full speed ahead - Arkansas Campaign for Grade-Level Reading

E D E A P S H L E L A D U F Moving the Needle on Grade-Level Reading in Arkansas

SPRING 2016 FULL SPEED AHEAD: MOVING THE NEEDLE ON GRADE-LEVEL READING IN ARKANSAS

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For more information, contact: Angela Duran, Campaign Director [email protected] Web: www.ar-glr.net Twitter: @ArkansasGLR Facebook: ARGradeLevelReading

FULL SPEED AHEAD Moving the Needle on Grade-Level Reading in Arkansas Spring 2016

INTRODUCTION

OUR GOAL IS THAT ALL ARKANSAS CHILDREN WILL READ ON GRADE LEVEL BY THE END OF THIRD GRADE.

Just 31 percent of Arkansas third graders are reading on grade level, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress.1 Closing the third grade reading proficiency gap would help Arkansas become one of the top five states among indicators of economic, family, and child well-being. Just imagine – if every Arkansas third grader could read on grade-level – our state would: • Increase educational attainment with near universal high school graduation rates; • Increase post-secondary educational attainment with more students graduating from college with certificates and degrees; • Create jobs with family-supporting wages through businesses started or expanded in response to the high-skilled workforce; and, • Grow the economy as higher family incomes lead to increased spending and state tax revenues.

Why Third Grade? Third grade is a pivotal point in a child’s cognitive development and academic learning. During this time, student learning transitions from learning to read to reading to learn, which prepares students for success throughout school. Studies show that students who do not achieve reading proficiency by third grade are less likely to graduate high school and pursue higher education and are more likely to be incarcerated or live in poverty. If we want to close achievement gaps, strengthen Arkansas schools, and better prepare our state’s future workforce, we must ensure that every Arkansas student is a proficient reader by the end of third grade.2

What is the Arkansas Campaign for Grade-Level Reading? The Arkansas Campaign for Grade-Level Reading (AR-GLR) was launched in 2011 by the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation to move the needle on education outcomes in Arkansas by focusing on third grade reading proficiency. AR-GLR is managed in partnership with Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, the Arkansas Community Foundation, and the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation. AR-GLR is part of a growing movement led 4

FULL SPEED AHEAD: MOVING THE NEEDLE ON GRADE-LEVEL READING IN ARKANSAS

by the national Campaign for Grade-Level Reading that includes over 200 communities in 42 states. AR-GLR is a collaborative effort of over 25 organizations that believe the only way we can make progress on grade-level reading is to work collectively and in partnership with families, educators, policymakers, and business leaders around the state. Key strategies of the campaign include: • Build Local Capacity – Support local models that increase third-grade reading proficiency through four key impact areas – strengthening family engagement, increasing school readiness, reducing chronic absence, and stopping summer learning loss: o Community Solutions Initiative – community-school partnerships in five communities – Eudora, Little Rock, Marvell-Elaine, Pulaski County, and Springdale. o Make Every Day Count – partnerships with four school districts – Fort Smith, Marvell-Elaine, Pulaski County, and Springdale – to measure chronic absence and design proactive strategies for keeping children in school. • Enhance Public Policy – Develop legislative and administrative policy solutions to increase third-grade reading proficiency. • Increase Public Will – Increase public awareness of the importance of grade-level reading, and move key audiences – parents, educators, business leaders, and policymakers – from awareness to action.

KEY STRATEGIES BUILD LOCAL CAPACITY ENHANCE PUBLIC POLICY INCREASE PUBLIC WILL

WHERE WE WORK

Over the past few years, AR-GLR and our collaborative partners have: 1. Reached a common understanding of the issues impacting grade-level reading; 2. Developed a shared measurement system for tracking our progress; and 3. Identified a set of strategies that bring together our collective skills and abilities. This report outlines what it will take to help children read on grade level, provides baseline measures and milestones for the campaign, and highlights some early areas of progress. Community Solutions Initiative Make Every Day Count Both initiatives


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WHAT IT TAKES TO HELP CHILDREN READ ON GRADE LEVEL Family Engagement Parents and caregivers are a child’s first teachers and most important advocates. Educators and the community can support and engage parents and other caregivers to ensure children are healthy and developing on pace. High-quality home visiting programs help caregivers apply strategies that allow children to build their vocabulary and promote early reading skills. Parents can ensure children attend school regularly, keep learning through the summer, and work with Parent Teacher Associations and other community groups to engage and empower families to advocate for all children.

School Readiness Students entering kindergarten with vital skills—vocabulary, letter recognition, number sense, social-emotional skills and others—are more likely to read proficiently by the end of third grade. But less than half of Arkansas’s kindergartners are considered ready for school. A child’s learning begins at birth and happens both at home and in early care and education settings. In fact, 85 percent of brain development happens before age three.3 Some children have limited access to books or early care programs that prepare them for success in school. Together, the Arkansas Better Chance (ABC) preschool and Head Start programs accommodate only 56 percent of eligible 3- and 4-year-olds. Quality programs for infants and toddlers are limited as well. Home visiting programs serve a fraction of eligible families.

Classroom Instruction A child spends six to seven hours a day in the classroom during the academic year. The skills a teacher brings to the classroom are based on a range of factors including teacher preparation programs, ongoing professional development, coaching and support from school administrators, and experience. Elementary teachers must have deep knowledge of learning standards as well as the skills to implement them and use assessment and teaching methods that meet the diverse needs of students. As many as one in five students have dyslexia or other learning disabilities. Children should be assessed and provided the supports they need to help them succeed in the classroom.

School Attendance Attendance is critical to academic success. When children attend school regularly in kindergarten and first grade, they are more likely to read proficiently by the end of third grade. In Arkansas, more than one in 10 kindergarteners and first graders are chronically absent. Half of all chronically absent first through third graders do not read proficiently.4 Chronic absence is defined as missing ten percent or more of the school year for any reason, excused or unexcused. In Arkansas, that means missing 18 days of school, or just two days a month.5

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Summer Learning Summer can be a time of academic enrichment for children or a time of learning loss. Unless children read or participate in quality summer programs, they risk losing two to three months of reading skills. Only 21 percent of Arkansas students currently have access to high-quality programs.6 Many students go hungry without access to meals they receive at school. Quality summer learning programs, especially those offering USDA-sponsored meals and snacks, address the needs of the whole child – physical, social, emotional, and cognitive. They also provide an opportunity for children to go in-depth on subjects, such as reading and writing.

School Resources School districts have access to a range of resources that include state formula funding, and state and federal funding for English language learners and lowincome students. Administrators make tough decisions every day about how to spend those funds, but some districts leave money unspent, and current allowable expenditures are too broad and not backed by research. As of the end of the 2014-2015 school year, districts had a balance of $17 million in the state fund designated for low-income students.7 Districts that do not spend their available funds may need help building their capacity to do so.

LESS THAN HALF OF ARKANSAS’S

KINDERGARTENERS ARE CONSIDERED READY FOR SCHOOL.

Child Health To succeed in school, children need to have their basic needs met – three healthy meals a day, a good night’s sleep, and a routine and calm atmosphere at home. A tired and hungry student will have difficulty concentrating on schoolwork. A child who has a chronic health issue such as asthma or diabetes or who lacks health or dental care may have difficulty attending school every day or focusing while they are in the classroom. Children with developmental delays may need additional supports. Children may need help with social and emotional health needs such as learning how to cope, self-regulate, and mediate conflict. Prenatal care, well-child visits, developmental screenings, breakfast and lunch programs, after-school and summer meals programs, and school-based health centers are all important ways to ensure that children are healthy and able to focus on their learning. Only 48 percent of children on ARKids A and Medicaid receive a well child check up on schedule.

Community Engagement Schools and families cannot move the needle on grade-level reading alone. All sectors of the community – businesses, nonprofits, faith-based organizations, and individuals – have a role in providing the support systems children and families need for success. Organizations and individuals throughout the community can support grade-level reading by building public awareness of the importance of literacy; advocating for more resources; volunteering in schools; and supporting early childhood, and summer and after-school programs, programs that provide access to books, and efforts to provide access to health care.


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2020 MILESTONES

To achieve our overall goal of all children reading on grade-level by the end of third grade, we have collectively established a series of milestones that we believe will set us on the right course. For each measure, we have presented a baseline number and a goal for 2020. In the case of high school graduation and ACT scores, we have set milestones for 2030, as it will take about ten years for 3rd graders in 2020 to reach their senior year in high school. KINDERGARTEN READINESS8 Measure

2012-2013

2020

Kindergarten students who are eligible for a free or reduced price lunch and are considered “developed” on the Qualls Early Learning Inventory

General Knowledge – 45% Oral Communications – 41% Written Language – 44% Math Concepts – 50% Work Habits – 45% Attentive Behavior – 40%

Arkansas is selecting a new Kindergarten Entry Screener. AR-GLR will set a kindergarten readiness goal once this new tool is in place.

THIRD GRADE READING9 Measure

2015

2020

4th graders reading on grade-level according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress

31% of students

Arkansas ranks in the top 35 states

Arkansas ranks 38 out of 52 states CHRONIC ABSENCE10

Measure

2011-2012

2020

Kindergarten students missing 10 percent or more of the school year

13% of students

5% of students

HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION11 Measure

2013-2014

2030

High school graduation rate

87%

Arkansas ranks in the top 10

Arkansas ranks 20 out of 51 states ACT SCORES12 Measure

2014-2015

2030

Average ACT composite score

20.4

Arkansas ranks in the top half of states

Arkansas ranks 36 out of 51 states

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DEVELOPMENTAL SCREENINGS Measure

2013

2020

Children on ARKids A and Medicaid receiving a well-child exam

48%

75%

PRE-K FUNDING Measure

2011

2020

Annual funding for the Arkansas Better Chance pre-K program

$111 million

$153.5 million

QUALITY CHILD CARE Measure

2014-2015

2020

Number of child care slots having a Tier 3 Better Beginnings rating

Infants and Toddlers – 6,102

Infants and Toddlers – 8,000

3 and 4 year olds – 35,046

3 and 4 year olds – 40,000

HOME VISITING Measure

2014

2020

Enrollment in home visiting programs

Arkansas Home Visiting Network – 2,209

Arkansas Home Visiting Network 3,275

Nurse Family Partnership - 150

Nurse Family Partnership - 275

SUMMER MEALS Measure

2014

2020

Number of USDA summer feeding programs and number of meals served

Number of programs - 1,010

Number of programs - 1,050

Meals served - 4.3 million

Meals served - 4.7 million

ACCESS TO BOOKS Measure

2014/2015

2020

Children receiving books through Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library and Reach Out and Read

Imagination Library (2014) – 10,000 per month

Imagination Library – 110,000 per month

Reach Out and Read (2015) – 60,000

Reach Out and Read – 100,000


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EARLY EXAMPLES OF PROGRESS

Building Literacy in Marvell and Elaine Located in Phillips County in eastern Arkansas, Marvell and Elaine are rural communities with 98 percent of students eligible for free or reduced price lunch. After six years on the state’s Needs Improvement list, Marvell-Elaine Elementary School became an A designated school. Their solution? Literacy. Children spend time reading and writing in classes, from math to music. The percentage of third graders reading proficiently increased from 53 percent in 2010-2011 to 66 percent in 2013-2014. Students expect school leadership to be actively involved with them, greeting them, singing with them, and asking them, “What are you reading today?” Administrators, teachers, and interventionists work together to ensure students receive the support needed to improve their performance. With funding and support from the 21st Century Community Learning Center program, the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF), and the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, Marvell-Elaine Elementary School provides a safe and enriching space for students throughout the year. Students participate in summer, after-school, and before-school programming. Fun and engaging activities help students retain and expand on their academic learning. The summer learning program is built on CDF’s Freedom School, where children learn to love reading while improving their literacy skills, connecting to their culture, developing self-discipline, and participating in community service and social action.13

FUN AND ENGAGING ACTIVITIES HELP

STUDENTS RETAIN AND EXPAND ON THEIR

ACADEMIC LEARNING.

Improving Pre-k Quality Statewide The Arkansas Better Chance (ABC) program provides early care and education for 24,000 mostly three- and four-year old children from lowincome families. Increases in both federal and state funding have expanded resources to target districts where at least 75 percent of children have literacy and math scores below proficient levels. Recognizing the importance of increased access to quality early childhood education, the U.S. Department of Education awarded almost $1 billion through the Preschool Development Grant in 2015 to high need communities in 18 states. Arkansas was awarded $60 million to improve and expand pre-k quality by building local capacity and providing resources for strengthening curriculum. The funding, distributed by the Arkansas Department of Human Services, Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education, added 1,371 new pre-kindergarten slots and improved services for roughly 1,500 children.

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In addition to new federal funding, state legislators increased funding for ABC by $3 million during the 2015 legislative session; this is the first state funding increase in eight years. These efforts help move Arkansas toward the increase in state funding that is necessary to support high-quality pre-k in the state.14

Increasing Access to Quality Early Childhood Education for Infants and Toddlers Not only did the federal government increase resources for pre-K in 2015, they also acknowledged the extreme shortage of quality infant and toddler programs by investing $500 million for new Early Head Start-Child Care Partnerships. These grants support new or existing Early Head Start programs to partner with local child care centers and family child care providers to provide quality care for infants and toddlers from low-income families. Three programs in Arkansas are receiving a total of $7.6 million over three years. One of those programs is Community Services, Inc., a Head Start provider in Garland County. Through partnerships with child care centers in Hot Springs, North Little Rock, and Pearcy, Community Services is able to offer quality care to an additional 200 infants and toddlers. The funding is being used to make quality improvements such as hiring additional professional administrative staff and providing new training and education opportunities for classroom teachers to earn higher qualifications. Because the partnerships are based on the Early Head Start model, resources are also provided to help parents develop and implement plans for their own education and career advancement.15

Using a Tiered Approach in Jonesboro Principal Misty Dole of MicroSociety Magnet School in Jonesboro leads her faculty in using the Response to Intervention (RtI) model. According to Ms. Dole, RtI is a way to identify gaps in student learning and help them advance through data-driven discussions. A team of teachers consider the progress of each child, and develop creative interventions and strategies to help that child advance. To be effective, the strategies must be timely, consistent, documented, and progress must be monitored. Jonesboro has learned that schools must be flexible, resourceful, and creative with available resources to develop innovative solutions. RtI has helped create a culture of care and positivity around every child. District-wide, the percentage of third graders reading on grade level has increased from 60 percent during the 2009-2010 school year to 72 percent in 2013-2014. Jonesboro School District has seen incredible outcomes through the strategic application of Rtl to all students, no matter their level, especially those in need or behind.16


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Leading the Way on Dyslexia for Arkansas’s Students One person out of five is affected by the language-based disorder dyslexia, which can impact a student’s ability to develop literacy skills by creating barriers to learning, understanding, and processing both oral and written language. Over the past few years, parents with The Dsylexia Project have led a statewide movement to ensure that all students receive proper screening and interventions for dyslexia. A new law passed in 2013 mandates that all school districts screen kindergarten through second-grade students and any older students exhibiting clear dyslexia markers. Under the new law, schools are also responsible for providing appropriate intervention for each child. In Flippin, school leaders did not wait for the law’s passage to take action. In 2012, the school district began providing dyslexia screenings and in-school and summer learning interventions for elementary school students. Flippin has found that addressing dyslexia has impacted almost every aspect of their school. Reading levels, attendance, student confidence, and relationships with both students and their parents have all improved. Flippin has become a model and continues to share expertise with other districts around Arkansas.17

IN ARKANSAS, MORE THAN ONE IN 10

KINDERGARTENERS AND FIRST GRADERS ARE

CHRONICALLY ABSENT.

Making Every Day Count at Parson Hills Elementary During the 2012-2013 school year, 15 percent of students at Springdale’s Parson Hills Elementary missed a month or more of school, with 79 percent of students designated as English Language Learners. Over half of students are Latino, and almost a third are Marshallese. Unfortunately, the effects of chronic absence may be especially damaging to students who are both learning English and trying to keep up academically. Principal Heather Cooper and her team developed a set of strategies to ensure her students are in class every day and ready to learn. Counselor Eddie Nava paired children who had been chronically absent the previous school year with Attendance Buddies, who are teachers and staff that volunteer to check in regularly with a student, see how they are doing, and encourage them to come to school everyday. Ms. Cooper and Mr. Nava also set up a system for proactive outreach to parents when a child misses school. Teachers make the first contact after just one absence. If a student misses several days, the counselor and then the principal reach out to the family. At all levels, staff is working with families to identify and address the challenges to attending school, in a positive, family-friendly way. These new strategies are making a big difference. By the 2014-2015 school year, Parson Hills’ chronic absence rate dropped to just five percent.18

For more examples of progress, go to www.ar-glr.net/solutions/bright-spots.

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CALL TO ACTION

We are committed to the goal that all Arkansas children will read on grade-level by the end of third grade. We realize achieving this ambitious goal will require families, teachers, business leaders, and policymakers to come together, sharing our determination to serve as ambassadors, advocates, and activists for our state’s children. Data tells us that 69 percent of the young people in Arkansas will need additional support if we are going to reach that goal. Communities around the state – Flippin, Jonesboro, and Marvell are just a few examples – have shown that making huge strides toward this goal in a short time is possible. To achieve our shared goal, we must engage families, invest in high-quality early childhood education, make sure children are in school every day, and provide quality summer learning programs. Everyone has a role to play.

Families • Talk, read, and sing to your children from birth, building on what we know about early brain development and helping them develop strong vocabularies • Bring more books into your home by enrolling your children in Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library • Make sure children are in school every day, except when they are sick, even in pre-k and kindergarten, when the foundations of reading are being taught • Access free and affordable resources such as public library summer reading programs to keep children reading over the summer Business Leaders • Support employees’ involvement in their children’s education, including time off to attend parent teacher conferences • Expand programs like Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library and Reach Out and Read that provide books for families to read at home

Educators • Create welcoming environments where parents see staff that look like them and speak their language • Provide increased professional development opportunities for educators on how to teach reading, raising the quality of instruction for all children • Continue the focus on Response to Intervention, which helps schools identify and provide help to students who need additional support • Use attendance data to identify children who are at risk of being chronically absent and develop proactive strategies for keeping them in school • Partner and pool resources with nonprofits to provide summer learning programs Policymakers • Support increased investment to raise the quality of existing pre-k programs and make them accessible to more children • Keep a focus on high standards of education for all children • Provide financial resources for summer learning programs

Take the pledge! Visit www.ar-glr.net to learn how you can do your part for the Arkansas Campaign for Grade-Level Reading.


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ENDNOTES

1 National Center for Education Statistics, “The Nation’s Report Card,” 2015, http://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ reading_math_2015/#reading/state/acl?grade=4. 2 Donald Hernandez, “Double Jeopardy: How Third-Grade Reading Skills and Poverty Influence High School Graduation”, The Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2012, http://www.aecf.org/resources/double-jeopardy/. 3 “Rethinking the Brain: New Insights into Brain Development.” Shore, R. (1997). New York: Families and Work Institute. 4 Arkansas Advocates for Children and Family analysis of Arkansas school attendance data, accessed from the AR Research Center. 5 Attendance Works, “What is Chronic Absence?”, http://www.attendanceworks.org/wordpress/wp-content/ uploads/2011/06/What-is-Chronic-Absence.pdf. 6 Afterschool Alliance, “America After 3PM.” June 2015. http://afterschoolalliance.org/AA3PM/detail.html#s/AR/ summer/p_of_children_in_programs_2014. 7 Analysis of Arkansas Department of Education expenditure data for NSLA funds for the 2014-2015 school year. 8 AR-GLR analysis of Qualls data accessed from the Arkansas Research Center. 9 National Center for Education Statistics, “National Assessment of Educational Progress State Profiles: Arkansas”, 2015, http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/states/. http://www.nationsreportcard.gov/reading_math_2015/#reading/state/acl?grade=4 10 Arkansas Advocates for Children and Family analysis of Arkansas school attendance data, accessed from the AR Research Center. 11 Arkansas Department of Education Arkansas School Performance Cards, State of Arkansas Report 2013-2014, 2014, https://adesrc.arkansas.gov/ReportCard/View?lea=AR&schoolYear=2014.

https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/tables/ACGR_2010-11_to_2012-13.asp

12 ACT, “The Condition of College and Career Readiness 2015,” 2015, https://www.act.org/newsroom/data/2015/states. html. 13 Melissa Brawner, “A Marvell-ous Improvement”, Arkansas School Boards Association, September 2015, http://arsba. org/wp-content/uploads/September-2015-Report-Card-for-web-lr.pdf. 14 Forward Arkansas, Forward: A New Vision for Arkansas Education, August 2015, http://www.forwardarkansas.org/ vision-2015/.

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Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, Kids At The Capitol 2015: How Kids Fared At The Legislature, May 2015, http://www.aradvocates.org/wp-content/uploads/Kids-at-the-Capitol-2015.pdf.

Rich Huddleston, AACF statement on increase in pre-K funding, Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, April 2015, http://www.aradvocates.org/aacf-statement-on-increase-in-pre-k-funding/.

Arkansas News Bureau, “Arkansas Awarded $60 Million Grant to Expand Pre-K Program”, December 2014, http://arkansasnews.com/news/arkansas/arkansas-awarded-60-million-grant-expand-pre-k-program.

State of Arkansas 90th General Assembly Regular Session, Senate Bill 712, March 2015, ftp://www.arkleg.state. ar.us/acts/2015/Public/ACT807.pdf.

15 Interview with Community Services, Inc. Early Head Start Director, December 2015.

Office of Early Childhood Development Administration for Children and Families, “Early Head Start-Child Care Partnership and Early Head Start Expansion Awards”, 2015, U.S Department of Health and Human Services, http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ecd/early-learning/ehs-cc-partnerships/grant-awardees.

Office of Early Childhood Development Administration for Children and Families, “Early Head Start - Child Care Partnerships”, 2015, U.S Department of Health and Human Services, http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ecd/ early-learning/ehs-cc-partnerships.

16 Interview with Superintendent of Jonesboro School District, October 2015.

RTI Action Network, “What is RTI?”, http://www.rtinetwork.org/learn/what/whatisrti.

Arkansas Department of Education Arkansas School Performance Cards, Jonesboro School District Report 20132014, 2014, https://adesrc.arkansas.gov/ReportCard/View?lea=1608000&schoolYear=2014.

17 Interview with Flippin Elementary School Principal, October 2015.

The Dyslexia Project, “Arkansas Act 1294- Outlined”, http://www.thedyslexiaproject.com/#!arkansas-act-1294outlined/c17ou.

“Flippin Schools Implement Dyslexia Intervention”, The Baxter Bulletin, September 2014, http://www. baxterbulletin.com/story/news/local/2014/09/22/dyslexia-intervention-flippin/16077905/.

18 AACF analysis of Arkansas school attendance data, accessed from the Arkansas Research Center.

Parson Hills School Report Cards, https://adesrc.arkansas.gov/.

Analysis of attendance data by Parson Hills Elementary.


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AR-GLR PARTNERS

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Student Focused

Leadership


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OUR GOAL IS THAT ALL

ARKANSAS CHILDREN WILL

READ ON GRADE LEVEL BY THE END OF THIRD GRADE.

For more information, contact: Angela Duran, Campaign Director [email protected] Web: www.ar-glr.net Twitter: @ArkansasGLR Facebook: ARGradeLevelReading