Oklahoma has just passed a comprehensive early literacy reform package that mimics the “best in class” legislation of the Southern Surge.
The term Southern Surge denotes recent significant educational progress, particularly in early literacy, made by Southern states like Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama. In particular, Mississippi’s early literacy reform package, which includes teacher training, “science of reading” curriculum requirements, increased tutoring and intervention opportunities, and a third grade retention policy, has caught the eye of many policymakers across the nation.
The reforms are past due for the Sooner State, which has performed at the bottom of the rankings nationally for a number of years. Lawmakers cited Mississippi’s success as a key inspiration for the reforms.
Oklahoma’s new program creates three tiers of reading instruction and support for K-3 students. Students who are reading below grade level automatically qualify for Tier 2 and Tier 3 supports, including small-group lessons, extra tutoring, summer programs and transitional classrooms.
Parents are an important part of the equation. Now, all Oklahoma parents will be notified within thirty days if their child is considered behind grade level in reading, and will receive monthly updates on their child’s improvement plan. As parents typically get involved when they know their child is at academic risk, this will hopefully lead to more bedtime stories for academically struggling children.
While the reform package does include a third grade retention policy, it’s lenient. Students have multiple opportunities to pass the third grade reading exam, and exceptions to the retention policy are plentiful. State policymakers said that they intended the retention policy to act as an impetus for systems-level change, not as a primary tool for learning.
Additionally, the famously close-pursed Oklahoma lawmakers are putting their money where their mouth is. The state’s budget now includes an addition of more than $26 million to a fund that supports literacy instruction in public schools and an extra $100 million to raise all teachers’ minimum salaries by $2,000. $5 million was spent to expand a team of literacy coaches at the Oklahoma State Department of Education from five to twenty coaches. These relatively small financial investments prioritize how money is spent over how much money is spent.
The Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs (OCPA) President Jonathan Small praised the legislation, saying:
Too often, people have blamed Oklahoma’s poor outcomes on funding or poverty rates, but Mississippi’s demographics and spending are similar to Oklahoma’s, yet they have far outpaced our state when it comes to literacy. There’s no reason to claim Oklahoma children cannot be taught to read.
What’s more, Oklahoma’s new reform package focuses on the creation of a grassroots network of early literacy experts. Oklahoma’s Education Department is creating a new early literacy micro-credential program, called “teacher academies,” with Oklahoma colleges and universities. Every school district in Oklahoma is now required to employ at least one reading specialist, reading interventionist or staff member who has completed the micro-credential program. As staff members complete the micro-credential, they will be able to disseminate information about the science of early literacy and best pedagogical practices to their district. The best part of the deal for district staff? Certified school employees who complete the program will receive a $3,000 stipend from the Education Department.
It’s encouraging to see Oklahoma get serious about academic achievement and pass smart policies aimed at improving the lives of their students.
While Minnesota overhauled early literacy instruction through the Minnesota Reading to Ensure Academic Development (READ) Act, passed and signed into law in 2023, there’s still room to improve on a strong start. Lawmakers should consider passing a variation of a third grade retention policy, investing in more early literacy academic supports like tutoring, and strengthening the current parental notification policy for struggling students by adding monthly progress reports. Transitioning from a potentially-unwieldy requirement for each struggling student to have a “personalized learning plan” to a streamlined intervention tier system might also refine the policy.
