Report: How kids are taught to read in Michigan varies widely

In the thick of the science of reading movement, the kind of reading lessons a Michigan student receives largely depends on the public school they attend, according to a new report.

Some of the materials used most in reading lessons across Michigan elementary schools are not highly rated, found a new report released this week by Michigan State University researchers. The report from MSU's Education Policy Innovation Collaborative surveyed thousands of kindergarten through fifth grade teachers, as well as 87 district superintendents in the state about curricula resources used in the classroom.

The researchers compared the top 10 most-used ELA curricula with ratings of those resources from multiple evaluation organizations. EdReports, one of those evaluation organizations, rates materials as "meets expectations," "partially meets expectations," and "does not meet expectations."

Of the 10 most common, half met expectations for research-based practices, according to EdReports. Three did not fully meet expectations and two were not rated by EdReports. One of the most popular among Michigan educators, the "Units of Study for Teaching Reading," the curriculum authored by literacy professor Lucy Calkins, came under fire recently by parents and some education leaders as an ineffective way to teach children how to read.

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Still, there is a massive range of materials used to teach kids how to read in Michigan, which makes it hard to fully understand the scope — and gaps — of reading instruction statewide.

"There are still really a lot of different curriculum resources being used in classrooms across Michigan: 444," said Tanya Wright, one of the authors of the report. "From teacher to teacher or from district to district, kids are using very different curriculum materials."

Reading instruction in Michigan

The researchers compared their findings from the 2022-23 school year to a previous survey conducted in the 2019-20 school year. They found that a higher proportion of educators, 32%, in 2022-23 used ELA curricula that met expectations, according to EdReports compared with 12.3% in 2019-20.

Researchers found:

• That districts serving higher proportions of low-income students are more likely to use curricula rated to meet expectations.
• More teachers are receiving one-on-one coaching and other professional development in literacy.
• Elementary teachers are more likely to supplement core lessons with additional resources to help writing, understanding of phonics and spelling.

Wright said the current and passionate national conversation around what's known as the science of reading, or the body of research around how children learn to read, may have spurred some changes in the classroom.

"It's also really important to remember that the science of reading is not just phonics, but also kids' knowledge development, supporting kids' comprehension, making sure that kids become fluent readers," she said. "It's more than just phonics, but I think we can see in this report attention to this national conversation."

Dyslexia bills still not passed

Classroom instruction of all students is vital, but, for years, lawmakers and literacy experts have said there is another massive problem in reading instruction in Michigan: what experts say is a lack of screening in Michigan schools for dyslexia, a common learning disability that impacts word recognition.

It has been more than three years since lawmakers proposed legislation that would require educators to screen all students for signs of dyslexia, but the bills have died in each session. This legislative session, the Michigan Senate passed the package of bills, but the House so far has not considered the legislation.

Though the MSU report is not related to dyslexia but reading instruction on the whole, Michael Rice, Michigan's state superintendent who leads the Michigan Department of Education, wrote in a news release that the research published this week "reinforces that now is the time for the Michigan Legislature to pass K-12 literacy and dyslexia legislation."

"This legislation, once passed, would help to provide educators with the knowledge, training, and resources to teach students to read using research methods based on the science of reading," he wrote.

Contact Lily Altavena: laltavena@freepress.com.