Reading by the end of third grade matters

The future prosperity of Tennessee and the nation depends on the development of a workforce with skills for the 21^st century. Reading is the foundation that opens worlds of knowledge and experience for children, but first the world of reading must be opened to them.

Tennessee Department of Education Commissioner Tim Webb is participating with the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s KIDS COUNT Project in releasing a report entitled “Early Warning: Why Reading by the End of Third Grade Matters.” The report focuses on the importance of early proficient reading skills in all children.

“A frequent observation is that until third grade, children are learning to read. After third grade, they are reading to learn,” said Linda O’Neal, executive director of the Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth (TCCY). The report cites Children’s Reading Foundation information indicating about half the printed fourth-grade curriculum is incomprehensible to children who read below grade level.

“Science tells us how important it is to support developing brain architecture in young children,” O’Neal added, “where brains are built much like building a house: laying a firm foundation, framing the walls and installing sound wiring. We have to provide children opportunities to be born and stay healthy, have adequate nutrition, and experience enriching activities that support their physical, cognitive, social and emotional development.”

The report provides a comprehensive review of the challenges faced by children who struggle with reading and chronicles how these perpetuate disadvantage from generation to generation, especially among low income children.

Unfortunately, only a little more than one in four Tennessee fourth graders (28 percent) scored proficient in reading, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, giving the state a ranking of 37^th. The report includes a number of indicators linked to reading proficiency. Tennessee’s best ranking is at 16^th for the percent of children ages one to five whose family members read to them three or more days a week.

In addition to success in winning one of the first federal Race to the Top grants, O’Neal cited other state-local partnerships in Tennessee that provide important opportunities for improving reading proficiency by the end of third grade. These include the state’s high quality Pre-K program, improving quality in child care through the Star Quality child care licensing program, the Governor’s Books from Birth program providing books for young children, and Family Resource Centers that promote family involvement and strategies to improve family literacy.

The report includes recommendations for improving reading proficiency. It recognizes the interrelated nature of many programs across service delivery systems for young children and their families and the importance of better coordinating them. Other factors include involving parents in their children’s learning, assuring children arrive at school ready to learn, addressing chronic absenteeism and summer learning loss, improving teaching strategies, holding schools to rigorous standards and tracking progress.

It challenges us to keep promises made in recent decades to provide children a fair opportunity to graduate from high school “ready for college, ready for a career, ready for life.” If we do so, we will also provide the nation’s workforce, employers, colleges and universities, and the armed forces a larger pool of high school graduates prepared to take up the responsibilities of citizenship and adulthood.

The Casey Foundation will release the report during a live webcast from the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on May 18th at 1:00 pm ET. It will include featured speakers and a panel discussion, moderated by Michel Martin, host of NPR’s “Tell Me More,” with representatives from the education, government, and business sectors. Webb will be included in this presentation.

The Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth is an independent agency created by the Tennessee General Assembly. Its primary mission is to advocate for improvements in the quality of life for Tennessee children and families. Partial funding for TCCY’s KIDS COUNT program is provided through a grant from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to disadvantaged children.

For more information, contact (615) 741-2633 or regional coordinator April Swoner (615) 532-1579.