In these complicated political times, I have never been more compelled to write a letter via this forum than ever before. As a voter, mother and educator, I want to publicly express my gratitude to Sen. Laura Sturgeon, Sen. Sarah McBride and Rep. Kim Williams for tirelessly researching, drafting, working across party lines, and then passing four pieces of key literacy and digital literacy legislation this year.
Pre-COVID, Delaware’s literacy rates were lagging behind the country and had been for years. Since the COVID pandemic, we are in a full-blown literacy crisis. One in six Delawareans is considered functionally illiterate. They do not have the reading skills to read the DMV manual or fill out a job application. We have schools in our state with a 6% ELA (reading and writing) proficiency.
A state’s literacy rate is a key predictor of its future quality of life, the life expectancy of its citizens, its ability to attract high-paying jobs, and also its need to increase or decrease social programming and prisons. Literacy matters!
These new laws led by Sen. Sturgeon, Sen. McBride and Rep. Williams include shifting the state’s reading instruction to evidence-based curricula focused on a child’s cognitive development. Senate Bill 1 requires the Department of Education to publish a list of evidence-based reading instruction curricula and then requires district and charter schools to adopt those curricula by 2027-28.
Another crucial bill requires all public schools serving grades K-3 to administer universal reading screenings three times a year to identify dyslexic learners. We have the ability to teach 95% of all students to read, and this will ensure students will receive the instruction they need.
SB 195 requires DOE to adopt K-12 curricula to help address online bullying, teach students how to identify misinformation, and encourage the development of healthy online behavior, starting in the 2022-23 school year.
Recently, Gov. Carney signed these bills, which were sent to the Secretary of Education Mark Holodick for implementation. The state of Mississippi had long held the 50th spot in literacy rates. By implementing similar bills in their state, Mississippi moved to the top spot. According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress test, “Mississippi made a significant achievement that no other state can claim: it was the only state where fourth-grade students showed meaningful growth in reading.” They sustained that growth during the pandemic.
Training teachers how to teach reading effectively, coaching them in safe environments where they can be vulnerable and compensated for their learning, and screening for dyslexia will be game changers in our state.
I am looking forward to the day when people are writing about Delaware’s drastic rise in literacy rates too.
Again, I thank Sen. Sturgeon, Sen. McBride and Rep. Williams for tirelessly working for our state’s students.
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