Only 1/3 of Tennessee third graders can read on grade level. Here's how the state education commissioner wants to change that

Only about a third of third graders in Tennessee can read on grade level.

About 64% of third graders are not set up for success, research shows. They aren't reading on grade level and they aren't considered proficient on state tests - and those are problems that will likely follow them through upper grades, high school graduation, their careers and their lives.

Tennessee Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn, like her predecessors, wants to change that. Schwinn wants to tackle the state's literacy crisis by ensuring teachers actually know how to teach and that schools and districts have access to appropriate, high-quality materials for teaching and learning.

The price tag for Schwinn's plan, which would be funded by Gov. Bill Lee's Literacy Initiative, or House Bill 2229, is $68 million.

The legislation would require every educator who is responsible for reading instruction, including classroom teachers, special education teachers and other certified or classified staff in schools, to have specific training by 2022.

It budgets $48.8 million for that teacher training and coaching, with only $11.25 million of that money recurring in the annual budget. The other $20 million is one-time money for third to fifth grade classrooms.

Schwinn said that an emphasis on literacy, especially early childhood literacy, is especially important right now, because the state is seeing stagnant progress.

"We've talked at length in the last 10 years about how much growth the state has seen, specifically in math and English language arts," Schwinn told the Times Free Press. "We saw some really big jumps between 2011 and 2014 - but we've seen the same proficiency rate for the past four years in third and fifth grades, and in eighth grade we are seeing some decline."

The gaps between the highest-performing students and the lowest-performing students, especially in grades 3, 4 and 8, which are considered critical years, is also widening, Schwinn said.

Only about 36.1% of third graders in Hamilton County tested on grade level in reading during the 2018-19 school year, despite Hamilton County Schools outperforming the state in a number of areas.

But fewer than half of students can read proficiently, according to the state's own data. Even in the state's highest performing school districts like Arlington Community Schools, Germantown Municipal School District and Williamson County Schools, fewer than 75% of third graders were reading on grade level last year.

Nationally, how reading is taught is something that has been debated in recent years. Schwinn said many of Tennessee's teachers received little or no instruction in phonics-based reading instruction, or what she calls "the science of reading," in their teacher preparation program.

The type of reading instruction referred to as the science of reading focuses on five key things when children are learning to read: phonic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension.

In the past decade, many practices did not necessarily emphasize these five areas, Schwinn said.

"Over the last 10 to 15 years, we've seen a real growth in whole language, such as using picture clues and learning sight words," Schwinn said. "But limited decoding happens with students when they are using memorization techniques to learn to read."

Eventually, students need to be able to encounter a new word, figure out how to say it or what it might mean on its own, Schwinn explained. And if educators know what works best, then "that's what we need to be doing," she said.

That is where the Department of Education's initiative comes in. While districts are adopting new curricula, textbooks and reading materials this year, they will hopefully have access to materials and/or funds for materials that align with that approach, and teachers will also be trained on using those materials and the science of reading approach when creating and implementing lessons.

Some state lawmakers have expressed concerns that the understaffed education department is moving too fast on this revamped plan, especially since the training will be conducted by outside contractors that will be chosen through a typical state competitive bid contest. Others, lawmakers and educators alike, also worry that local school districts won't have enough autonomy or say in what their individual teachers need.

During the House curriculum and testing subcommittee meeting on Feb. 25, several lawmakers voiced apprehension about the bill and said they intended to move slowly, according to The Tennessean.

"As all of us know, the devil's always in the details, and there are a lot of details that are not there," said Rep. John DeBerry, D-Memphis. "There are some who feel you're overstepping with this bill being so comprehensive."

Rep. Mark Cochran, R-Englewood, expressed concern with adopting the proposed initiative without more feedback from teachers and school districts.

"I'm OK with the focus on phonics and the focus on science of reading, but it's just the hard roll-out of 'This is what we're going to do' that makes me nervous without a lot of input from folks on the ground," Cochran said, according to The Tennessean.

Schwinn told the Times Free Press that she agreed that school districts need to be able to do what makes sense for their teachers' and students' needs.

"There has to be enough local autonomy and flexibility to be able to implement these resources to make sense," she said.

As the initiative rolls out, the department would seek feedback from a team of eight superintendents through a superintendent advisory team.

Russell Dyer, director of schools for Cleveland City Schools, is one of them. Dyer and his Chief Academic Officer Jeff Elliott said they were excited about the state's emphasis on literacy, but also noted such a comprehensive plan would be a drastic change.

"What a child's access looks like in an urban environment in terms of instruction is different than what a child in a rural environment might need," Dyer said. The same is true of teachers' abilities and need for training and what type of training, he said.

Elliott said Cleveland's teachers are motivated and excited to learn about the new reading instruction best practices, as most educators across the state are.

"Our teachers do a good job. - When you're a teacher and you know how to teach, you know how to teach," Elliott said. "They also want to learn about reading and they are excited to try to do what's best for students."

Elliott said Cleveland City Schools has been working with its teachers over the past several years to determine what is needed to best prepare students, and he emphasized the need for high-quality materials across the state.

Both also noted some districts are looking forward to seeing what waiver options there will be for teachers who might already be experts on phonics-based reading instruction or for districts that already use a certain evidence-based program or method that works for that district and is showing results through its students' performance.

H.B. 2229 will come before the House Curriculum, Testing and Innovation Subcommittee meeting again this Tuesday. Its accompanying measure, Senate Bill 2160, is on the Senate Education Committee's calendar for discussion on Wednesday.

Contact Meghan Mangrum at mmangrum@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6592. Follow her on Twitter @memangrum.