Patricia Levesque, Executive Director of the Foundation for Florida’s Future, issued the following statement regarding passage of HB 1309 by the Florida House of Representatives to strengthen the state’s approach to literacy, educator training and district-level reading plans:
“Florida has led the way on early literacy for decades because we know that students who struggle to read by the end of third grade will struggle with the rest of their education journey. This important legislation brings a much-needed focus to teacher training and district reading plans to ensure students have access to effective instruction in the classroom and intervention strategies when and where they need help.
“The state’s most recent reading scores on the Nation’s Report Card underscore the urgent need to strengthen state literacy policy. Florida students have regressed in reading not only in grade 4 but also in grade 8, where Florida now ranks 43rd in the nation in performance.
“For Florida to reassert itself as a national leader in student achievement, and to ensure we are giving our children every chance to succeed, we must take decisive action. We thank Rep. John Snyder for championing this legislation, and on behalf of students and families, we encourage the Senate to pass this proposal before the end of the legislative session.”
House Bill 1309:
