Michigan is in the middle of a debate over childhood literacy, and it’s somewhat flattering that Mississippi is playing a role.
A column on The Washington Post website quoted Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer as saying literacy would remain her number-one priority. She said children who can understand what they’re reading become “more
confident speakers, better problem solvers, and great entrepreneurs,” while “illiteracy is a challenge that compounds over time.”
The column, by Molly Macek of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, credits Whitmer for leading the state to several literacy-based reforms such as screening children from kindergarten through third grade for reading deficiencies and learning disabilities.
But she faults the governor for refusing to change her mind on a bill she signed in 2023. The bill eliminated a state requirement that third-grade students who are not reading at their grade level should be held back.
“A student who is not reading at grade level but still advances to the fourth grade is highly unlikely ever to catch up,” Macek wrote. “That disadvantage makes all future learning harder, usually causing lifelong damage, especially in careers.
“Retaining students in third grade also strengthens school accountability by encouraging a comprehensive effort to get them reading when it matters most.”
As evidence, Macek pointed to reading improvements in Mississippi, which since 2013 has required third-graders to pass a reading test to advance. Since then, she wrote, Mississippi’s fourth-grade reading scores have gone from 12 points below the national average to four points above. The column didn’t mention it, but Mississippi has taken other steps to improve literacy. Among the most important has to be providing the money to hire reading coaches at schools. These teachers’ main assignment is to make sure that student reading comprehension continues to improve, especially after third grade.
Michigan has work to do. Macek reports only 39% of the state’s third-graders are proficient in English, and the state’s fourth-grade reading scores are five points below the national average, ranking 44th on the National Assessment of Educational Progress. The problem may have been building before Whitmer signed that bill eliminating the third-grade reading test. For example, a school could ignore the retention requirement if a child’s parents objected. With that backup available, families really didn’t have to worry about how their kid performed on the reading test.
As for Mississippi, the state continues to get positive publicity from the “third-grade gate” idea that was, if memory serves, quite controversial at the time it became law. But Gov. Phil Bryant, the prime supporter of the legislation, turned out to be right. And the Legislature has continued to increase education spending steadily in recent years.
Schools, parents and third-graders responded to the raised bar. Over time, the improvement has been significant. Mississippi’s fourth-grade reading scores are four points above the national average — compared to Michigan’s five points below.
Whitmer wants Michigan public schools to add pre-kindergarten classes, as well as more state money for reading programs. Those ideas won’t hurt, but Macek is correct when she writes that the third-grade reading test, fairly enforced, will make a world of difference. Mississippi proves that point all by itself.
Jack Ryan, Enterprise-Journal
