Building the Framework: A Report on Elementary Grades Reading in Tennessee
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Title
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Building the Framework: A Report on Elementary Grades Reading in Tennessee
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Abstract/Description
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The Read to be Ready campaign emerged from the startling reality of Tennessee's reading achievement data. Only one-third of Tennessee fourth graders scored proficient in the last administration of National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) in 2015. Equally concerning, students who fell behind in the early years almost never caught up in later grades, and many who appeared to be proficient readers at the end of third grade were no longer proficient at the end of fifth grade. When instruction in elementary classrooms was tracked, a nearly exclusive focus on building students' foundational reading skills--like phonics and word recognition were seen. Little time however, was spent on equally necessary knowledge-based competencies, such as vocabulary and comprehension. What was found from observing more than 150 classrooms in 2017--is simultaneously encouraging and sobering about the degree of work that lies ahead. Structural features of classrooms are changing. High-quality texts that meet grade-level expectations are increasingly making their way into classrooms and lessons. Students are spending more time reading and more time listening to texts that have the potential to build both knowledge and foundational skills. However, this progress is not yet accompanied by deeper instructional shifts. In particular, it was found that students rarely engage in lesson sequences or classroom activities that intentionally build knowledge-based competencies. As a result, students who are meeting the expectations of classroom assignments are still not attaining the level of rigor demanded by Tennessee's academic standards. As Tennessee moves forward, it is critically important to coordinate support from all levels of the education system and focus attention on building knowledge and infrastructure in this area. Each of the vignettes described at the beginning of this report describes a snapshot from a different district participating in a Read to be Ready initiative. While individual district approaches vary, each approach combines a targeted focus on key elements of instruction, a coordinated district-wide strategy for building teacher capability to deliver quality instruction, and a shared vision for success. Case studies of this work are provided in this report both as an indication of what it will take to improve and as guidance for other districts engaging in similar efforts. Suggested next steps forward are discussed.
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[Extracted via ERIC Publication Webpage]
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Date
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February 2017
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Publisher
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Tennessee Department of Education
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IRE Approach/Concept
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Networked Improvement Community (NIC)
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Language
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en
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Citation
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Tennessee Department of Education. (2017). Building the Framework: A Report on Elementary Grades Reading in Tennessee. In Tennessee Department of Education. Tennessee Department of Education. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED590225
Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
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