For many years, Mississippi schools were among the worst in the nation. However, in 2024, test scores in both fourth-grade math and reading on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) increased significantly, surpassing those of California’s fourth-graders.
In math, Mississippi is now ranked 16th nationally, while California is 43rd. More stunningly, Mississippi ranks 7th in reading, whereas California is 39th.
Why did historically low-performing Mississippi advance in reading?
Per-pupil spending and teacher pay are certainly not the reasons. California is 20th in the nation in per-pupil spending, while Mississippi is 44th. The average teacher salary in California for the 2023-2024 school year was the highest in the U.S. at $101,084 per year. In contrast, Mississippi’s average educator makes just $53,704, 48th in the country.
The reason for the dramatic shift is that Mississippi passed the Literacy-Based Promotion Act, a landmark education reform law, in 2013. The law ensures that all students read at or above grade level by the end of third grade. This sweeping set of reforms includes requiring schools to focus heavily on phonics-based instruction, also known as the “Science of Reading.”
Additionally, Mississippi ended the practice of promoting third graders who couldn’t read proficiently. Instead, the state invested in specialized reading coaches rather than expanding central office bureaucracies, and demanded excellence, provided targeted support, and held students, teachers, and administrators accountable.
Notably, the success wasn’t limited to one demographic. Black students in Mississippi matched the broader gains, demonstrating that when high expectations are set for Black children, they rise to meet them.
What is California doing to support student literacy?
Not much. Currently, 81% of school districts in California don’t teach the Science of Reading, according to research by the California Reading Coalition, a literacy advocacy group. A recent bill in the California state legislature to mandate the Science of Reading stalled.
The California Teachers Association, the state’s powerful teachers’ union, opposes reading instruction mandates, arguing that teachers, not legislators, are best positioned to assess the needs of individual students and require maximum flexibility in the classroom.
California has passed a slew of politically motivated education laws, however. For example, the passage of AB 800 in 2023 requires juniors and seniors to be taught about their workplace rights, the achievements of organized labor, and students’ right to join a union.
In October 2023, Assembly Bill 873 became law, stipulating that media literacy skills must now be taught in California schools. The law requires that this be done not in a stand-alone class, but rather woven into existing English language arts, science, math, and history classes.
To continue reading, go to https://www.forkidsandcountry.org/blog/the-sandstorm-california-schools-are-a-mess
