The Problem
Too many Missouri students are struggling to read at all grade levels.
The Solution
Adopt evidence-based early literacy policies that have a proven track record in other states.
Key Facts
- On the 2024 National Assessment of Education Progress, 42% of Missouri fourth-graders scored “below basic” in reading, up from 30% in 2015.
- Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) scores have not returned to prepandemic levels.
A Key Study on Early Literacy
John Westall and Amy Cummings at Michigan State University released a comprehensive national analysis of state early literacy policies in 2023 in which they identified 16 policies that consistently showed evidence of improving literacy. States with all 16 saw significant and sustained increases in reading scores, indicating a path forward for Missouri.
Third-Grade Retention for Struggling Readers
Westall and Cummings found no evidence that reading scores increase without a retention policy to hold back struggling readers.
Missouri technically has a form of third-grade retention on the books, but it is not based on objective academic benchmarks, and it is rarely used.
In the fourth grade, reading instruction shifts from learning to read to reading to learn. Students who cannot read effectively struggle to keep up. While retention is a difficult experience, it is less so when the retention occurs early, and research shows that retained students do benefit. Ideally, prospective fourth-grade students would take a state literacy assessment for reading. Those who do not meet the established reading benchmark would receive summer remediation and another chance to pass the test.
Good-cause exceptions could be made for some students. In other states, these include students with some types of disabilities, English language learners, and previously retained students.
Elimination of the Three-Cueing Method
Three-cueing is an approach to teaching reading that relies on text (the letters on the page) as little as possible and instead uses language cues.
However, reading is not an intuitive skill—rather, it is a technique to be learned. Research shows that skilled readers learn to read each letter rapidly and fluently as they connect the letters’ sounds with their oral vocabulary (phonics instruction). Three-cueing relies more on how the “whole word” looks, along with other context, like pictures. Fluency and decoding, rather than guessing and memorization, should define reading instruction.
Last year, Senate Bill 68 came close to banning three-cueing instruction. It needs to be fully eliminated in classrooms.
Align Teacher Preparation Programs
The National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) released a report on how well teacher preparation programs across the country teach the science of reading. Half of Missouri’s participating universities received an “F.”
Indiana requires programs that certify teachers to include science-of-reading content and prohibit three-cueing. Missouri should follow suit.
Policy Recommendations
- Establish a mandatory third-grade retention program based on objective academic benchmarks with multiple opportunities and good-cause exceptions.
- Fully eliminate the three-cueing method.
- Ensure that Missouri’s teacher preparation programs train prospective teachers in the science of reading.
