary Ann Cahill, associate dean of professional programs and director of the School of Education and Counseling at Purdue Northwest, serves as the campus lead for Purdue Northwest, and Holly Hullinger-Sirken, clinical associate professor of elementary education, serves as the campus lead for Purdue Fort Wayne.

“We are grateful to Lilly Endowment and the state of Indiana for their proactive support for literacy education,” Wessel Powell said. “It’s vital to have these resources that we can put toward improving the ways that teachers are able to work with students and to know there is a long-term commitment toward these goals.”

The funds are being used toward faculty’s collaboration efforts to enrich their curriculum through science-based literacy methods in elementary education, special education and early childhood education. Their work spans five main goals:

• Refining science of reading content in the coursework of Purdue’s undergraduate education licensure programs.
• Creating stacked credentials for undergraduate and graduate students as well as offerings for current teachers.
• Creating an online repository of scientific research related to reading and writing.
• Providing professional development to faculty across all Purdue colleges, campuses and programs related to literacy.
• Making connections to state leadership by providing research-grounded resources on literacy.

Those working on the grant will continue to meet regularly in the spring to begin the process of restructuring and planning courses that will bolster the curriculum and better equip future teachers with an in-depth understanding of the science of reading. This spring, the team will also begin developing professional development workshops for all Purdue faculty involved in teaching reading and writing across Purdue campuses as well as begin to build an online repository of resources to which faculty can refer.

“Ultimately, what we hope is that the courses that are being used to train the teachers are better aligned with the science of reading and that the teachers make use of all their different skills-building to be better teachers and help the kids to read better,” McBride said.

Hullinger-Sirken noted that now is an important time to look at literacy, not only because the education landscape looks different since the COVID-19 pandemic but also to accommodate the various needs of Indiana children.

“There has been a lot of attribution to post-COVID, but we also know that we have a very diverse population of students in the state of Indiana, and we know that when it comes to literacy, there’s a lot of different components that play into how proficient a student can be with their literacy skills,” Hullinger-Sirken said. “It is our responsibility as educators and professionals to ensure that no student lacks any of those skills and that we are doing our due diligence to provide them with that. I think this grant comes at an opportune time because it gives us some of the resources and the attention to really focus on that specific goal.”

To meet the needs of Indiana’s diverse population, the grant has also brought in faculty such as associate professor Trish Morita-Mullaney, who specializes in English language learning, to focus on what is distinct about language and literacy learning for English language learners.

The grant’s 33 faculty members have experienced the cross-disciplinary element of Purdue’s work, which many noted has proved fruitful in allowing them to share their knowledge and pool resources.

“I really think the early childhood component; the developmental part; and the speech, language, and hearing sciences faculty and what they can contribute just make this a more inclusive and ultimately more useful approach to teacher training,” McBride said.

Grace Pigozzi, assistant professor of elementary and early literacy, explained it can be easy in higher education to get into a day-to-day routine and become siloed, so the opportunity of the grant allowed faculty to see the ways the Purdue University system works together and can make a difference in literacy education.

“For this opportunity to exist, we had to figure out who we were as an entity, and for me, that’s been the most amazing part,” Pigozzi said. “Now, knowing everyone and being able to have these funds to guide us as we’re doing this very difficult work is a kind of solace.”

As part of the grant, Chenell Loudermill, clinical professor in the Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, organizes outside consultants to fulfill the professional development component. She noted this offers faculty on the grant the opportunity to not only learn from each other but also think outside the box by exploring expertise outside of the university in areas such as psychology, education, communication sciences and disorders, neuroscience, and more.

“The interdisciplinary approach taken by Purdue University is what is needed to move the teaching of reading and writing forward in Indiana,” Loudermill said.

The faculty shared that having Purdue contribute to Lilly’s initiative to advance the science of reading will allow the university to increase its impact on Indiana children and teachers. This funding by Lilly Endowment and Purdue’s work within it complement a statewide effort by the Indiana Department of Education to improve reading achievement in K-12 schools by helping current teachers implement science of reading-aligned principles in their classrooms.

“We’re a land-grant institution, so this is right in our wheelhouse,” Wessel Powell said. “I can see that we have so many opportunities for synergy and to expand how we affect the entire state.”

Key points:

• Making summer reading a year-round project is critical part of a learning strategy
• States need to strengthen reading instruction policies
• How we can improve literacy through student engagement
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

When I began teaching English as a second language (ESL), I had anywhere from seven to 13 different languages in my classroom because our district was in an area with a lot of recent immigration. It was an entry point for me to begin thinking about what a rich profession teaching is, along with how students develop their early reading skills, especially when they are learning multiple languages at once.

Today, I am the director of Literacy First, a program that the University of Texas launched almost 30 years ago with the mission of teaching students to read in the early grades. Literacy First fulfills its mission by offering a variety of support services, with a particular focus on achieving successful outcomes for growing readers, including one-to-one literacy interventions, teacher and staff training, instructional coaching, data-centered advising, and bilingual and culturally sustaining reading resources and interventions. One of the things I’ve learned a great deal about along the way is how to run an effective summer reading program for emergent bilingual students.

Here are three best practices that are effective regardless of the languages your students speak at home.

1. Encourage students to read at home by embracing their home language.

At Literacy First, we’ve always taught in Spanish. In fact, ours is the only program of its kind in the country that does early reading intervention and Tier II instruction in Spanish. We know from a couple decades of research that when children learn to read in their primary language, they are able to learn to read in additional languages more effectively.

If a teacher works on foundational skills such as phonological awareness, phonemic awareness, decoding, fluency, and comprehension in Spanish with a student who is more comfortable in that language, those skills will transfer, building better English results over time and offering that student all the amazing assets that come with being bilingual.

It’s also important to remember that the majority of emergent bilingual students in the United States are actually simultaneous language learners already. Many of them were born in the U.S., and all of them now live here in this English-oriented country. Most of them aren’t starting from zero, so I suggest a nuanced approach to thinking about the strengths students bring with them. What is their full linguistic repertoire? How can we assess and understand those strengths across languages to teach more effectively? Ultimately, it means understanding that bilingualism is the goal rather than English proficiency alone, and that means there is no hurry to jump to English without instruction in other languages. Students will make progress—even on their ability to read in English—as they develop their home language skills.

Students in Texas schools speak more than 120 languages, with 88 percent coming from a Spanish language background. Beyond formal summer school that teaches multilingual development and encourages families to nurture home languages, access to books in those languages or books that reflect students’ cultural backgrounds (such as those in the Capstone virtual library) can also support their reading development.  

2. Provide a constantly refreshed diet of new books.

When I worked at Austin Independent School District, we really latched onto this study from literacy intervention expert James Kim that found students in grade 6 could beat the summer slide by reading just five books over the summer. Today in Austin, there’s still a campaign telling students and families to “Beat the summer slide, take the 5 book dive,” as they distribute books all over the city. Even that small number of books has a big impact, especially for students who don’t have access to enrichment opportunities.

If you’re looking at younger students, however, they really need more like five books each week, and they need to be voraciously gobbling down those books. They need appropriate reading material at their fingertips in any way possible. Sixth graders need chunky chapter books, but younger kids are going to read books that are sometimes just two or three dozen pages long. I also see with my own younger children that when we get back from the library, only 10 of the 20 books we brought back are actually interesting to them, and sometimes only one is engaging enough to read with a parent and then later on their own. Younger children really need a constantly refreshed diet of new books.

Weekly trips to the library are a great way to give them new books, but not all parents have the time or opportunity to visit the library regularly. Digital libraries are also an excellent solution that doesn’t require anyone to leave the house. My kids’ school district offers PebbleGo, which they love because it has a huge selection of books and articles, and because it provides built-in support, such as word definitions and the ability to switch between English and Spanish.

3. Build in touchpoints to maintain momentum.

It’s important to build excitement about your summer reading program before school is out. No matter how well that goes, however, students’ reading momentum will slow down after the first few weeks of summer. To keep students and their families focused on reading, be sure to have a few touchpoints planned. Mailing out a few more books is a great option, and a book bus that travels around the district can be a fantastic way to bring members of the school community together during the summer. Teachers who have strong relationships—and shared language backgrounds—with their students can be instrumental in encouraging and inspiring them to read over the summer by sending planned messages or convening events. However, teachers’ efforts should be compensated and supplemented by school, district, and community support.  

When I was with Austin ISD, we partnered with a local bookstore that did some promotional work for us and offered discounts to families. We also partnered with the libraries within the district as well as a digital library provider to ensure students had a vast library at their fingertips, no matter where they were. The donations and other help from those partners were really instrumental in making our summer reading programs work.

Finally, many schools wait until spring to plan their summer reading program, but making it a year-round project is the most effective way to make sure your students have as many books as you can get into their hands, give yourself time to build excitement, check in to maintain momentum, and help all of your students avoid the summer slide, no matter what language they speak at home.

Key points:

• The science of reading is key in student achievement–here’s what it is
• Implementing the science of reading ‘one bite at a time’
• How to improve literacy through the science of reading
• For more news on the science of reading, see eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

While high-quality literacy instruction has remained a cornerstone of education leaders’ priorities, this year, the science of reading has dominated classrooms and discussions around instructional strategies.

In short, according to the National Center on Improving Literacy, the science of reading is “research, over time, from multiple fields of study using methods that confirm and disconfirm theories on how children best learn to read.”

Teaching based on this research includes phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. It is not a specific program or intervention or phonics-based programs that drill phonics skills. And, as with all research, the science of reading is evolving–there is much more to be learned.

Here’s a look at some of the latest research, thoughts, and strategies, directly from classroom experts and industry veterans:

In districts across the country, educators are continuing to support students with post-pandemic learning recovery. Many students are still reading below the level appropriate for their grade–roughly one-third of fourth graders in the United States read at or below what’s considered the basic level. And unfortunately, even before the pandemic, reading achievement has been low over the past several decades. Here are 4 simple steps to help educators begin implementing the science of reading.

Conversations about the science of reading are happening primarily with elementary and early childhood educators. Those conversations are preventing further literacy injustice and disenfranchisement. But how are we addressing the ways that the system has failed our secondary students when they first learned to read? Here’s how a middle school ELA teacher is learning to support the students in her class who were passed along without receiving the literacy instruction they needed.

Maryland’s Prince George’s County Public Schools is supporting all K-3 teachers with science of reading resources and practices. Educators are diving into the integration of the science of reading and the teaching of science using digital resources. This work, which was started through conversations with the Mississippi Department of Education, was recently presented to the district’s PreK- 3 teachers. Prince George’s County K-3 teachers are exploring three instructional ideas: Using video segments to build understanding of science concepts, using science words for phonological awareness and phonics activities, and developing digital activities to integrate background knowledge building and literacy skills. Learn more about the district’s work.

Educators across the country have been discussing the science of reading and working to align their materials and practices to this research into how students learn to read. In the coming year, that broad trend will continue, with a shift to looking beyond knowledge building as schools, districts, and states begin improving capacity and creating systems aligned to the science of reading. Here, Kari Kurto, National Science of Reading Project Director at the Reading League, takes a look at a few specific predictions about what that could look like in 2024 for policymakers, schools and districts, educators, and publishers. At the state level, policymakers and decision-makers will continue to develop guidance around the science of reading and evidence-aligned practices. Many states that have recently begun this work start with initiatives focused on building knowledge, which is a great first step. In the new year, more administrators and other educators will focus not just on building knowledge and ensuring their materials are aligned to the science of reading, but they will go beyond to examine hiring practices, multi-tiered systems of support, assessments, the science of learning and implementation, and more. Learn more about how different stakeholders will champion the science of reading.

A new NCTQ report, State of the States: Five Policy Actions to Strengthen Implementation of the Science of Reading, highlights five key policy actions states should take to strengthen teachers’ reading instruction and examines the extent to which states focus on them. The five policy actions are: Setting specific, detailed reading standards for teacher prep programs; reviewing teacher prep programs to ensure they teach the science of reading; adopting a strong elementary reading licensure test, requiring districts to select a high-quality reading curriculum; and providing professional learning for teachers and ongoing support to sustain the implementation of the science of reading. Read more about how states can strengthen literacy instruction training.

This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Sign up for their newsletters at ckbe.at/newsletters.

Wisconsin is creating a new literacy office and hiring reading coaches. Ohio is dedicating millions to a curriculum overhaul. Indiana is requiring new teacher training.

Dozens of states are moving to align their teaching practices with the science of reading, a body of research on how children learn that emphasizes explicit phonics instruction alongside helping students build vocabulary and knowledge about the world. But a national policy group says many states still have significant work to do to ensure strong reading instruction.

A new report from the National Council on Teacher Quality finds that half of states don’t set specific standards telling teacher prep programs what future educators should know about teaching reading, and 28 states cede their authority over teacher prep programs to outside accrediting agencies with vague guidelines. A similar number of states administer weak licensure tests, the report said, creating uncertainty about how well prepared teachers are.

Meanwhile, just nine states require that districts adopt high-quality reading curriculum, NCTQ’s analysis found. Only three of those — South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia — require districts to choose curriculum from a state-approved list and cover the cost for districts.

NCTQ President Heather Peske hopes the report can serve as a roadmap for states looking to improve reading instruction.

“We cannot continue to accept the reading outcomes that we’ve been seeing,” she said.

Last year, NCTQ’s review of hundreds of teacher preparation programs found that thousands of educators graduate every year unprepared to teach children how to read, or trained using debunked literacy instruction strategies.

Some of the states that got good ratings from NCTQ in its new report have been at it for years. Mississippi passed its first reading law a decade ago. Colorado stepped up regulation of its teacher prep programs five years ago.

Other states NCTQ called out for their weak policies are just getting started. Illinois is poised to adopt a new literacy plan this year. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul just announced a major new literacy initiative. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy highlighted early literacy in his State of the State speech.

NCTQ makes five main recommendations. States should set well-defined standards for how teacher prep programs teach reading, review those programs thoroughly, use a rigorous licensing test that includes all components of how students learn to read, require that districts use high-quality curriculum, and provide ongoing training and support.

These types of policies often face pushback from school districts, universities, and teachers unions that see politicians infringing on educators’ authority and autonomy.

In Colorado, some school districts initially resisted state curriculum guidelines. Others struggled to find approved curriculum that felt culturally responsive. In Illinois, political opposition and lack of state funding means the new literacy plan has no teeth. In Ohio, Reading Recovery, a popular but increasingly disfavored reading program, is suing the state for banning certain methods of teaching.

NCTQ’s reports have also come in for criticism for their technical and narrow view of good teaching, for being incomplete, or for not relying on the right data — Peske said states had multiple opportunities to review the latest report and offer corrections. Other advocacy groups have laid out different priorities for reading instruction.

Melinda Person, president of the New York state teachers union, is excited the governor wants to invest $10 million in teacher training aligned with the science of reading. But she’s cautious about calls to get every district to adopt curriculum that meets a currently undetermined standard. She fears that state-approved lists could be influenced by lobbying or force districts to abandon good programs developed by local educators.

“Teaching a child to read is a very complex task,” Person said. “Don’t oversimplify this. It is brain science. Hundreds of studies are pointing us in this direction, but they are not pointing us to ‘buy this curriculum.’”

Data lacking on curriculum in school districts

Twelve states received “strong” ratings overall in NCTQ’s report, including Colorado, Florida, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.

NCTQ categorized 16 states as having “weak” reading policies, including Illinois, New York, and New Jersey, while three states — Maine, Montana, and South Dakota — were marked as “unacceptable” because they had few or no state-level reading policies.

An analysis by Education Week found that 32 states and the District of Columbia have adopted new reading laws since 2013, but NCTQ found many of these states still had major gaps in teacher preparation or curriculum.

States with strong oversight of teacher prep programs lost points for having weak standards, and states with strong standards lost points for weak oversight. More than half of states, NCTQ found, review the syllabi of teacher preparation programs, but just 10 include literacy experts in the process.

Most teacher prep programs don’t devote at least two instructional hours to how to teach English learners to read in an unfamiliar language or to supporting struggling readers, NCTQ’s analysis found. Even fewer programs provide opportunities for student teachers to practice those skills.

Meanwhile, 21 states don’t collect any data on the curriculum their districts use, nearly half offer no guidance on picking curriculums that serve English learners, and a third offer no guidance on how to use curriculum to support struggling readers. Even in states that value local control, Peske said states have a duty to offer guidance, and many administrators likely would welcome it.

NCTQ’s analysis does not address third-grade retention policies that have been adopted in 13 states. Nor did NCTQ’s report address universal screeners that look for warning signs of reading difficulties such as dyslexia.

Advocacy groups like JerseyCAN have made universal screeners and parental notification key parts of their platform. “Parents cannot ring the alarm or participate in this goal effectively if they don’t know where their children stand,” Executive Director Paula White said.

Linking new policies to test scores can be challenging. Mississippi students’ growth on national exams has been touted as a “miracle.” But students there still have lower test scores than students in some more affluent states with weaker policies.

New York and New Jersey governors elevate literacy

New Jersey received a weak rating from NCTQ due to inadequate standards for teacher prep programs, no requirement that elementary teachers have reading training, and no curriculum requirements or even guidelines for local districts.

White, the JerseyCAN leader, said she hopes the state is turning the corner after years in which people told her “we got this, we’ll do it on our own,” or “We’re already doing what you want us to do, so why should we expend energy on state policy or legislation?”

In neighboring New York, NCTQ gave the state some credit for strong state oversight of teacher prep. But the state lost points because reading standards aren’t specific enough. Nor does New York require districts to adopt high-quality curriculum — its powers are limited under state law.

Hochul’s push on literacy comes as New York City is months into its own reading overhaul, with schools required to adopt one of three approved curriculums. It’s not clear yet how the state might encourage districts using low-quality curriculum to make different choices. State officials are also developing a plan to incorporate more science of reading into teacher prep programs.

Judy Boksner, a literacy coach and reading specialist at P.S. 28 in the Bronx, recalls the “aha moment” she experienced after getting trained in the science of reading on her own time. She said the approach helps more students more reliably than the methods she was previously trained to use, but it can be slow at first.

Curriculum and training requirements are good, Boksner said, but schools still need ongoing support, including literacy coaches.

“In all these curriculums, they have tasks in them. We don’t know if they’ve all been tested in the field. Some of the tasks are so hard for kids, and if you don’t train your teachers well, kids will still struggle,” Boksner said.

Illinois on verge of adopting new literacy plan

In giving Illinois a “weak” rating, NCTQ found the state has set good standards for teacher preparation programs, but called for more oversight to ensure programs are following through. And NCTQ labeled as “unacceptable” Illinois’ lack of any guidance around high quality curriculum.

The report comes just as Illinois is finalizing a literacy plan to help school districts revamp how students are taught to read. After a two-year legislative fight, advocates successfully passed a bill last year that requires the Illinois State Board of Education to write a literacy plan, create a rubric for school districts to grade curriculum, and offer professional development to teachers.

But the new law does not mandate school districts adopt a phonics-based approach that’s key to the science of reading. Other ideas, such as reading grants and an approved curriculum list, didn’t survive the political process.

“There are really no mandates on school districts,” said Stand for Children Illinois Executive Director Jessica Handy, a literacy advocate who helped write the 2023 bill and negotiated with lawmakers. “I think reading grants would be one way to get buy-in from school districts and get more people thinking about how they can accelerate their progress to improve literacy curriculum.”

Education advocates hope to see $45 million from $550 million in new state funding go towards regional literacy coaches and state board staff that work just on literacy — and Stand is working on a new bill that Handy hopes strengthens the literacy plan.

Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.

Related:
How we can improve literacy through student engagement
The science of reading, beyond phonics
For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching hub

Key points:

• Literacy advocates can provide students with this foundation for a lifetime of learning
• States need to strengthen reading instruction policies
• How we can improve literacy through student engagement
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching page

The most effective advocacy programs often begin with a personal passion to make a difference.

When former National School Library Program of the Year librarian Marge Cox retired, she began volunteering at Youth Haven, a shelter designed to help abused and neglected children and teens in Southwest Florida. “I got involved with Youth Haven after a former Collier County Public Schools employee contacted me and said Youth Haven needed my skill set,” Cox told me. “They had boxes of books that had been donated to them and wanted to create a library. I had retired at the end of the 2020 school year and had been praying for God to show me my next adventure.”

Youth Haven had boxes of donated books but no centralized collection. So, Cox began organizing the books into a library and established a Makerspace for the students at Youth Haven. “The youth who are there have had a difficult life and Youth Haven provides a safe environment for them. I appreciate that I can play a small part in their lives, by helping them have easy access to books and activities. Books and youth are my passion, because I believe literate people are better citizens, happier individuals, and more of an asset to their communities.”

Speaking of committing retirement to getting books in the hands of learners of all ages, former Wisconsin school librarian Susy Siel has built 12 libraries on Eleuthera Island in The Bahamas. Siel visited the out islands with her parents for decades and discovered first-hand the need, like in many rural communities, for high-quality libraries stocked with current books and new computers. 

So, Siel took matters into her own hands and created Freedom to Read, Inc. “Our mission is to change lives through free access to literacy,” Siel said. “I have witnessed the power that the availability of books and computers/internet have on people’s lives. By advocating for literacy here in The Bahamas we can foster a better sense of community, while simultaneously assisting individuals to reach their goals… whether personal or in the workforce. When people can seek and find information, they are empowered. Their voice is elevated. Their ability to make changes in policy, law and their own lives is enhanced.”

Whether it’s individuals with a passion project or organizations that exist exclusively to help connect students with books, it takes a village to advocate for literacy. Recently, Follett Content Solutions partnered with Amazon in the Community to deliver 5,500 books to students in the greater Seattle area. And in conjunction with PageAhead, another Seattle-based children’s literacy program, we’ve delivered as many as 150,000 books to kids each year for the past few years, many from low-income families, to help promote summer reading and build home libraries.

Between Seattle, Naples, and the Bahamas, there are advocacy villages everywhere, filled with educators like Hannah Irion-Frake, a third-grade teacher in Pennsylvania who spends her career advocating for and creating readers. “I provide training for teachers in my district in science-based literacy practices,” Irion-Frake said. “Teachers with deep knowledge about best practices for literacy are better equipped to make a difference for their students. And there is no greater accomplishment, in my opinion, than teaching a child to read.”

Teaching students to read happens in the classroom and library every day. It happens through community and business partnerships. It happens through full time jobs or second acts in life. 

In 2010, when I came to work for the family business for my second career act, I put on a new hat as the president of the Follett Educational Foundation. While the Foundation still issues scholarships, this year we are piloting a program to help Native American students in the Chicagoland area build their home libraries. The National School Board Association reports that population of students performed two to three grade levels below their white peers in reading and math.

This issue is close to the heart of 4^th generation Follett family member Steve Waichler, whose family adopted Native children and made a significant contribution to the Foundation with a focus on improving literacy outcomes for Native American students. Waichler says, “Personally, I think of this a memorial fund for my sister, Leslie, who died when she was two years old. She was the first of my Native Sisters, and we wouldn’t have the large, blended family we have today, if she hadn’t died. We want this gift to honor the Native half of our family.”

Literacy advocacy can come in many shapes and sizes. Yolanda Williams, a sixth-grade teacher in Atlanta, Georgia says, “I advocate literacy for every student in my program by creating literacy lessons that encompass strong phonics instruction, vocabulary, independent reading, teacher-led small groups, and differentiated instruction. Literacy is not coloring, worksheets, and workbooks. Literacy is an engaging and a hands-on experience.” 

As community members and literacy advocates, we all can provide students with this foundation for a lifetime of learning.

Cox says, “My parents were educators and I remembered they had used their retirement to continue to positively impact the community. I believe educators help society and I wanted to do something in my retirement that made a difference for others. I just didn’t know what that would look like.”

What does it look like for you?

As for the Follett Educational Foundation’s Native American student literacy program, we too are still figuring out exactly what that’s going to look like. We have big dreams of building school libraries in tribal schools. But we’re starting with a smaller project this spring, where we will deliver 120 backpacks of age-appropriate Native language books to kindergarten through 12^th grade students in Chicago.  

Established in the 1960s, the Follett Educational Foundation has issued millions of dollars in college scholarships to the students of Follett team members. Now that the Follett family no longer owns the businesses, the trustees of the Foundation are transitioning the Foundation to its next act … literacy… which is wholly in line with the legacy of our family business. While the Foundation still issues scholarships in memory of the founding four Follett brothers, this year we are piloting a program to help Native American students in the Chicagoland area build their home libraries.

The Nation’s Report Card began to sound the alarm about the academic underperformance of American Indian and Alaska Native students in 1994. Today, the National School Board Association reports that population of students performed two to three grade levels below their white peers in reading and math. This issue is close to the heart of 4^th generation Follett family member Steve Waichler, whose family adopted Native children and made a significant contribution to the Foundation with a focus on improving literacy outcomes for Native American students. Waichler says, “Personally, I think of this a memorial fund for my sister, Leslie, who died when she was 2 years old. She was the first of my Native Sisters, and we wouldn’t have the large, blended family we have today, if she hadn’t died. We want this gift to honor the Native half of our family as well as our Follett legacy.”

The most effective advocacy programs often begin with a personal story like the Waichler family’s inspiration. When former National School Library Program of the Year librarian Marge Cox retired, she began volunteering at Youth Haven, a shelter designed to help abused and neglected children and teens in Southwest Florida. “I got involved with Youth Haven after a former Collier County Public Schools employee contacted me and said Youth Haven needed my skill set,” Cox told me. “They had boxes of books that had been donated to them and wanted to create a library. I had retired at the end of the 2020 school year and had been praying for God to show me my next adventure.”

Youth Haven had boxes of donated books but no centralized collection. So, Cox began organizing the books into a library and established a Maker Space for the students at Youth Haven. “The youth who are there have had a difficult life and Youth Haven provides a safe environment for them. I appreciate that I can play a small part in their lives, by helping them have easy access to books and activities. Books and youth are my passion, because I believe literate people are better citizens, happier individuals, and more of an asset to their communities.”

Speaking of committing retirement to getting books in the hands of learners of all ages, former Wisconsin school librarian Susy Siel has built twelve libraries on Eleuthera Island in The Bahamas. Siel visited the out islands with her parents for decades and discovered first-hand the need, like in many rural communities, for quality libraries stocked with current books and new computers. 

So, Siel took matters into her own hands and created Freedom to Read, Inc. “Our mission is to change lives through free access to literacy,” Siel said. “I have witnessed the power that the availability of books and computers/Internet have on people’s lives. By advocating for literacy here in The Bahamas we can foster a better sense of community, while simultaneously assisting individuals to reach their goals… whether personal or in the workforce. When people can seek and find information, they are empowered. Their voice is elevated. Their ability to make changes in policy, law and their own lives is enhanced.”

Whether it’s individuals with a passion project or organizations that exist exclusively to help connect students with books, it takes a village. Recently, Follett Content Solutions partnered with Amazon in the Community to deliver 5,500 books to students in the greater Seattle area. And in conjunction with PageAhead, another Seattle-based children’s literacy program, we’ve delivered as many as 150,000 books to kids each year for the past few years, many from low-income families, to help promote summer reading and build home libraries.

Between Seattle, Naples, and the Bahamas there are teachers like Hannah Irion-Frake, a third-grade teacher in Pennsylvania who lives her passion project day in and day out, spending her career advocating for and creating readers. “I provide training for teachers in my district in science-based literacy practices,” Irion-Frake said. “Teachers with deep knowledge about best practices for literacy are better equipped to make a difference for their students. And there is no greater accomplishment, in my opinion, than teaching a child to read.”

Literacy advocacy can come in many shapes and sizes. Yolanda Williams, a sixth-grade teacher in Atlanta, Georgia says, “I advocate literacy for every student in my program by creating literacy lessons that encompass strong phonics instruction, vocabulary, independent reading, teacher-led small groups, and differentiated instruction. Literacy is not coloring, worksheets, and workbooks. Literacy is an engaging and hands-on experience.” 

Teaching students to read happens in the classroom and library every day. It happens through community and business partnerships. It happens through full time jobs or second acts in life. 

Cox says, “My parents were educators and I remembered they had used their retirement to continue to positively impact the community. I believe educators help society and I wanted to do something in my retirement that made a difference for others. I just didn’t know what that would look like.”

As for the Follett Educational Foundation’s Native American student literacy program, we too are still figuring out exactly what that’s going to look like. We have big dreams of building school libraries in tribal schools. But we’re starting with a smaller project this spring, where we will deliver 120 backpacks of age-appropriate Native language books to kindergarten through 12^th grade students in Chicago.  

As important as it is to connect a student with a book, giving them the opportunity to choose what they are going to read is even more powerful. And as educators, each of you can help your students discover the next book they will fall in love with. As community members and literacy advocates, we too can provide students with this foundation for a lifetime of learning.

What’s your next act?

Key points:

• States should take steps to strengthen teachers’ reading instruction
• See article: The science of reading, beyond phonics
• See article: What’s next for literacy learning?
• For more news on reading policy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching page

New data and analysis from the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) show that while many states seek to improve literacy outcomes for students, they focus too little on a key component to strong implementation and sustainability: effective teachers.

The new NCTQ report, State of the States: Five Policy Actions to Strengthen Implementation of the Science of Reading, highlights five key policy actions states should take to strengthen teachers’ reading instruction and examines the extent to which states focus on them. The five policy actions are:

1. Setting specific, detailed reading standards for teacher prep programs.
2. Reviewing teacher prep programs to ensure they teach the science of reading.
3. Adopting a strong elementary reading licensure test.
4. Requiring districts to select a high-quality reading curriculum.
5. Providing professional learning for teachers and ongoing support to sustain the implementation of the science of reading.

Given that there are 1.3 million children who enter fourth grade each year unable to read at a basic level (nearly 40 percent of all fourth graders) and that this number climbs even higher for students of color, those with learning differences, and those who grow up in low-income households, states have a responsibility to ensure teachers are well-prepared to support students to learn to read. In fact, estimates suggest that with effective reading instruction, more than 90 percent of students would learn to read—meaning that every year nearly 1 million additional students would enter fourth grade as skilled readers. However, it is only when state leaders implement a literacy strategy that prioritizes teacher effectiveness that they will achieve a teacher workforce that can strengthen student literacy year after year.

“Helping all children learn to read is possible when you have teachers who’ve been prepared in the science of reading,” said Dr. Heather Peske, NCTQ President. “Much like an orchestra needs each section of instruments to come together to successfully create music, states need to implement multiple teacher-focused reading policies that work together to improve student outcomes.”

Across the nation, NCTQ found that:

• Nineteen states are taking very little action—if any—in the five policy areas. Three states are categorized as unacceptable, meaning they have few or no policies in place in most of the five policy areas: Maine, Montana, and South Dakota. Sixteen states are categorized as weak, meaning they have only a few policies in place in some of the five policy areas, and nothing in the other areas: Alaska, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
• Half of states (26) do not provide specific guidelines to teacher prep programs about what they should teach aspiring teachers in reading.
• Two-thirds of states (30) leave it to outside accreditors to approve how teachers are prepared in reading instruction, abdicating their responsibility and, ultimately, giving this power to entities that don’t have the time, directive, or expertise to determine if the program prepares elementary teachers aligned to scientifically based reading instruction.
• More than half of states (28) use weak licensure tests that don’t tell you whether teachers understand the core components of reading, giving those teachers and the schools that hire them false assurances that teachers are prepared to teach reading.
• While states spend roughly 1 billion dollars on reading curricula, only nine states require districts to select a high-quality reading curriculum. This matters because previous research external to NCTQ shows some of the most popular reading curricula being used by districts are not aligned with 50 years of research that shows how kids best learn to read.
• While more than half of states require some type of professional learning on the science of reading for elementary teachers and allocate funds for it, over half a million elementary teachers may be left without any professional learning in states that don’t require research-aligned professional learning.

“Why do we see staggering numbers of children, especially children of color and from low-income backgrounds, without fundamental literacy skills? Because in many districts and schools nationwide, outdated teaching methods and curricula that have been proven ineffective, and even harmful, are still being used,” said Denise
Forte, The Education Trust President and CEO. “This NCTQ report calls upon state leaders to double-down on their efforts to support teachers to change reading outcomes for students with five clear actions they can take now.”

“The Maryland State Department of Education applauds the NCTQ for its research into state policies and practices supporting reading instruction aligned with scientific research,” said Dr. Carey Wright, Maryland’s Interim State Superintendent. “The path to ensuring a future where every teacher is equipped with the knowledge and skills to effectively teach reading requires a comprehensive set of policies that hold departments of education, educator preparation programs, and districts responsible for promoting and delivering evidence-based reading instruction grounded in science. Only then will all students, especially those who have been historically underserved, have the opportunity to receive the essential foundation needed to succeed in college or career, and more importantly, life. This is the time for state education leaders to intensify the call for action.”

In addition to the report, NCTQ produced individual state profiles that provide a snapshot of the reading policy landscape and recommendations for each state and a State Reading Policy Action Guide that identifies concrete steps states can take to strengthen reading instruction and examples of states that are doing it well.

This press release originally appeared online.

Each year, we share our 10 most-read stories. Not surprisingly, many of this year’s Top 10 focused on equity, edtech innovation, immersive learning, and the science of reading. This year’s 2nd most-read story focuses on literacy and student engagement.

In this episode of Innovations in Education, Madeleine Mortimore, Global Education Innovation and Research Lead for Logitech details how classroom technologies, if used properly, can increase student engagement and ultimately test scores.

Related:
4 simple ways to put the science of reading into practice
5 edtech resources that support literacy in elementary school
For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching page

Key points:

• When it comes to reading skills, we should provide students with explicit literacy instruction and foundational skills like decoding and building content knowledge
• See article: Excite, expand, equitize: Using data to support reading
• See article: 4 simple ways to put the science of reading into practice
• For more news on reading strategies, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching page

Schools across the country have been shifting their reading strategies to incorporate knowledge and best practices they have learned from the science of reading. More than 30 states have written legislation that requires schools to utilize scientifically researched instructional strategies.

The largest change most states will see as a result is a dramatic increase in explicit phonics instruction. As a result, an increasing number of students will be able to access grade-level texts.

I predict this will be reflected in summative and benchmark scores. However, picking words off the page is only a portion of what is measured in benchmark assessments. If we wish to see continued success, we will need to use everything the science of reading has taught us and provide students with a healthy diet of explicit literacy instruction that includes foundational skills like decoding, in addition to building content knowledge and higher-order comprehension strategies.

While I do believe that there will be some adjustment to find the right mix, I don’t think improved literacy results from aligning instruction to the science of reading will be cyclical or short-lived. Schools are on the right track; they just need to find the correct balance between instruction and reading experiences.

Combining phonics and background knowledge

The science of reading is not a program, curriculum, nor something you can purchase. It’s a collection of scientific research from a variety of fields—including cognitive psychology, education, and neuroscience—that helps us understand how we acquire written language.

Instruction aligned to the science of reading is sequential and explicit. Currently, it may seem like the science of reading is focused solely on phonics. Perhaps that is an over-correction in response to several popular reading programs that place too small an emphasis on phonics. However, the science of reading includes a lot of research about the importance of skills like background knowledge, vocabulary, and concepts of print.

In fact, background knowledge can even make phonics instruction more effective. If a student is spending 80 percent of their mental energy trying to figure out what the words on the page mean, they only have 20 percent left to decode. The more background knowledge they have, the more vocabulary they bring to bear on the assignment, and the more they are able to focus on applying their phonics skills.

Background knowledge and vocabulary also allow students to self-check as they read. If a student decodes the word “cake,” but they’ve never encountered it before, they have no way to know if they actually applied their decoding skills correctly. If they were at a birthday party a few days ago and know what cake is, they have immediate confirmation that they got the word correct when they decode it.

The need for authentic texts

To be truly skilled readers, students need diverse experiences and a varied vocabulary. I live in Connecticut, and if a teacher here asked students to read about college football on an assessment, they wouldn’t do as well as students from Texas, where college football is a lot more relevant. Reading a variety of texts on subjects they are already interested in will help students expand their background knowledge and vocabulary naturally over time by adding to what they already know and get excited about.

Instructional material for student reading is often very didactic. Its purpose is to be used by a teacher to give examples of different elements of writing, and it’s usually highly patterned to make those elements, like a main idea or a conclusion, relatively easy to pick out. Text in the real world isn’t structured the same way. It’s messier, and not laid out in the same way every time. To improve their reading and comprehension skills, students need access to authentic texts whose main purpose is to entertain and inform.

Libraries that are designed to be enjoyed—whether they’re traditional libraries, digital libraries, or classroom libraries—motivate students to read. When I was in school, one of my teachers flagged me as a reluctant, struggling reader. Every time the moment came to pick up our copy of Island of the Blue Dolphins, I appeared, at best, distracted, and at worst, like I would much rather be anywhere else. However, when we started the next book, a fantasy novel, I finished it independently that same day. Access to books students enjoy can be the difference between them doing everything in their power to avoid reading and them sitting at their desks during recess because they can’t put their books down.

Ideally, a teacher provides explicit instruction, models the new skill, does it with their students, and then sends students off to practice the new skill in something similar to a real-world context. If students don’t have engaging material to read, they’ll only practice their new reading skills when they’re told to, and that’s not enough.

Reading as a steppingstone to higher literacy skills

A good library will offer students not just texts they’re eager to read, but writing that exposes them to things outside their typical experience. This helps expand background knowledge and generate engagement. These days, digital libraries offer a supportive reading experience by providing features such as the ability to hear a fluent reader reading aloud. Many of them offer a glossary, so students can look up unfamiliar words as they read, growing their vocabulary naturally from in-context examples. Once a student finishes reading an article on axolotls, for example, they can move on to another article about reptiles and see many of the same vocabulary words in slightly different contexts.

Unfortunately, instead of receiving accessible texts with scaffolds to support them, what struggling or disinterested students often receive are watered-down texts at a lower difficulty level. Reading a book for younger children can make an already discouraged student feel even worse, and those simpler texts won’t push them to develop their comprehension skills at the appropriate level, which they need to do if they are going to catch up.

My hope for the future is that educators won’t let the pendulum swing too far in the direction of phonics. Students are finally getting the kind of explicit instruction in reading that they need and deserve, but they also need lots of opportunity—and motivation!—to practice this foundational academic skill along the way. Whether you graduated from teacher prep in 1950 or 2023, one universal truth all teachers know is that students become good readers by reading, and great readers by enjoying authentic, engaging texts.

Each year, we share our 10 most-read stories. Not surprisingly, many of this year’s Top 10 focused on equity, edtech innovation, immersive learning, and the science of reading. This year’s 6th most-read story focuses on the science of reading for older students.

This story was originally published by Chalkbeat, a nonprofit news organization covering public education in communities across America. Sign up for our free New York newsletter to keep up with NYC’s public schools.

The day before my first day of teaching middle school in 2018, I decorated my Brooklyn public school classroom with quotes from famous people reflecting on the importance of reading. Hanging on cream-colored cardstock were the words of Malcolm X, Toni Morrison, C.S. Lewis, Barack Obama, Maya Angelou, and dozens of other writers and thinkers. I hoped to inspire my students to fall in love with reading. I didn’t think to hope that all my students could do the very thing I was asking them to love. I didn’t know that part of my job as a sixth grade Humanities teacher would be to teach students to read in the first place.

There was a round table in the very back of my classroom that a group of five sixth-graders bee-lined to on day one. On day two, I asked one, then another, to read aloud to me. My request was met with silence, guessing, a fist slammed on the table, and a student storming out of the room. When those sixth grade students finally sat down for a reading assessment, their ability to decode print text was at a first or second grade level.

As a newly minted middle school English teacher, I was shocked by the number of students who entered my classroom unable to decode text. As I got to know them, I saw that herculean efforts to mask their reading disabilities revealed intelligence, determination, and traumatic relationships to school.

Since my first year of teaching, I have dedicated a lot of time to understanding why that happened. With the toxic combination of inaccurate reading assessments and a whole-word approach that encouraged guessing rather than decoding, the Matthew Effect (rich get richer, poor get poorer) has been in full swing in middle schools all around the country. The children who lived in text-rich environments and/or with families who could afford supplemental private tutoring got to “get it.” And those who didn’t? Many never acquired the literacy skills that are tied to power and privilege in this country.

Since my first day of teaching middle school, the “science of reading” — tying reading proficiency to explicit phonics instruction in addition to comprehension work—became a catchphrase for Facebook groups, professional development, and curricula. Lucy Calkins revised her popular but widely criticized “Units of Study” curriculum to include phonics-focused lessons. “Sold a Story,” a podcast series investigating reading instruction, became one of the top podcasts of the year. I also got trained in Wilson Reading Systems, an Orton-Gillingham and multisensory approach to teaching the basic phonics instruction many of my middle school students never received.

In my experience, conversations about the science of reading are happening primarily with elementary and early childhood educators. Those conversations are preventing further literacy injustice and disenfranchisement. But how are we addressing the ways that the system has failed our secondary students when they first learned to read? How can I, a middle school ELA teacher, support the students in my class who were passed along without receiving the literacy instruction they needed?

I am worried that secondary students and secondary education as a whole are being left out of the conversation on how children learn to read. It’s wonderful that (finally!) we are getting to the root of the issue, but what about the young people for whom Tier I instruction comes too late? What about students who, from here on out, will need intensive intervention in order to get on grade level?

My former sixth graders are in high school now, preparing for college and careers, but the best preparation they can get is one that helps them, once and for all, become fluent readers. I am concerned that among the excitement of elementary curriculum overhauls, we will leave the children who’ve been wronged even further behind. I am afraid that we’ll do to them what this country has done to people who struggle with literacy since its inception: disenfranchise, hide, and erase.

During that first year of teaching middle school, when I was shocked by the students in my class that struggled to sound out single-syllable words, who guessed based on the first two letters rather than sound out, and who, upon hearing they’d do partner reading, developed looks of panic in their eyes, I found hope in literacy intervention programs targeting adolescents who lacked key skills.

I want more for these students. I want every secondary educator to be trained in not just teaching kids about reading; I want them to be trained to teach their students to read, should one or two or 10 sit down in the back of their class and not know how.

I believe in the power of restorative literacy. Every day, I work with adolescents and pre-adolescents who have slipped through the massive cracks of our education system. What I have witnessed during my five years working in vastly different types of schools is that learning, achievement, and opportunity gaps either dramatically widen or dramatically close in middle school. Passion for social justice within our education systems is insufficient; the actual work — the literacy work — that makes change possible needs to occur.

Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.

Related:
How to improve literacy through the science of reading
4 keys to teaching the science of reading in a virtual setting
For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching page

Key points:

• Science-based reading instruction is seen as the way forward
• See also: How efficacy studies improve literacy instruction
• See also: 4 simple ways to put the science of reading into practice
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching page

Thirty-one states and the District of Columbia now require science-based literacy instruction to be used in public schools. As educators and parents learn more about the science of reading, two recent polls reveal the alignment and the differences between their perspectives. A survey of parents and educators across the country reveals differing perspectives on the matter.

Shared focus on teacher training

Nationwide interest in the science of reading is relatively new, even though the science is decades old. However, most teachers were not taught to teach reading this way in their undergraduate and graduate programs. Reliance on other instructional methods, such as balanced literacy or whole language have been the norm. Because the Nation’s Report Card data released in the spring revealed that roughly two-thirds of fourth- and eighth-grade students cannot read proficiently, the efficacy of reading instruction once again became national news. And although this has been a trend over the last 20 years, in this post-pandemic timeframe, we see that parents and the general public have a much higher degree of familiarity with the issue and in fact, have become more acutely aware of students’ reading performances.

In the Harris Poll, 48 percent of parents said they are familiar with the science of reading, and just over half (54 percent) believe it’s important for schools to implement the science of reading and the principles of Structured Literacy. However, one of the starkest contrasts in the survey data is that 51 percent of parents strongly agree their children’s teachers are properly trained in the science of reading while only 27 percent of educators feel the same.

Teachers understand the importance of the science of reading, but almost half (46 percent) of them want more professional learning opportunities for applying this research to help them feel more successful. Both parents (88 percent) and educators (69 percent) agree educators should use educational technology to support literacy instruction. This alignment between what teachers and parents want for their students is relatively new. In the shift to technology-enabled remote instruction during the pandemic, there was some pushback against screen time and technology from parents. However, these results show that both parents and teachers do see the value and benefits of instructional technology to personalize learning, provide student practice, and monitor student progress.

Where do we go from here?

Although their perceptions sometimes differ, the good news is that both parents and educators see science-based reading instruction as the road forward. There are more educators and parents to inform, but the momentum for science-based instruction is growing across the country. Every student deserves to know how to read, and every educator deserves the training to facilitate reading development. Parents are already invested in effective instruction and learning for their students. As they learn more about the efficacy of science of reading-based instruction, educators have asked for the training they need to become successful literacy teachers.

If we begin with the premise that literacy is a civil right, then we must do everything we can to ensure that our students learn to read proficiently. The benefits of knowing how to read and write extend beyond academic success. Literacy is the gateway to personal empowerment and increased economic opportunities throughout life.

We need to focus on two opportunities we have to provide support for schools’ literacy programs: high-quality curriculum programs based on the science of reading and access to highly trained teachers. Evidence-based programs for curriculum and professional learning for educators are top priorities. It is most important for teachers to understand the science of how a student learns to read, as it is not an intuitive process. However, there are other factors that are important for reading success, such as leadership, systemic support, and professional learning so educators have the appropriate tools and are set up for success.

Teaching students to read, involving parents to provide support at home, and ensuring teachers have ongoing and comprehensive training will help equalize opportunity for all students, no matter who or where they are. District leaders have an obligation to find and use literacy programs that have been rigorously studied for efficacy. Research tells us that 95 percent of children are cognitively capable of learning how to read if taught using evidence-based instruction.

This is the future our students deserve. It’s up to all of us to work together to make this happen.

Key points:

• A focus on strengthening literacy through the science of reading will continue into the new year
• See also: 4 simple ways to put the science of reading into practice
• See also: Using tech to teach emerging readers high frequency words
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching page

Driven in part by Mississippi’s success in improving student literacy scores, educators across the country have been discussing the science of reading and working to align their materials and practices to this research into how students learn to read. In the coming year, that broad trend will continue, with a shift to looking beyond knowledge building as schools, districts, and states begin improving capacity and creating systems aligned to the science of reading.

Here are a few specific predictions about what that could look like in 2024 for policymakers, schools and districts, educators, and publishers.

Policymakers

When it comes to policymakers, much of the action related to the science of reading in the coming year is likely to be at the state level. While there are individuals at the federal level eager to know more and ready to act, there hasn’t been a lot of policy movement at that level yet.

At the state level, policymakers and decision-makers will continue to develop guidance around the science of reading and evidence-aligned practices. Many states that have recently begun this work start with initiatives focused on building knowledge, which is a great first step. According to conversations in a community of practice that I convene with state education agency literacy leaders, a major focus will be building capacity for coaches to become the conduit between building knowledge and implementing practices aligned to the science of reading.

I hope that they will continue to draw support from national nonprofit organizations like The Reading League, The Path Forward, and ExcelinEd, as well as tap into the expertise of those who are volunteering their time and energy with The Reading League chapters across the United States. These are people with deep expertise in the science of reading who have worked in schools as coaches and administrators, and who are eager to be resources for state education agencies and other policymakers.

Recently, I’ve also seen a trend of people I refer to as “reading research legends,” such as Reid Lyon, Doug Carnine, and some of the researchers from The Reading League’s virtual lecture series, finding new energy and excitement as they share research to inform practices. I’m hopeful that their knowledge, experience, and expertise will be leveraged to shape and influence policy, whether it be at the state or national level.

Schools and districts

The move toward aligning literacy instruction with the science of reading has largely been a grassroots movement without federal support. Because of the lack of strong national guidance and support, some schools used their Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds to adopt a curriculum that purports to be the “science of reading.”

No curriculum, however, is the science of reading, and I believe schools and districts are beginning to understand this. The science of reading is not a set of practices. It is a body of research from multiple disciplines that helps us understand how people learn to read. If a curriculum is focused only on one component of literacy development, or if a district hasn’t worked to build knowledge of the science of reading within its faculty, they may not see the kind of reading growth they’re expecting.

To address some of those concerns, The Reading League Compass features a page for administrators to provide direction on all of the essential components required to build an entire evidence-aligned literacy system. I predict that in the new year, more administrators and other educators will focus not just on building knowledge and ensuring their materials are aligned to the science of reading, but they will go beyond to examine hiring practices, multi-tiered systems of support, assessments, the science of learning and implementation, and more. If they do, I also predict that they will be rewarded progressive and worthwhile growth in student literacy outcomes.

Educators

Educators, including teachers, specialists, and practitioners, have been an essential driving force in the movement to know more about the science of reading. Based on the inspiring work that has been supported by educators leading The Reading League chapters, I can confidently predict that educators will continue to be hungry to understand how to bring evidence-aligned practices and materials into their classrooms. They will continue to be empowered with knowledge of how to support their students’ literacy needs through professional development, curriculum implementation, data-based decision making, and individual learning from professional learning communities.

Unfortunately, there has been and will continue to be a trend in media and social media attempting to discredit work connected to the science of reading, particularly by companies whose market shares are threatened by shifts in literacy learning and teaching.

Those organizations are well-resourced and they fan the flames of dissonance by focusing on areas of misconception. The Reading League predicted this, and outlined it ahead of time in our free ebook, Science of Reading: Defining Guide. The guide explains that the science of reading is not an ideology or philosophy. It’s not a political movement or a one-size-fits-all approach to teaching. It’s not a program of instruction or a specific component of instruction such as phonics. As the backlash continues, fueled by moneyed interests and misconceptions, advocates, researchers, and educators will continue to push back on those misconceptions with scientific evidence and, in time, improved student outcomes.

Additionally, there has been some historic divisiveness between science of reading advocates and some advocates who support diverse learners including English learners and emergent bilingual students (ELs/EBs). This year, The Reading League and the National Committee for Effective Literacy (NCEL), which is an organization that supports ELs/EBs, partnered on a joint statement on the effectiveness of the science of reading for ELs/EBs, hosted on The Reading League Compass’ English Learner/Emergent Bilingual page. I predict that in the coming year, partnerships like the one between The Reading League and NCEL will begin to help heal divisiveness and welcome new, diverse voices into the conversation on evidence-aligned literacy instruction.

Publishers

Publishers will continue to work toward aligning their instructional materials to the science of reading in 2024. The Reading League remains hopeful as we hear of publishers using resources, such as our Curriculum Evaluation Guidelines, to refine their materials.

As I look forward to the new year, the success of schools, districts, and states like Mississippi’s student literacy turnaround is exciting and inspiring, but they didn’t accomplish it by building knowledge alone. They did it through a comprehensive overhaul of their approach to literacy learning. Right now, schools and districts are poised to make 2024 the year the rest of the country puts in the work to follow their example and share in their success.

Key points:

• Access to different types of digital content helps students generate reading interest
• A digital reading platform has helped one district make data-driven decision
• See related article: 5 resources that support literacy in elementary school
• For more news on literacy, visit eSN’s Innovative Teaching page

Five years ago, we were already well into discussions about investing in a digital reading application. Our overall objective was to expand access to literacy and use real-world data in curating and individualizing collections to better serve the needs of the district’s highly diverse student population. A priority was to give students seamless connection to the digital collections of the Lexington Public Library that serves our local area. As was the case for most districts in the country, the pandemic precipitated an even greater push to provide digital content.

The platform we selected—OverDrive Education’s Sora reading app—aligns with our public library system for easy access to its wealth of digital materials. The solution also allowed us to ease into the use of digital content at our own pace and within funding availability.

Below are some of the highlights of what we learned from following the data and the ways we’re applying that knowledge to improve access to literacy and help more students discover the excitement of reading.

Serving diverse demographics, ensuring maximum investment impact

Our district—Fayette County Public Schools in Lexington, Kentucky—encompasses 70 schools and programs that serve more than 41,000 students from backgrounds representing 95 home languages. We’re a minority-majority district with approximately 6,600 English Learners (ELs) and 5,200 students classified for special education.

Our mission within the Office of Information and Analysis is to provide solutions that support more effective teaching and learning. When looking for our digital reading system, we found these features very beneficial.

• Aligning with our public library using a single platform. Both the district and the Lexington Public Library use digital libraries. Students can easily access the collections through their reading app. Readers don’t even need their library card—they can use their school Google accounts to access both our district and public libraries.

• Providing impactful data on student reading habits. We can view data insights from both public library reading activity and from our own district collections. Following students’ reading habits across all collections gives us a more accurate and complete picture of their interests and reading behaviors.

• Maximizing purchasing power for district-wide access. Standardizing district-wide on a reading app ensures ubiquitous access and maximizes the resources we can deliver with each investment.

Since our launch of this platform, we have continued to follow the data to build out collections, as well as to advocate for reading resources.

Building the collection

To build and expand our collection, our technology team solicits insights from the departments that have provided funding. We also work as a department to analyze the data and make purchasing decisions. Our Library Advisory Council helps brainstorm about content, and we regularly share data with district librarians. Staying close to the data has helped the district bolster both enthusiasm for and competency in reading.

Creating excitement

Librarians and teachers routinely review usage statistics such as books opened, time read,  reading sessions, average time per session and per book, total unique users, and achievements earned. This data helps them track progress and make recommendations for high-interest or high-instructional-value titles. With this information in hand, we’re able to curate individual, department, themed, and other collections that we know will engage more students.

Expanding our community of readers

Giving students access to different types of digital content helps generate reading interest. Our students can choose to read digital magazines, non-English content, Battle-of-the Books texts, and books from wide variety of curated collections.

Usage statistics have given credence to our educators’ long-held beliefs that offering students independent reading choice and behind-the-computer-screen privacy increases interest and participation. But the data doesn’t always support preconceived notions. For example, in following the data on average-time-per-book by format we learned that our students were spending more time in audiobook texts than in ebooks. That surprising discovery led us to increase funding for our audiobook collection. Without this data in hand, we’d have missed a golden opportunity to boost reading hours.

Equitizing access

One of our top department goals is to support equitable access to resources. The digital reading app helps us achieve that objective by eliminating such traditional roadblocks as limited English fluency, school size and staffing constraints. Today, by leveraging Sora features and usage data, we’re better equipped to offer titles in our students’ home languages, give every reader access to a district-sized resource pool, and maintain a robust collection of targeted books.

Using data for advocacy

Increasing funding to expand our collection of audiobooks is just one example of the many ways we’re using data for advocacy. Collaborating departments can request specific data so that they can see the impact of their efforts and advocate for continued support. Usage trends inform purchase decisions—for example, we track usage of materials and content packages to calculate our return on investment and validate specific funding requests.

As evidenced by our success in making reading more accessible and relevant to students across demographics, choosing this path was one of the best decisions we’ve made in our on-going efforts to support reading in the classroom.

Key points:

• Students are struggling with reading proficiency, and the pandemic made it worse
• Stronger literacy skills boost students’ confidence and motivation
• See related article: Implementing the science of reading ‘one bite at a time’
• For more news on the science of reading, see eSN’s Innovative Teaching page

In districts across the country, educators are continuing to support students with post-pandemic learning recovery. Many students are still reading below the level appropriate for their grade–roughly one-third of fourth graders in the United States read at or below what’s considered the basic level. And unfortunately, even before the pandemic, reading achievement has been low over the past several decades.

Districts incorporating the science of reading into their curricula are seeing improved student outcomes. However, because the science of reading refers to broad research in a variety of fields on how a child learns to read, practical applications have not yet been widely taught to educators and there is a sizeable gap between theory and action.

Educators deserve relevant professional development in research-based instructional practices to inform their classroom instruction. One example to learn from is the “Mississippi Miracle,” in which a state once ranked second to last in the U.S. for literacy saw fourth-grade reading scores rise by 10 points – even after school closures during the pandemic – due to an emphasis on explicitly teaching foundational reading skills and professional development.

To help other school leaders start replicating the success that administrators and educators experienced in Mississippi, district leaders can guide the implementation of the science of reading principles through high-quality instruction in phonological awareness, phonics, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension. To do this effectively, it is important to align lessons with research-based practices that don’t encumber or overwhelm administrators, educators, or students.

Provide trusted resources

Educators need a consolidated source of trusted resources when making any significant classroom changes. This includes research, webinars, and other content to guide implementation.

Each state’s department of education may have guidelines, frameworks, and resources for implementing the science of reading. The U.S. Department of Education also provides resources and guidance on evidence-based practices in literacy. District leaders can supplement those guidelines with training programs that offer explicit, systematic approaches to teaching reading, or attend a webinar series from education technology partners that offers data-driven suggestions for literacy curricula.

Digital resources include Literacy Worldwide, research-based articles from the International Literacy Association (ILA), and peer-reviewed reports from journals like Reading Research Quarterly, the Journal of Educational Psychology, and the Journal of Literacy Research. The science of reading is an evolving field, so it’s essential that both administrators and teachers have the necessary resources to stay up to date with the latest research and best practices.

Choose the right classroom technologies

Supplemental classroom technology that aligns with science-based practices not only helps ease implementation of new curricula but can also tell educators where to target instruction respective to each student’s understanding.

Adaptive technology can assess students’ current literacy levels through formative, diagnostic assessments and then create personalized learning paths for each student. These real-time insights ensure students work on the specific skills they need to develop, whether it’s phonics, reading comprehension, vocabulary, or writing.  Students who excel in a particular area can access more advanced content, while those struggling can receive additional support and practice. This differentiation makes certain all students are challenged at an appropriate level.

Many adaptive education platforms incorporate interactive and multimedia elements, making the learning process more engaging for students. Gamification, interactive exercises, and multimedia resources can capture students’ attention and keep them motivated to practice literacy skills.

When students experience success and progress in their literacy skills through education technology, it can boost their confidence and motivation. This built-in positive reinforcement can have a significant impact on their overall learning experience. That said, literacy and reading technology should always be chosen with the understanding that it is not meant to replace teacher-directed instruction but to complement it.

Be prepared to make strategic changes

Implementing science of reading curriculum in classrooms requires careful planning, strategic rollout, and the flexibility to make adjustments as needed. The science of reading is an evidence-based approach to teaching reading that focuses on the underlying cognitive processes involved in reading – as such, best practices are subject to change with the latest research and with anecdotal evidence from student performance.

Start by defining clear, achievable, and measurable objectives. These objectives should be aligned with your school, district, or state’s literacy goals and standards. Instead of implementing the curriculum all at once, consider a phased rollout. Districts can also consider establishing a system for teachers, students, parents, and caregivers to provide feedback on the new curriculum and spotlight necessary adjustments.

Not all students and classrooms are the same, and what works for one group may not work for another. Implementing a new curriculum takes time, and success may not be immediate. Patience and a commitment to evidence-based practices are key to ensuring that the science of reading best practices have a positive, lasting impact on students’ reading skills and motivation to learn.