For all the national concerns about the future of the Department of Education, the South has already shown that states can turn around struggling schools if they choose to put in the work themselves.
Mississippi has become one of the biggest success stories for reading scores in the country. The state had the largest growth in fourth-grade reading (and math) scores from 2013 to 2024, according to the National Assessment of Education Progress assessment. For the first time, Mississippi fourth graders scored higher than the national average.
The Urban Institute adjusted the NEAP scores for demographics (race, gender, and poverty, among them) to compare how each state would perform if they were demographically identical. Mississippi ranked first in fourth-grade reading, fourth-grade math, and eighth-grade math, as well as fourth in eighth-grade reading. Louisiana, which has been using Mississippi as a model, is also in the top five in all four categories. Mississippi’s economically disadvantaged students are first in reading and second in math compared to the rest of the country.
This has been made possible because Mississippi has focused on the basics of education, not the feel-good policies of affirmation that others have embraced. The state will hold back third-grade students who fail reading tests, but even then, it will give them multiple opportunities and tutoring in order to get their scores up. The state has also focused on phonics when it comes to reading, which is the proven best method of teaching children how to read.
Juxtapose this with failing school systems that have moved away from these methods of teaching and running schools. Oregon, for instance, decided in 2020 to eliminate reading, writing, and math standard requirements for high school graduates. Oregon’s K-12 schools rank among the worst in the nation, and the state is in the bottom five in demographic-adjusted NEAP scores for reading and math for both fourth and eighth graders.
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Oakland teachers rebelled against the highly successful phonics-based reading curriculum that saw reading scores improve in their city because teaching phonics was “dehumanizing,” only to realize their mistake as reading scores started declining. Even still, state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond (who is also running for governor) rejected phonics-based curriculum as a statewide effort, saying, “We are not promoting a one-size-fits-all approach.”
It’s a shame because Mississippi proved that this approach works. Indeed, states are more than capable of helping students succeed as long as the states are willing to put in the work and follow proven learning methods.
