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As NAEP scores continue to show that the majority of U.S. students are not reading at grade level, literacy remains, perhaps, the most urgent challenge facing districts today. “That’s not a literacy problem. That’s a graduation problem, an economic problem, a national security problem…those are the costs,” stated Karl Rectanus, CEO of Really Great Reading and one of the presenters on the edLeader Panel, “The Cost of Getting Literacy Wrong: Long-Term Decisions, Lasting Consequences.”

While many schools are investing in curricula and interventions, the panelists argued that districts must make a critical shift away from pursuing isolated gains to scaling literacy outcomes across entire systems.

How to Scale Literacy Outcomes

The panelists highlighted three key distinctions between districts that achieved systematic gains and those that did not.

1. Science of Reading-Aligned Content, Curricula, and Professional Learning

Successful districts ensure educators and leaders become proficient in reading science, align content and curriculum to the research, and connect theory to consistent classroom practice. Dr. Charles Hulme, Emeritus Professor of Psychology in Education at the University of Oxford, and Founder and CEO of OxEd & Assessment, explained that the research clearly states students must master both decoding and language understanding to read proficiently, and both skill areas depend on oral language skills.

“Children need to be getting high-quality, systematic literacy or phonics instruction, but that needs to be embedded in a language-rich curriculum in which kids are seeing lots of books, reading books, enjoying books, getting rich language input, and doing work to encourage the development of language and understanding. The schools that are doing that well are getting great results,” he said.

2. Literacy Instruction Coaches

“The second thing you need is a human who motivates, cares, and holds learners accountable,” Rectanus explained.

“It’s one thing to have these really great materials, and another to have the understanding and professional development to go along with it,” said Emily Rennpage, Literacy Coach on Special Assignment at Grosse Pointe Public Schools (MI).

3. Feedback for Improving

You can have a really great program, but “…if you don’t have the instructional practices down pat, you’re just going through the motions. That’s where the work of having a coach or someone to provide feedback on how you’re delivering that content is really critical,” said Rennpage.

Rectanus added that both teachers and students need a feedback loop so they know where they are and what to do next.

Why Alignment Is More Than a Buzzword

Alignment between curricula, teaching practice, professional learning, and leadership is “absolutely critical,” Rennpage stated. When implementing new literacy initiatives in Grosse Pointe Public Schools, simply providing professional learning and materials was not enough to move the needle. It created a “mishmash of ideas and materials” that was then implemented to varying degrees of effectiveness. That kind of inconsistency is incredibly common among districts nationwide and is the largest barrier to scaling literacy success overall.

The district created an MTSS (Multi-Tiered System of Supports) that provides structure and allows educators to adapt and change as student, school, and instructional needs evolve. The district is able to sustain literacy initiatives because the structure provides guidance, despite turnover.

How to Know if Your Efforts Are Working

The panelists encouraged leaders to start with the end in sight, measuring all district priorities against literacy outcome goals.

“Hope is not a strategy. I encourage everyone not to ask for evidence but for outcomes,” Rectanus urged. Looking for partners who have outcomes-based contracts or who have experience in setting goals and changing outcomes helps. It may require a shift from project-based or school year-based vendor relationships to long-lasting, deep partnerships that share data, collaborate at the highest leadership levels, and provide flexibility for unexpected changes over time.

Getting Started

“Districts can begin with a needs assessment in their own space,” said Rennpage. Also, leaders should reach out to experts and avoid building a literacy initiative in a silo. “There’s no reason to put that extra work on yourself,” she said. Before starting professional development or curriculum changes, ask experts, lean on staff and teachers for input, and then, with guidance from strategic partners, outline goals and processes.

“What we’re really talking about is effecting system-level change,” said Dr. Hulme. Helping staff and educators believe in and buy into a plan is how leaders can really “change the school and change the world,” he said.

Learn more about this edWeb broadcast, The Cost of Getting Literacy Wrong: Long-Term Decisions, Lasting Consequences, sponsored by Really Great Reading.

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Article by Suzanne Bell, based on this edLeader Panel