Literacy Advocacy to QPS School Board May 2023
Why the knowledge building Amplify CKLA is a better curriculum for our students
I continue to advocate to our local school district to select the most evidence-based reading curriculum in place of the debunked Balanced Literacy programs that we currently use.
Last May 2023 I provided public comments to the QPS Board of Education to express my concern about our current literacy crisis and to advocate for the selection of Amplify CKLA as the chosen pilot curriculum. My comments spawned an article in our local newspaper at the time.
Unfortunately, the district chose 2 other flawed ELA curricula that are more similar to Balanced Literacy and the Board unanimously approved this decision.
I would like to share my original comments to the Board below:
Good evening
My name is Dr. Todd Porter. Thank you for this opportunity to speak to you tonight on the topic of Literacy.
While I am not an educator, I am here to share my experiences as both a parent of 2 dyslexic children as well as a pediatrician to hundreds of struggling readers who seek care for physical and mental health comorbidities related to school failure from not being able to read.
Throughout my comments to you tonight, I would like you to remember 3 over-arching themes.
It is not about what adults want, but what kids need
when you know better, you do better
we must proceed with urgency or more of our kids will fall through the cracks.
Our children are experiencing a literacy crisis due a debunked way our children are taught to read. If you have not yet listened to the documentaries of journalist Emily Hanford, you must. Her most recent podcast Sold a Story will provide the information you need to more fully understand how the methods of balanced literacy and reading recovery stand in opposition to 40 years of neurocognitive science that shows that children must be taught to read with systematic and explicit phonics instruction. Otherwise known as Structured Literacy.
I saw this first hand as a parent whose dyslexic children experienced two vastly different educational trajectories based on their in-school reading instruction. My daughter was identified with dyslexia in 2nd grade after failing to improve with her balanced literacy-based reading interventions. We ended up having to do private OG tutoring costing us $15,000 to remediate her reading disability that her school could not do.
By the time our youngest was starting kindergarten, we moved all 3 of our children to a charter school in another school district where all K-3 students received Structured Literacy. Grant was diagnosed with dyslexia at the end of kindergarten. He never needed an IEP and we never payed for outside tutoring for him because he got what he needed in school. Such a striking difference in the educational experience that my 2 dyslexic children have had.
“But it cannot be emphasized enough that Getting what you need for a kid with dyslexia is a rich man's game.” Our family had the resources to mitigate our children’s reading disability, yet many families do not. It is on behalf of these struggling readers that I speak to you tonight.
Early this month, I was grateful to have the opportunity to meet with our Superintendent and I asked him if he felt the methods of balanced literacy and 3-cueing are effectively teaching our kids to read? He responded that it did “For some”
He is correct that the methods of Balanced Literacy only teaches “SOME” kids to read. Take a look at Nancy Young’s Ladder of Reading and Writing. Up to 35% of students can learn to read with relative ease, yet 65% require a Structured Literacy Approach.
So it should not surprise you that according to 2019 QPS data, only 25% of 3rd grade students met or exceeded grade-level reading standards, while only 3% of Black students met or exceeded this standard. This is a civil rights issue.
As a School Board I feel you are in the unique position to help change this. But we must do it with urgency.
I have two concerns with the current proposed role out of the ELA pilot I am hoping the Board will address.
Concern #1: The selection of the ELA program
Over the past year our office of curriculum has evaluated ELA programs and reviewed these on Ed Reports, settling on 3 programs for teacher consideration. OF ALL the curricula listed, only Amplify CKLA is considered a comprehensive curriculum while the others fall into the category of Balanced Literacy.
At the May 8th informational meeting for all K-5 teachers interested in piloting next school year, teachers were provided a survey to complete asking to choose which pilot curriculum they preferred. I encourage the School Board to weigh in and provide direction in this decision. Amplify CKLA is the most comprehensive curriculum and happens to be the same curriculum that Liberty School district has adopted. We can learn from their experience. It is not about what Adults want but what Kids need.
Concern #2: Not implementing the pilot in all classes and all Tiers
I acknowledge that the district has concern in forcing change on our teachers. My concern is one of equity, in that not all students will have access to the piloted structured literacy program which research has already proven is needed.
The response was that Tier 2 and Tier 3 systems of support will still be in place. While I am elated to hear that QPS plans to train Tier 2 and 3 interventionists this summer in OG, the district still plans to offer Reading Recovery as an intervention for struggling readers. Last year a large study found that children who received Reading Recovery had scores on state reading tests in third and fourth grade that were below the test scores of similar children who did not receive Reading Recovery. If a student in the pilot class is taught structured literacy in Tier 1 and then Reading Recovery or another balanced literacy intervention in Tier 2/3, you risk teaching in contraction to what they’ve already learned.
I encourage the Board to support the implementation of Structured Literacy for all Tiers of instruction.
I acknowledge that change is not always easy, but it is the responsibility of this Board of Education to act on the Urgency of this literacy crisis affecting our students, and more disproportionately our children of color. If the current programs of Balanced Literacy and Reading Recovery were working, then way more than just 30% of our students would be reading proficiently.
It is NOT about what adults want, but what kids need. Now that we know better, it is time to do better. And we must do it urgently!
Thank you for your time.