Literacy Bills K-12 and Adolescent Literacy
Major new literacy initiative proposed in U.S. Congress
Enhancing professional development efforts for teachers is at core of LEARN Act
By Margie Bell
IRA members have been calling for a new literacy initiative that recognizes classroom teachers' leadership in reading education as the backbone of student success. The new Literacy Education for All, Results for the Nation (LEARN) Act (H.R. 4037/S. 2740), if passed, will create a blueprint for $2.35 billion in literacy program funds for states to enhance literacy professional development efforts for teachers of grades K–12 in high-poverty and low-achieving schools.
The LEARN Act views literacy as a continuum and offers the best of the fundamental goals of Early Reading First, Reading First, and Striving Readers. The bill will help establish intensive professional development in order to achieve high-level literacy for the most vulnerable learners in the United States. For the first time, a bill is offering significant help across all grade levels. The bill also encourages coordinated literacy instruction across districts and the state and addresses avoiding conflict of interest issues.
This bill strengthens funding for adolescent literacy and offers opportunities for state and locally led literacy initiatives. As states deal with the economic slump of the past two years, these funds will help fill a void, especially for adolescents. Historically, middle and high school literacy initiatives received scant funds. For instance, Striving Readers funded successful adolescent literacy efforts, but only at eight sites across the United States.
Under the LEARN Act, however, 40% of the funding will go to adolescent literacy education. This represents a significant increase in attention to the special needs of teens who have weak literacy skills that make them vulnerable to becoming dropouts. If passed, the LEARN Act will be a forceful step in supporting middle and high school literacy programs.
Rich Long, director of IRA's Government Relations Division, praised the bill's emphasis on extra professional development money for those who teach children in the higher grades. "Striving Readers, which focused on adolescents, had substantial impact on improving their literacy, but on a very small scale," said Long. "The LEARN Act will empower us to better help low-achieving adolescent learners. This broader federal support for literacy professional development for upper grade teachers will pay huge dividends for these vulnerable students."
Sponsors note bill's benefits
The bill was introduced in the House of Representatives by John Yarmuth (D–KY) and cosponsored by George Miller (D–CA) and Jared Polis (D–CO). Patty Murray (D–WA) introduced the bill in the Senate, and Sherrod Brown (D–OH) and Al Franken (D–MN) are cosponsors.
"The LEARN Act is based on the simple fact that literacy is the cornerstone of all learning," said Polis. "Unfortunately, too many students cannot read and write at their grade level, which prevents them from realizing their full potential, both in school and in life. This comprehensive legislation supports high-quality literacy instruction to provide each and every child, including English-language learners and students with special needs, with the reading and writing skills needed to succeed in college and in the workforce. By supporting effective literacy initiatives from early learning through high school, this legislation will help to create the world class education system that America's children deserve."
"Literacy must be education priority number one," said Murray, a senior member of the Senate Education Committee. "It's the building block that keeps students engaged in school and on track to college and a successful career. The LEARN Act will provide a new comprehensive and statewide approach to literacy. It will help ensure that high-quality literacy instruction starts early and continues through high school for students who need extra support. The LEARN Act also comes at a critical time for Washington state, as budget cutbacks continue to affect the resources available to address literacy."
"Students who are not proficient in reading and writing are far less likely to succeed in school and in life. But, in Louisville alone, up to 38% of high school students are unable to read at their grade level," said Yarmuth. "Our nation and our communities must make literacy education a top priority. By investing in local high-quality literacy programs and expanding literacy instruction for the students who need it most, that's exactly what the LEARN Act will do."
"Literacy is the foundation for a world-class education. Our children will not be able to develop the complex skills and knowledge they need to succeed and compete in a global economy if they can't read or write," said Miller, who serves as the chair for the House Education and Labor Committee. "This bill asks states to take a more comprehensive approach to literacy that starts with our youngest learners and focuses attention and resources to students at every step along the way."
Reinforcing the centrality of the classroom teacher
For decades, research has pointed clearly to the centrality of classroom teachers' impact on students' literacy growth and achievement. Children who fail to learn to read well in first grade tend to fall behind and stay behind their peers throughout their schooling experiences unless middle school and high school teachers are prepared to support struggling readers and writers.
Failure to learn to read is related to a number of negative social and economic outcomes, including underemployment, unemployment, social and welfare program dependence, and incarceration. The ability to process and use both oral and written language effectively is foundational for maintaining a democracy and for engaging in the technological world of the future. Those who cannot process and use language are effectively denied their civil rights, are unable to fully participate in society, and are denied economic opportunities that affect their socioeconomic mobility.
Literacy professionals require continuing education to update and refine their knowledge and skills in ways that will increase student motivation and achievement. Research and experience clearly demonstrate that teacher quality gaps contribute enormously to the achievement gaps separating different groups of students. Because student achievement is positively correlated with teacher participation in quality professional development, successful schools make excellent professional development in reading instruction a priority.
If you are interested in asking your representative or senators to support the LEARN Act, please write them. For contact information, as well as updates on this legislation, visit www.reading.org/Advocacy or search for the Legislative Action Team at www.reading.org.
Margie Bell is an education relations specialist in IRA's Washington office.
Major new literacy initiative proposed in U.S. Congress. (December 2009/January 2010). Reading Today, 27(3), 1, 4.
Comprehensive Literacy Bills (LEARN Act) Introduced in House and Senate LEARN Act House Summary- 11-17-09
Literacy Education for All, Results for the Nation (LEARN) Act (H.R. 4037 /S. 2740)
The LEARN Act will support comprehensive State and local literacy initiatives to ensure that children from birth through 12th grade have the reading and writing skills necessary for success in school and beyond. Specifically, the bill will:
I. Provide federal support for literacy initiatives by:
- Authorizing $2.35 billion each year for comprehensive, high-quality State and local literacy initiatives that span birth through 12th grade;
- Enabling States to design a comprehensive literacy plan and make subgrants to early learning providers and school districts to develop and implement high-quality literacy initiatives that will improve the reading and writing skills of all children and students;
- Designating that funds must be allocated as follows:
15% for children birth through kindergarten entry
40% for kindergarten through grade 5
40% for grades 6 through 12; - Targeting funding to high-need student populations and schools;
- Requiring a rigorous national evaluation of the programs; and
- Including stringent conflict of interest restrictions for programs' peer review process.
II. Enhance each State's role in improving literacy instruction by:
- Supporting the formation of a State Literacy Leadership Team made up of literacy experts and key stakeholders to assist in the development of a comprehensive State literacy plan that includes a needs assessment, a capacity survey, and an implementation plan to ensure high-quality instruction in reading and writing;
- Requiring States to provide technical assistance to early learning providers and local educational agencies on implementing high-quality professional development programs for literacy instruction; and
- Requiring each State to review pre-service coursework as well as State licensure and certification requirements and make recommendations to improve training in high-quality literacy instruction.
III. Support the creation of local high-quality literacy initiatives by:
- Providing high-quality professional development for instructional staff that is job-embedded, ongoing, and research-based, and supporting teachers in analyzing assessment data to improve student learning;
- Providing children and students with high-quality early literacy instruction and reading and writing instruction;
- Utilizing assessment systems to inform and improve instruction and student learning at all age and grade levels; and
- Supporting school-wide literacy initiatives and additional literacy supports to address the specific learning needs of English language learners, students with disabilities, and struggling readers and writers.
LEARN Act Senate Summary (S.2740):
Literacy Education for All, Results for the Nation (LEARN) Act
The LEARN Act would support comprehensive state and local literacy programs to ensure that children from birth to grade twelve have the reading and writing skills necessary for success in school and beyond. Specifically, the bill would:
I. Provide federal support for literacy programs by:
a) authorizing $2.35 billion for comprehensive literacy programs, providing funds for both existing and new high-quality state and local school-based literacy programs that span birth to grade twelve, through the use of a state formula grant;
b) allocating not less than 10 percent of the $2.35 billion for children from birth to age five, not less than 40 percent for students in kindergarten to grade five, and not less than 40 percent for students grades six through twelve; and
c) requiring a rigorous national evaluation of the programs that includes stringent conflict of interest restrictions for the programs' peer review process.
II. Enhance each state's role in improving literacy instruction by:
a) supporting the formation of a state literacy leadership team made up of literacy experts and relevant stakeholders;
b) supporting the development of a comprehensive state literacy plan, including a needs assessment and an implementation plan to ensure high-quality instruction in reading and writing from early childhood education through grade twelve;
c) requiring each state to provide competitive subgrants to local educational agencies;
d) targeting funding to schools with the greatest need (as defined by poverty or low student literacy achievement);
e) requiring each state to provide technical assistance to local educational agencies on how to implement high-quality professional development programs for literacy instruction;
f) requiring each state to review pre-service course work as well as state licensure and certification requirements, and make recommendations to improve training in high-quality literacy instruction; and
g) allowing states with effective literacy instruction programs to keep and enhance their existing program structure;
III. Support the creation of local high-quality literacy programs in schools by:
a) providing high-quality professional development for instructional staff that is job-embedded, ongoing, and research-based, providing teachers with expertise in literacy instruction appropriate to specific grade levels, analyzing data to improve student learning, and effective implementation of literacy instruction strategies;
b) providing students with explicit, systematic, and developmentally appropriate instruction in reading and writing, including but not limited to vocabulary development, phonemic awareness,
reading comprehension, and the use of diverse texts;
c) utilizing diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments to inform and improve instruction and student learning at all age levels; and
d) supporting schoolwide literacy programs and additional literacy supports to address the specific learning needs of struggling readers and writers, including English language learners and students with disabilities.
Success in the Middle Act (H.R. 3006/S. 1362)
Problem: Many middle grades (5-8) students do not receive the appropriate instruction and other supports to be successful in the rigorous high school coursework that will prepare them for college and the workforce.
"The middle grades will play a pivotal role in enabling the nation to reach President Obama's goal of graduating all students from high school prepared for college or advanced career training. In high poverty neighborhoods, in particular, our research and school improvement work indicate that students' middle grades experiences have tremendous impact on the extent to which they will close achievement gaps, graduate from high school, and be prepared for college." Putting Middle Grade Students on the Graduation Path (Balfanz, 2009).
House of Reps Hearing on Literacy - Brief Summary
Improving the Literacy Skills of Children and Young Adults
On Thursday, November 19, the House Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education, chaired by U.S. Rep. Dale Kildee (D-MI), held a hearing to review current federal literacy initiatives and explore ways to improve the reading comprehension skills of all children from birth through high school. Recent data show 69 percent of eighth graders and 65 percent of twelfth graders cannot read at or above grade level.
Rep. Dale Kildee (MI) Opening Statement "We must also strengthen existing programs targeted at our pre-k and elementary age children to ensure they benefit from the most effective practices. Challenges are not always solved by more money. Sometimes we need to realign resources and empower our educators with the skills to maximize their impact on student learning.
And finally, we need to pay attention to the needs of our adolescent readers. Researchers have documented a fourth grade reading slump for years, yet federal investment in reading programs for grades 4 through 12 remains minimal. In order to reverse the high school dropout crisis and prepare all students for postsecondary opportunities, we need to provide reading support far beyond the 4th grade."
Witnesses were selected on two criteria, their professional literacy expertise and the Ed Labor Committee members' areas of interest. It was noted thatDorothy Strickland was a past International Reading Association President. Please click on their names to read their prepared remarks.
Witnesses:
- Mary Kay Doré » Literacy Coaches
District Student Support Services Manager
Summit School District
Frisco, Colorado - Dr. Leo Gómez » Bilingual Education
Professor of Bilingual/Bicultural Education
College of Education-The University of Texas Pan American
Edinburg, Texas - Andrés Henríquez » Comprehensive Reform
Program Officer
National Program
Carnegie Corporation of New York
New York, NY - Dr. Dorothy Strickland » Early Childhood Literacy
Professor Emeritus
Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
Newark, NJ - Mr. Larry Berger » Technology
CEO and Co-Founder
Wireless Generation
Washington, D.C. - Ms. Sandra D. Meyers, Ed.D. » Reading First
Education Associate Reading
Reading/Literacy Cadre
Delaware Department of Education
Dover, DE
Congressmen Mike Castle (R-DE) and Dale Kildee (D-MI) voiced their support of the LEARN Act as did Jared Polis (D-CO) and John Yarmuth (D- KY). Representative Donald Payne (D-NJ) asked for increased attention to improving instruction for minority students. Congressman Vernon Ellers (R-MI) requested improving the role of librarians in LEARN.
- Leading Adolescent Literacy Programs in Five U.S. States
Issues & Answers Report published by Institute of Education Sciences (IES) 4/2009 describes efforts by five states—Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, New Jersey, and Rhode Island—to improve adolescent literacy. Highlighting common challenges and lessons, the report examines how each state has engaged key stakeholders, set rigorous goals and standards, aligned resources to support adolescent literacy goals, built educator capacity, and used data to measure progress. - Improving Low-Performing Schools: Lessons from Five Years of Studying School Restructuring under No Child Left Behind
This report synthesizes five years of CEP's research on state and local efforts to improve persistently low-performing schools in accordance with the No Child Left Behind Act. CEP conducted this research in six states -- California, Georgia, Maryland, Michigan, New York, and Ohio -- and in 23 districts and 48 schools within those states. The report also makes recommendations for improving federal assistance in this area. View Materials
Improving Low-Performing Schools: Lessons from Five Years of Studying School Restructuring under No Child Left Behind (Report - Full)
Author(s): Caitlin Scott
This report synthesizes five years of CEP's research on state and local efforts to improve persistently low-performing schools in accordance with the No Child Left Behind Act. CEP conducted this research in six states -- California, Georgia, Maryland, Michigan, New York, and Ohio -- and in 23 districts and 48 schools within those states. The report also makes recommendations for improving federal assistance in this area.
Published: December 07, 2009