MARY ANN WOLF: Ensuring all N.C. students read on grade level by 3rd grade
Monday, March 22, 2021 -- The state has focused on early literacy explicitly for many years, but the efforts have not led to the results we want as a state overall with only about 57% of our children reading proficiently in the third grade in 2018-2019. Many are looking to address this gap.
Posted — UpdatedMany factors contribute to successful early literacy -- including students’ lived experiences from birth through kindergarten, their access to books and texts in their early years, whether or not they attended preschool, their nutrition and health and the ranges in school readiness with which students enter our public school system. While many organizations and school systems partner to support these factors, how literacy is addressed lays the foundation for a student’s schooling, as well as future opportunities and success in college, career, and citizenship.
The state has focused on early literacy explicitly for many years, but the efforts have not led to the results we want as a state overall with only about 57% of our children reading proficiently in the third grade in 2018-2019. Many are looking to address this gap.
In a complex political environment with many competing interests and needs, renewed support at the state level - from the Department of Public Instruction, the State Board of Education and the legislature - seems to be coming together around early literacy. Specifically, the discussion continues to center on the science of reading as the critical approach to follow.
Supporters of the science of reading share that understanding the cognitive processes that go into learning to read and how to effectively integrate that into daily instruction and support for students has the potential to reach more students and increase the literacy rate of our students substantially.
Moving in this direction and implementing this approach to literacy across the state will take human and financial resources, partnership with districts, collective buy-in, and ongoing commitment to make this a reality for students. Targeted investment strategies, pre-service preparation for teacher candidates, professional learning for teachers, long-term support for recruiting and retaining effective and diverse teachers, and appropriate staffing to ensure that using this approach meets the needs of students and schools will all be critical as together we look toward moving toward this literacy approach here in North Carolina.
We must also recognize that some teachers are already implementing practices that align with the science of reading with their students.
As we look at strategies to support the short- and long-term needs of North Carolina and its students, a focus on early literacy has the potential to lay the foundation for our students’ academic success and will take resources and a deep partnership with districts, schools, and teachers.
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