In recent years, several southern states have implemented a return to traditional teaching methods in response to declining student performance in literacy and math. States like Mississippi and Louisiana have adopted strategies focusing on basic skills such as phonics instruction, which has led to measurable improvements in reading proficiency among students.
According to the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as the Nation’s Report Card, many states are facing challenges with literacy rates among grade school students. In California, only 30% of public school fourth graders are reading at a proficient level, while 41% cannot read at a basic level. This trend is less pronounced in some southern states.
Kelsey Piper wrote on Substack’s ‘The Argument’ about these trends:
“In my home state of California, for instance, only 30% of public school fourth graders can read proficiently. Fully 41% cannot even read at a basic level — which is to say, they cannot really understand and interpret written text at all. Eighth graders, as you might expect, look almost as bad…
But scores are not slipping everywhere. In Mississippi, they have been rising year over year. The state recovered from a brief decline during COVID and has now surpassed its pre-COVID highs. Its fourth grade students outperform California’s on average, even though our state is richer, more educated, and spends about 50% more per pupil.
The difference is most pronounced if you look at the most disadvantaged students. In California, only 28% of Black fourth graders read at or above basic level, for instance, compared to 52% in Mississippi. But it’s not just that Mississippi has raised the floor. It has also raised the ceiling: The state is also one of the nation’s best performers when you look at students who are not “economically disadvantaged.”…
First, it’s not just Mississippi — Louisiana, Alabama, and Tennessee have adopted the same strategies, stemmed the bleeding affecting states elsewhere, and seen significant improvements…”
Piper added that implementing changes required “earmarked funding, guidance to districts, and outright mandates to accomplish universal adoption.”
The shift away from social issues towards foundational academic skills appears linked with improved outcomes for students in these states.
“Every school in America needs to return to the basics. It is an absolute crime for a young person to go through years of schooling only to emerge unable to read,” Piper wrote.
Southern states continue their focus on traditional education practices as other regions consider similar approaches amid ongoing concerns about student achievement levels.
