Stats mentioned: From 1994 to 2015, % of Black students reading below basic dropped from 70% to 48% (4th grade) and, in math (8th grade), from 80% to 48%. Not great, but progress. + thanks for the shout out about the new CALDER Center paper on the 4DSW - results aren't good.

Reading achievement is growning too slowly, less than 1% a year since the pandemic. 45% of 3rd graders are proficient, while 72% of future jobs will require some college. Too many districts & states set goals that are impossibly hard or too easy. Our new report makes the case

Dynamic districts: * Dropped leveled readers * Adopted high-quality, knowledge-building curricula (Wit & Wisdom English, @CKSchools) Curriculum reform isn’t sufficient—but it’s necessary for momentum. the74million.org/article/how-di…

Dynamic districts realize they need to dedicate more time for reading and writing: ⏱ 140–180 daily minutes (Marietta City) ⏱ 2+ hours + intervention (Allegany) ⏱ 1:45 literacy block (DC Prep) More time isn’t magic. But done right, it enables growth. the74million.org/article/how-di…

Surprised how sloppy the arguments are here by Kyla Scanlon. I've learned a lot from her in the past but to say "you don't have a predictable return on a college education" goes against the data. Research by Smith, Goodman & Hurwitz very clear on the value add of a BA.

In New York I’d always hear from system leaders how “expensive” ASAP. But if you think about effectiveness, ASAP is a bargain! Thrilled to see it scaling.

Would love to see College Board bring together some of these professors and have a panel discussion. 300k+ students pass the AP English Lit exam every year. Can’t do that without reading whole books.

It’s even worse for the bottom 25% of 4th grade readers. Those students read two grade levels lower than their counterparts did in 2015.

More details on dynamic districts getting results: the74million.org/article/how-di…

Hey Paul Thomas: Let’s get 30 fourth graders in South Carolina to read the great novel, The Tale of Desperaux. 12 of them won’t be able to understand the main character’s motivations. That’s what below NAEP Basic means. Isn’t this a deep problem??? washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/…

More about the Right to Read Bill here: massreads.org

Outdated beliefs die hard in all fields. It took nearly 50 years for doctors to abandon miasma (disease is caused by “bad air”) and embrace germ theory. Still doesn’t make it any easier when your friends publish pieces like this: edweek.org/teaching-learn…

On what planet does it ever make sense to average scale scores of 4th and 8th graders??? I’ve seen two smart people I respect retweet this graphic. Won’t name names but they should know better.

Big shout out to dynamic DCPrep literacy leader Mary Pendleton and the rest of the team. Their schools have grown 3rd grade ELA achievement by 5% annually since 2022. Learn more here: the74million.org/article/how-di…