More than half of third grade students in Connecticut are below proficient in literacy.
Lawmakers met Thursday at the Right to Read Literacy forum to discuss potential policy changes to improve reading levels for students in kindergarten through third grade.
According to a 2023 study by the state Department of Education, 54.5% of third grade students in Connecticut are not currently able to read at the required level. This number is up from 45% of students before the pandemic.
The panel weighed the Right to Read legislation passed in July 2021. The law allows the state to set requirements for reading curricula in school districts across Connecticut.
As part of the legislation, the state developed several curriculum plans and required all schools to partially implement one of the reading plans by July 2024. However, the state allowed schools to submit a waiver to implement a reading plan other than those provided by the state.
On Dec. 5, the state Center for Literacy Research and Reading Success reviewed 85 waivers submitted by school districts and charter schools. Of the 85 waivers submitted, 17 were approved, while the rest were either rejected, or listed as transitional, meaning they need to add or subtract specific components of their proposed curriculum. Lawmakers subsequently voted to extend the waiver deadline to July 1, 2025.
Gov. Ned Lamont, who delivered the opening remarks at the literacy forum, highlighted the importance of giving students the tools they need to succeed.
“If you can't read and express what you read and comprehend, life is a marathon, you're running that marathon with cement overshoots," Lamont said. "This is a basic civil right, and we're going to make sure that regardless of background, everybody has that skill. That's what right to read is all about.”
Policy suggestions given at the forum were mandatory curriculums set by the state, reading incentive programs, teacher preparation programs and increased reporting and communication of literacy-improving tactics.
State Education Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker noted that declining reading comprehension is something that affects all children across the state. Especially those in low-income areas, those with learning disabilities and those who attend schools without a proper library system.
Russell-Tucker said that approximately 19,500 students across all school districts in the state are currently below the required reading level, and it is going take the full cooperation from both school districts and state educators to improve these numbers.
"It takes all of us," Russell-Tucker said. "I want our students, when they're looking in at all of us, to see that we are indeed working together. We're truly collaborating, we're truly partnering together so that they can have the best outcomes possible."
