Accelerated early reading instruction has opened the door to educational success in real school districts.
For decades, educators have believed that low 3rd grade reading skills were an inevitable consequence of poverty and an insurmountable barrier to educational excellence for most children. Today, school districts like Tazewell, VA and others in Southeastern KY and Southwestern VA have found a way to increase the number of proficient readers from well under 50% to over 70% with the intensive, systematic reading instruction in grades K-3. Here is their story and their results. Here are more results from the Laurel County and Clay County, KY schools. Clearly, they demonstrate that poverty is not educational destiny.
Laurel County, KY
From 2010-2013, average to below-average third grade students in Laurel County made annual achievement gains in excess of 170% of one year’s growth at all but one of the district’s 11 elementary schools.
Clay County, KY
From 2010-2013, average to below-average third grade students Clay County made annual achievement gains of 160 to 200% of a year’s achievement growth at all 7 of the district’s elementary schools.