New law requires Ohio schools to teach ‘science of reading’ as proficiencies fall
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A high number of Ohio students are not reading at grade level but a state law that mandates a certain type of instruction called the "science of reading" aims to fix that.
“We’ve got to do something, seriously,” Rep. Tom Young (R-Washington Township) said. “This is the future, not to be trite, but this is the future of our state.”
On Wednesday afternoon the Ohio House Higher Education Committee, chaired by Young, heard from some of the state departments that are implementing the changes. That included Steve Dackin, the director of the Department of Education and Workforce, who said kids need a strong educational foundation early on.
“Without that foundation, students will struggle to advance their education,” he said.
Last June, Ohio lawmakers passed a provision, in the state budget, to require the science of reading to be the basis of instruction in all school districts. The need to enact a new law was sparked from the data: In the 2022-2023 school year, according to the state department of education, nearly 37.7% of third graders statewide did not achieve a proficient score on the state’s English language arts (ELA) tests and 41.1% of fourth graders failed.
“To be able to learn by the third grade is critical,” Young said. “It will change the entire future of what we’re doing in Ohio. We know that. We know that.”
According to the Fordham Institute, which testified in committee on Tuesday, states like Mississippi that have implemented the science of reading have seen an increase in scores.
Between 2011 and 2022, Mississippi’s scores, based on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, have gone up by several points for low-income students, Black students, and white students.
“We’re looking for that promise for our kids too,” Young said. “We want that.”
Mississippi’s score increases remain above the national average, but Ohio’s testing tells a different story. The same National Assessment of Educational Progress shows decreasing consistently, and by more than the national average, since 2002, at least.
Low-income students saw a score decrease by 11 points between 2011-2022. Black students had scores go down by 14 points in the same period, and white students’ scores went down by four.
In testimony, Chad Aldis, vice president for Ohio Policy at the Fordham Institute, pointed out that the same progress is not guaranteed if Ohio implements the science of reading, “but it does illustrate what can happen on behalf of students when state leaders and local educators commit themselves to thoroughly implementing the science of reading.”
That implementation comes down to teaching both future and current educators the curriculum to pass on to students. The Chancellor of the Department of Higher Education Mike Duffey said that will get done.
“I would say that the universities, the colleges, their leadership are 100% on board,” Duffey said.
Though he said at the secondary education level they are looking for more support.
“I think they would like more resources, more access to resources, some of the things K-12 has, those kinds of things,” Duffey said. “But in general, they’re getting there.”
“It’s a learning process, no pun intended, but it’s a process that we have to do in Ohio, and I have a lot of confidence in our teachers,” Young said. “I have not had one person say, ‘we don’t want to do this.’ Not one.”
The science of reading has long been championed by Gov. Mike DeWine. Duffey said the progress on implementing it across the state was “really fueled” when DeWine took office.
Audits to universities, by the Department of Higher Education, will begin at the start of 2025, to ensure the science of reading is being taught to teachers in training.