Tanya: Yes. Overall, in the research community, I think there is far more agreement than disagreement on how we should teach reading and the skills and knowledge that children need.( This is captured well in the Reading Research Quarterly special issues focused on the science of reading.) The tricky part is how, and whether, ideas from research make their way into practice, products, and policies. This is why it’ s so important to consider the alignment between the instruction that takes place in classrooms and the research.
Annie: Reports of third-grade reading scores are a key reason the public is so focused on the science of reading. How would you unpack these reports to them?
Tanya: There are reports that say a large percentage of children are not meeting grade-level expectations for reading. We want to make sure that all children are receiving high-quality, research-aligned early literacy instruction in their classrooms as well as additional intervention if they are not making expected progress. Families, rightly so, want their children to learn to read and write in elementary school.
However, many people assume tests used for third-grade reading scores are looking at whether children can look at the letters and figure out the words on the page( decoding). In reality, these tests are looking at whether students can decode and comprehend text. Research has revealed a number of reasons why children don’ t meet expectations on state tests. In one well-known study, the researchers assessed a range of literacy skills for children who didn’ t meet grade-level expectations on a state reading exam. They found 10 different patterns of students’ reading skills. Each pattern required different instructional supports. This included groups of children who could decode the words but were not yet fluent; another group of children were fluent readers but had difficulty comprehending the texts.
Educating Young Children Vol 1 No 4 Winter 2026
NAEYC. org / EYC