BALTIMORE — Addressing the need for literacy proficiency in the state, Review and updates of the draft literacy policy were presented to the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) July 23.
The MSDE passed a resolution at the beginning of the year to task State Superintendent of Schools Carey Wright and her team with drafting a comprehensive literacy policy aligned with the science of reading. Considerations of the working policy include aspects such as curriculum adoption, assessment data, analysis, early warning systems, intervention, and accountability.
The proposed policy aims to help the State Board of Education (SBOE) clarify and develop the more rigorous requirements already embedded in previous passed state statutes such as the Ready to Read Act, according to Deann Collins, deputy state superintendent and Tenette Smith, Executive Director of Literacy Programs and Initiatives.
The proposed policy brings to life the importance of economic issues as well as addressing literacy at a young age, Collins said.
Grounded in research evidence based, the draft policy sought a personal feel and welcomed feedback from a multitude of stakeholders as well as reviewed other state policies, Smith said.
Important aspects in developing the policy included looking at what is currently in statute in state regulations and then across the nation that have produced string literacy policies, think about best practices, according to Smith.
Another important aspect was ensuring the policy could articulate goals and align it with the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future for improving literacy outcomes, she said.
Achievement gaps in literacy persist across state demographics, according to Collins, noting research suggests a correlation between low income affects early reading levels, “Reading is an economic issue as well as an education issue,” according to Smith.
Many Maryland students are not meeting reading grade level expectations “and this gap has profound implications for the overall academic success and future and their future opportunities,” she said.
Four major components of the comprehensive literacy policy draft spotlight teacher support; assessment and parent notification; instruction and intervention; and retention and intervention, according to Smith.
Addressing current progress, according to the 2022 National Assessment of Educational Progress, 31% of Maryland students scored at proficiency levels or advanced, “Which means a staggering 69 percent of our students did not reach proficiency,” Smith said.
These findings underscore the urgent need for a unified comprehensive approach to ensure that all students develop strong reading skills early in their education to support their long-term academic success and high school graduation, she said. Research from the Annie E. Casey Foundation emphasized the critical importance of early reading proficiency.
“88% of students who failed to earn a diploma were struggling readers in third grade,” Collins said.
According to the report, children who do not read proficiently by third grade are four times more likely to drop out of school compared to proficient readers, she said.
The stakes are even higher for children living in poverty and are from a minority, according to Smith, who face a eight times more likelihood of not graduating on time if they lack reading proficiency by third grade.
Research also identified 60 percent of incarcerated inmates are “functionally illiterate. Therefore they were not reading on grade level by the end of third grade,” Smith said.
Further research suggested that two-thirds of students who cannot read proficiently by the end of fourth grade end up incarcerated or on welfare, she said.
Literacy has an impact on the healthcare industry as well as low literacy costs about $73 million per year in terms of direct health care costs, according to Smith. Maryland needs a comprehensive literacy policy because, “Despite various efforts and initiatives over the years, literacy rates in our state indicate that there’s still significant work to be done,” Smith said.
“By improving literacy outcomes we can enhance the economic and social wellbeing of our communities,” she said.
Areas for additional consideration include addressing staffing models and class sizes, strategic training as well as how to hold students accountable, Collins said.
The draft policy is still in its early stages and the department was grateful for stakeholders and partner collaboration to spotlight where work needs to be focused, she said.
With over 900 responses collected already, the office of the superintendent continues to receive input and feedback can be submitted at the MSDE website.
No final decision has been made regarding the policy and additional work is needed to finalize a timeline. Another revisited policy is expected to be presented for board action at a later date.
“This is just the beginning,” Wright said.
Public comment about the literacy policy is expected and the MSBOE will next meet Aug. 27.
More information about the MSDE can be found at: https://marylandpublicschools.org.
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