Literacy Statistics from BookSpring.org—What the Research Says

Friends, 

What is often confused as an issue of kids not having sufficient vocabulary is really a literacy issue that tracks back to them not having books that they own in their homes, reading aloud practices, getting read to earlier, having access to libraries and reading opportunities, as well as characters in fiction or in real life who reflect them.

I love how country singer, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library initiative that she founded in 1995 addresses these exact disparities of children having access to books. Specifically, it is a "book gifting program that mails free, high-quality books to children from birth to age five, no matter their family’s income." 

Thanks, Dolly. Such beautiful, empowering work and philanthropy.

To this, I would add that emergent bilingual students—otherwise referred to as, "English language learners"—are the ones often deemed as either not having sufficient vocabulary or being able to read. Well, such children do have sufficient vocabulary in their own home language such that what they need is well-staffed, well-designed bilingual education classrooms and programs with print-rich, culturally relevant curriculum and instruction in English and Spanish—or the child's other home language—that motivate them to become great readers. 

Expressed differently, what we need is Ethnic Studies in early childhood education which is exactly what we do at our Academia Cuauhtli Saturday school here in Austin, Texas.

One of our district's bilingual educator leaders who is also pursuing a doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction at UT, Patricia Nuñez adds in a recent Tweet that students are always ready for content instruction. It's not like you have to teach them English first before they can get enriching content. This kind of deficit thinking is so wrong-headed and injurious.

On the subject of racial equity with children and youth, do check out another another great 2020 resource by Paula Johnson at IDRA that I've posted to this blog titled, "Early Childhood Resources that explore Race Equity with Young Learners from Paula Johnson at IDRA."

I have told my grandchildren since birth, "readers are leaders," something I believe to be generally true. It at least encourages them. And they both LOVE to read. 

Sí se Puede!

-Angela Valenzuela

#ReadersAreLeaders

@dollyslibrary

 Literacy Statistics from BookSpring.org

• BookSpring’s Programs are Grounded in Theory and Research

A wealth of research provides descriptions of widespread reading failure, as well as promising evidence for the effectiveness of programs like those of of BookSpring, including books-for-ownership programs; reading aloud practices; anticipatory guidance from doctors; parent engagement outreach; and family enrichment events that motivate young children to become readers and learners for life.  Below are some selected references from credible sources with summaries of their research findings.  BookSpring has also developed a theory of change based on research and practice.  We aim to align all our programs and services around this basic model. Also check our Central Texas Reading Survey for recent localized data on reading behaviors, attitudes, and number of books in the home.  The good news is we have the knowledge and tools to fix this problem; we need your help of time and resources to reach the children in most need of assistance in the early years, when interventions can make the most difference.

The Problems of Low Literacy:

• Latino representation in new children’s books has increased — to 6% in 2020 — but still falls well short of matching the proportion of Latino kids living in the United States, which is 26%. The Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count Data Center (2020). 
• Nationally, only 35% of public school students were at or above Proficient in grade 4 reading. In Texas, it’s only 25%. National Assessment of Educational Progress. (2017).  U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC.
• Across the nation only 47.8% of children between birth and five years are read to every day by their parents or other family members. Russ S, Perez V, Garro N, Klass P, Kuo AA, Gershun M, Halfon N, & Zuckerman B. (2007). Reading across thenation: A chartbook. Reach Out and Read National Center, Boston, MA.
• 37% of children arrive at kindergarten without the skills necessary for lifetime learning. Landry, S. H. (2005). Effective early childhood programs: Turning knowledge into action. Houston, TX: University of Texas, Health Science Center at Houston.
• Children from economically disadvantaged homes may know only one or two letters of the alphabet when entering kindergarten, while children in the middle class will know all 26. Lee, V. E. & Burkam, D. T. (2002). Inequality at the starting gate: Social background differences in achievement as children begin school. Economic Policy Institute, Washington, DC.
• 50% of youth with a history of substance abuse have reading problems. Bock, R. (1998). Why Children Succeed or Fail at Reading. Research from NICHD’s Program in Learning Disabilities. U.S. Department of Education, NCES, Washington, DC.
• 50% of children from low-income communities start first grade up to two years behind their peers. Brizius, J. A., & Foster S. A. (1993). Generation to generation: Realizing the promise of family literacy. High/Scope Press.

The Solutions of Early Literacy Interventions:

• Book giveaway programs promote children’s home literacy environment which results in more interest in reading and higher reading scores during early education. de Bondt, M., Willenberg, I. A., & Bus, A. G. (2020). Do book giveaway programs promote the home literacy environment and children’s literacy-related behavior and skills? Review of Educational Research, 90(3), 349-375.
• Higher reading exposure was 95% positively correlated with a “hub” region supporting semantic language processing in the brain, controlling for household income. Hutton, J. S., Horowitz-Kraus, T., Mendelsohn, A. L., DeWitt, T., & Holland, S. K. (2015). Home reading environment and brain activation in preschool children listening to stories. Pediatrics, 136(3), 466-478.
• Motivation to read can be both intrinsic and extrinsic, and the strength of interest in (or love of) reading can be measured from low to high.  More intrinsic motivation to read is positively correlated with more interest in reading in children. Katranci, M. (2015). Book reading motivation scale: Reliability and validity study. Educational Research and Reviews, 10(3), 300.
• Children growing up in homes with at least 20 books get 3 more years of schooling than children from bookless homes, independent of their parents’ education, occupation, and class. Evans, M. D., Kelley, J., Sikora, J., & Treiman, D. J. (2010). Family scholarly culture and educational success: Books and schooling in 27 nations. Research in Social Stratification and Mobility, 28(2), 171-197.
• By the age of 2, children who are read to regularly display greater language comprehension, larger vocabularies, and higher cognitive skills than their peers. Raikes, H., Pan, B.A., Luze, G.J., Tamis-LeMonda, C.S.,Brooks-Gunn, J., Constantine, J., Tarullo, L.B., Raikes, H.A., & Rodriguez, E. (2006). Mother-child bookreading in low-income families: Correlates and outcomes during the first three years of life. Child Development, 77(4).
• Creating a steady stream of new, age-appropriate books has been shown to nearly triple interest in reading within months. Harris, L. (2003). An assessment of the impact of First Book’s northeast program.
• Children who were read to at least three times a week by a family member were almost twice as likely to score in the top 25% in reading compared to children who were read to less than 3 times a week. Denton, K. & West, G.  (2002).  Children’s reading and mathematics achievement in kindergarten and first grade. U.S. Department of Education, NCES, Washington, DC.
• Findings show higher-than-average scores among students who reported more types of reading material at home. Donahue, P. L., A. D. Finnegan, & N. L. Lutkus. (2001).  The Nation’s report card: Fourth grade reading 2001.  U.S. Department of Education, NCES, Washington, DC.
• The most successful way to improve the reading achievement of low-income children is to increase their access to print. Newman, S., Brazelton, T. B., Zigler, E., Sherman, L. W., Bratton, W., Sanders, J., & Christeson, W. (2000). America’s Child Care Crisis: A Crime Prevention Tragedy.  U.S. Department of Education, ERIC, Washington, DC.

IDRA Testimony before the SBOE on Texas' Censorship, Cancel Culture, "Anti-CRT" Bills, by Dr. Chloe Sikes

Learn here from research conducted at the Intercultural Development Research Association (IDRA) by Dr. Chloe Sikes and her colleagues about the broader impacts of Texas' "anti-CRT" bills, House Bill 3979 and Senate Bill 3, as well as on ensuing book bans. Critical Race Theory, as we know, isn't actually taught in schools, so it's Ethnic Studies, as well as Women and Gender Studies and anything critical, that are the targets of this legislation.

HB 3979 and SB 3 have created a chilling effect, contributing, along with other factors like low teacher salaries and poor working conditions, to exacerbate Texas' epoch-making teacher shortage that lay the groundwork for vouchers and other privatization schemes that are sure to rear their ugly heads in the coming legislative session beginning in January, 2023.

Though predictable, it's sad to read about their impacts on educators’ and students' morale and sense of safety and security. Geez what kind of country are we living in when police interrogate educators on the books that they're reading? 

Plus, how ironic this censorship agenda for a party that decries "cancel  culture!"

As I've been calling out on this blog, this is the rolling out of the fascist, white supremacist, neoliberal state that seeks to disempower our predominantly minority K-12 student population. 

According to 2020-21 state-level data, Hispanic students are the largest group at 52.9% and African American students at 12.7%, such that our schools are overwhelmingly comprised of students of color (65.6 %). The White student population follows at 26.5%, with Asian and multiracial students accounting for the remainder at 4.7% and 2.7%, respectively (Texas Education Agency, 2021).

In this demographic context, it's logical to conclude that HB 3979 and SB 3 are the "racial codes," or Jim Crow laws of today. These are intentionally designed to limit what our minoritized student population can accomplish lest they become empowered and argue for their rights—which is exactly what they should be doing. 

These actions are clearly a reaction to the successes we have had in Ethnic Studies policy that in some instances, have resulted in the cancellation of such courses in schools throughout the state.

Let's vote this administration out of power and let's work toward repealing these bills in the next Texas legislative session. Let's also protect Academic Freedom in higher education, the next battle ground for this kind of cancel culture policy.

Great work, Dr. Sikes and IDRA! Andan asustados. They're scared. We're going to win this. After all, in so many ways, we already have.

Sí se puede! Yes we can!

-Angela Valenzuela

Recent State Policy on Curriculum Leads to Classroom Censorship in Schools 

IDRA Testimony on Interim Charge to Monitor State Policy on Curriculum and Instructional Materials Used in Public Schools, Re: HB 3979 (87R) and SB 3 (87, 2) 

Submitted to the Texas House Public Education Committee, July 26, 2022 

For questions or more information, please contact Chloe Latham Sikes, Ph.D.

IDRA Deputy Director of Policy, at chloe.sikes@idra.org. 

IDRA is an independent, non-partisan education non-profit committed to achieving equal educational opportunity for every child through strong public schools that prepare all students to access and succeed in college. We submit this testimony for your consideration on the implementation to date of HB 3979 (87R) and SB 3 (87, 2), otherwise known as Texas’ classroom censorship policies, and their negative impacts on Texas students, educators and schools. Although SB 3 largely replaced HB 3979, they collectively impacted the last school year as documented by this interim testimony. 

Whitewashing the Truth in Schools - An Update on Texas’ HB 3979 - IDRA Webinar

As Part I of IDRA's policy series, listen here to Ana Ramon, head of the Texas Legislative Education Equity Coalition (TLEEC), speak in detail about how the anti-, anti-racist bill, House Bill 3979 passed during the last, regular legislative session (note: the bill doesn't actually say "Critical Race Theory," but the intent is clear).

Accompanied by well-spoken San Antonio student leader, Alejo Peña Soto, who reflects on the potential impacts of this legislation for students, Ana Ramon recounts the unprecedented maneuvering it took to get this bill passed into law. 

It's clear that had the republicans followed time-honored, conventional procedures, this bill would not have become law. In fact, according to these very same procedures, it was presumed dead for a few hours.  Instead, republicans were sly and underhanded in resurrecting it after it had ostensibly died—which is not the deliberative legislative process that we collectively extol in representative democracy.

This deviousness is captured well in a June 24, 2021 interview on anti-Critical Race Theory bills making their way across the country by MSNBC's  Chris Hayes of University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Sociology Professor Tressie McMillan Cottom. Cottom nails it when she says (paraphrasing) that republicans do have a real concern, it's just not one grounded in reality, adding that they are "intellectually impotent" where cheating is their only resort since their own case against CRT can't stand on its merits.

So true. We as a public still have not gotten the evidence that CRT is getting taught in our K-12 schools. All we're getting is a campaign of misinformation, fraught with false, intentionally misleading, state-level propaganda. 

Fascists states do such things, not democracies.

The fact that this anti-CRT agenda is getting prioritized alongside legalizing Texas' voter suppression bill—that led to the walkout by democrats in the last day of the session—speaks to the larger agenda of disenfranchising our youth and communities.

As voiced by General Mark A. Milley in his cogent testimony last week before
Congress, CRT should be addressed front and center in the U.S. military, adding that all should be open-minded and widely-read. He said that he's white and would like to understand better the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol. He welcomes CRT.

Were only our state republicans so open-minded and widely read. They, in fact, demonstrate exactly why CRT should get taught in our nation's schools, particularly at the secondary level, I might add, since it is a framework that is taught mostly at the college level—and even there, only in some areas of the academy such as in our nation's law schools, humanities, social work, and education, etc., and then again, only with select faculty within such colleges and departments. 

These things said, CRT is at least 40 years old. It is a legitimate, mainstream framework in the academy among other legitimate, mainstream frameworks that we teach.

Do stay tuned for more, as we go soon into the special legislative session. 

-Angela Valenzuela

@TxTLEEC @IDRAedu

Testimony for the Texas Top Ten Percent Plan & Against SB 1091 by Dr. Altheria Caldera & Luis Figueroa

Listen to these gems of testimonies delivered before the Texas Senate Higher Education Committee on April 28, 202 this past legislative session. The session is always such a rush that I'm finally posting this.

These are two public testimonies against Senate Bill 1091 that sought to drastically limit the Top Ten Percent Admissions of graduating high school students into our state's higher education system, a policy that in its present form, is critical to rural students, as well as students of color to gain college access. 

In the first video, you can listen to a passionate and resolute Dr. Altheria Caldera, a Policy Fellow at the Intercultural Development Institute (IDRA) and mentee of mine who provides clear reasons and data that point to a need to maintain Texas' Top Ten Percent Plan in higher education admission.  Next, treat yourself to historically accurate and incisive testimony by Luis Figueroa, J.D., Legislative and Policy Director at Every Texan. These were among the more powerful testimonies that contributed to the bill's demise. 

Hats off to Dr. Caldera, as well, for recently securing a tenure-track position at Howard University in Washington, D.C. We'll miss you here in Texas, but know that there's good and important work to get done there, as well. 

I post this as it's important for us to maintain this historical memory on the ongoing struggle over higher education admissions in the state of Texas. I myself and many others were involved in this at an earlier time. It's cool to see how the baton gets passed from one generation to the next over time.

Altheria and Luis, thanks for advancing the cause for equity in college admission in the state of Texas.

 

Y'all make us proud! 

-Angela Valenzuela

An Analysis of How the Department of Education’s Equitable Services Rule Will Harm Texas Students and School Districts

Funding private schools with our public taxes is a problem, blurring the lines between public and private. In this case, it's even worse, limiting not only monies to Title I schools that enroll low-income students, but also schools' capacity to hire nurses, protective equipment, Chrome books, and so on. 

Scroll down to see how, according to IDRA's Morgan Craven and Roy L. Johnson's analysis, districts will be directly impacted. To this end, I am pleased to learn that the Southern Poverty Law Center, on behalf of the NAACP, has a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education that you can read about here.

-Angela Valenzuela

#SupportPublicEducation

An Analysis Of How The Department Of Education’s Equitable Services Rule Will Harm Texas Students And School Districts

 

• By Morgan Craven, J.D., & Roy L. Johnson, M.A. • IDRA Issue Brief • July 16, 2020 •

See PDF versionSan Antonio • July 17, 2020 – New analysis by IDRA shows that 185 Texas public school districts may have to give up a total of over $44.2 million of their federal CARES Act relief funds to private schools within their district boundaries under a new rule from the U.S. Department of Education. The rule increases the funding districts would usually reserve for private schools by more than $38.7 million.

Federal law requires school districts to reserve federal funds for private schools for “equitable services,” like tutoring and counseling programs, based on the population of private school students living within their districts who come from low-income families. The same applies for CARES Act funds as long as districts only use those funds for their Title I schools.

But the Department’s new rule stipulates that if a school district spends even one dollar of its CARES Act relief funds for a non-Title I school, it must give away a much higher amount to its nearby private schools. The amount must be calculated based on the total population of private school students in the district, regardless of family income.

This means that to have access to the full allotment of relief funds, schools cannot spend those COVID-19 relief funds on protective equipment, cleaning supplies, instructional materials, or any district-wide measures to benefit students in non-Title I schools, including students from families with limited incomes who do not attend Title I schools.

“The Trump Administration’s decision to divert critical COVID-19 relief funds from public schools and the students they serve toward private schools is both tragic and unsurprising,” said Morgan Craven, J.D., IDRA’s National Director of Policy, Advocacy and Community Engagement. “The Department’s interpretation of the CARES Act is completely inconsistent with the letter and spirit of the law and harms students of color, students with disabilities, English learners, students from families with limited incomes and others who most need the funds.”

“The Department of Education’s new rule is truly a double standard. It penalizes districts that spend relief funds to serve students in non-Title I schools by forcing them to give money to private schools serving students of all family incomes,” she added.

Key findings of the analysis show the following:

• Under previous requirements, the Texas school districts studied would have to reserve less than 1% of CARES Act funds, or about $5.4 million, for private schools in their districts.
• The Department of Education’s new rule for CARES Act funds requires some public school districts to reserve critical public relief funds for private schools based on the total population of private school students, regardless of financial need. Under this rule, the school districts studied would have to set aside more than a combined total of $44.2 million for private schools in their districts.
• For CARES Act relief funds, the difference between what the school districts would be required to give to private schools under the normal equitable services calculation and what they may be required to give with the Department of Education’s new calculation is $38.7 million.
• An additional $38.7 million could pay for 571 school counselors, 678 nurses, more than 51 million protective masks for students, or more than 167,000 Chromebooks.
• Charter schools do not have to give away any of their CARES Act funding to private schools.

IDRA’s issue brief, Cutting Public School Relief Funds to Subsidize Private Schools, provides a list of the 185 districts and how much each will lose to private schools in its boundaries if the district has to reserve funds based on total private school population (see Appendix B). The districts at the top of the list are:

Houston ISD = $8,609,051
Dallas ISD = $6,856,217
Fort Worth ISD = $2,336,431
San Antonio ISD = $1,951,001
Austin ISD = $1,913,480
Spring Branch ISD = $1,590,259
El Paso ISD = $1,463,783
North East ISD = $1,116,580
Corpus Christi ISD = $684,164
Brownsville ISD = $674,623
Richardson ISD = $578,250

Even though the new Department of Education rule claims to give school districts a choice for how to calculate reserved funds for private schools, it may be a false choice for many Texas school districts. For example, the Texas Education Agency announced that certain CARES Act funds allocated to school districts must be used to replace the average daily attendance (ADA) state funding that was not provided to districts during COVID-19 school closures. Under the Department of Education’s new rule, if a school district uses CARES Act funds to replace lost state funding in any non-Title I schools they would be required to give more money for private schools in their district.

The Department of Education is accepting public comments on its rule, although the rule is currently in effect. Comments can be submitted online on or before July 31, 2020.

---

Media contact: Christie L. Goodman, APR, IDRA Director of Communications, christie.goodman@idra.org

Early Childhood Resources that explore Race Equity with Young Learners from Paula Johnson at IDRA

Many thanks to Paula Johnson, Senior Education Associate at the Intercultural Development Research Association for Early Childhood Resources that explore race equity with young learners. 

• https://time.com/5848192/childrens-books-about-race/
• https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/family/story/10-diverse-childrens-books-teach-kids-racism-representation-71153783
• https://socialjusticebooks.org/teaching-young-children-about-race/
• https://www.biracialbookworms.com/racial-literacy/
• https://multiculturalkidblogs.com/2020/06/08/racial-justice-resources-for-teaching-children/
• https://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/teaching_now/2020/06/15_classroom_resources_for_discussing_racism_policing_and_protest.html
• https://www.naeyc.org/resources/pubs/yc/may2018/teaching-learning-race-and-racism
• http://www.racialequityvtnea.org/educator-resources/curriculum-resources/
• https://www.racialequitytools.org/plan/issues/education
• https://www.iste.org/explore/classroom/9-resources-teaching-anti-racism
• https://www.tolerance.org/topics/race-ethnicity
• https://www.safeatschool.ca/resources/resources-on-equity-and-inclusion/racism/tool-kits-and-activities
• http://whitesforracialequity.org/equity-for-educators/

Se Necesitan Aportes de la Familia y la Comunidad Sobre Los Efectos Educativos de COVID-19 -- Family and Community Input is Needed on Education Effects of COVID-19

***Favor de compartir ampliamente***             ***Please share widely***

Friends, 

Please fill out the appropriate survey that pertains to you.  We absolutely know what is happening in our communities across the state of Texas.  Check out NBC journalist Suzanne Gamboa's news coverage that shows just how decimated we are right now as a community:

• Few Hispanic business owners got coronavirus relief loans, Latino survey finds
• Coronavirus could 'decimate' Latino wealth, which was hammered by the Great Recession:The crisis has either erased or is threatening to erase Latinos’ decade-long climb back to financial stability.

-Angela Valenzuela

Family and Community Input is Needed on Education Effects of COVID-19

Please fill out our survey below about distance learning during school closures!

¡Por favor, complete nuestra encuesta a continuación sobre el aprendizaje a distancia durante el cierre de escuelas!

Online Surveys

Paper Surveys (PDF)

Parent Survey ~ Encuesta para padres 2020

Student Survey ~ Encuesta para estudiantes 2020

Educator Survey ~ Encuesta para educadores 2020

General Survey ~ Encuesta general 2020

Completed surveys may be sent to IDRA by:

• mail: 5815 Callaghan Road, Suite 101, San Antonio, Texas 78228
• fax: 210-444-1710
• email: contact@idra.org

Texas Legislative Education Equity Coalition Sends COVID-19 Recommendations to State Leaders

Friends,

This bulletin from the Texas Legislative Education Equity Coalition just went out to state lawmakers and leaders.  It references a letter to Governor Greg Abbott, Texas Education Agency Commissioner of Education Mike Morath, and Commissioner Harrison Keller of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.

You can read the letter here.  Among other things, the TLEEC Coalition calls for the following:

"We recommend that funding not only be allocated equitably but that the state fund existing public-school districts rather than funding entities that are not established or part of our communities. This will cut down on any inefficiencies that would stem from establishing both new infrastructures and relationships with families who are already under great stress. These programs, services, and resources should include: 
• Compensatory education services and summer learning opportunities to ensure students do not fall further behind academically while schools are closed; 
• Access to free internet service, hotspots, software, software licenses, devices, as well as instructions for each of these items, that allow students and families to participate in online learning; 
• Testing for diagnostic purposes only to ensure that at-home learning needs are supported; and 
• Access to online learning opportunities, including instruction, software, devices, and internet services for students being held in juvenile justice facilities and those who are released from a facility during the COVID-19 crisis. When there are not viable online options for school districts, funds should be invested in other forms of educational support. These can include hard copies of instruction materials and transportation services to deliver them directly to students’ homes." 

Do read the entire letter.  As the letter clearly states, if we want to be a better Texas in this crucial moment, equity must be paramount and abide by this well-conceived, amply supported intelligent roadmap in the use of funds by truly resisting the funding of "entities that are not established or part of our communities."

Please direct all questions to Christie L. Goodman, APR, IDRA Director of Communications, christie.goodman@idra.org, 210-807-0016.

-Angela Valenzuela