$6.8M grant will help Maryland educators learn to use the science of reading
The Maryland State Department of Education has received a $6.8 million grant that will allow teachers to take courses on the science of reading, an evidence-based instructional philosophy.
The four-year grant will provide free professional development for more than 30,000 eligible teachers, administrators and paraprofessionals. State Superintendent Carey Wright announced the donation from the Ibis Group, a national nonprofit focused on early literacy instruction, at a state board of education meeting Tuesday.
“We’ve heard from teachers and leaders that they need access to high-quality training in the science of reading and we’ve worked over the past few months to accomplish just that,” Wright said.
The science of reading emphasizes the importance of phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension to develop strong reading skills.
Wright introduced a resolution in January requiring all Maryland school districts to implement it in their reading instruction. She used the method to propel Mississippi’s literacy rates from 50th to 21st during her nine-year tenure as Mississippi state superintendent.
Wright and the board have set a lofty goal to move Maryland’s ranking in reading exams to the top 10 nationally. The state’s ranking dropped to 40th in 2022 based on fourth grade scores and declined to 25th based on eighth grade scores.
About $5.35 million will go toward professional development in the science of reading and $1.5 million will fund a research impact study conducted by the Johns Hopkins University. The study will analyze the investment, including whether teachers’ background knowledge and efficacy improve.
Educators have four years to earn a “microcredential” from two programs offered by the State University of New York at New Paltz and the AIM Institute for Learning and Research. The virtual 35-hour program starts in July.
Paraprofessionals, administrators, elementary teachers and secondary teachers can receive the credential through SUNY. The AIM program will target school administrators and school district literacy supervisors.
The credential is available for paraprofessionals training to become teachers and middle and high school administrators who might not have access to science of reading training like elementary administrators do, said Tenette Smith, executive director of literacy programs and initiatives.
The program might also “alleviate some of the angst and anxiety that we’ve heard (school districts’) express about the lack of professional learning opportunities around the science of reading,” Smith said.
The courses will teach general skills that teachers need to know to implement the science of reading, Wright said. Educators will not be taught to use a specific curriculum.
The grant gives $350,000 to the state education department to support its partnership with the Ibis Group and to pay for teacher stipends, travel, meeting space and other operational costs. The state board of education unanimously approved the education department’s partnership with the Ibis Group on Tuesday.
“Maryland’s students deserve the best education system in the country, and public-private partnerships such as this one foster collaboration that propels our state forward,” Gov. Wes Moore said in a statement.
Board members were briefed Tuesday that Moore’s state budget allocated $411 million for the state education department in fiscal year 2025, a 1.6% increase from the previous fiscal year. The amount of state funding that school districts received on a per-pupil basis moderately increased for multilingual learners and students with disabilities.
_____
