Arizona has launched a five-year strategic plan to raise 72% of all third graders reading proficiency by 2030, aiming to reverse a troubling post-pandemic decline in literacy.
The Arizona Literacy Plan 2030 outlines key drivers, evidence-based strategies, and specific actions to reach that goal.
Led by Read On Arizona in partnership with the Arizona Department of Education, the State Board of Education, and other organizations, the plan comes in response to sobering data from the Education Progress Meter by the Center for the Future of Arizona.
Only 39% of third graders are currently reading proficiently, a 7% decline from 2019.
In 2024, over half of Arizona third graders scored only “minimally proficient” in state English Language Arts assessments.
According to a report commissioned in 2011 by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, one in six children, or 16.6%, who are not reading proficiently in third grade do not graduate from high school on time.
The new plan aims to build educator capacity in the Science of Reading, engage families and communities in supporting school readiness and literacy and expand access to high-quality early learning.
These key drivers are reflected in the plan’s major five-year goals:
• By 2026: Increase the number of early education literacy coaches to 50, targeting areas with the greatest need.
• By 2027: 100% of schools will use high-quality materials as required by Move on When Reading policy.
• By 2028: All K-5 certified educators will be trained in the Science of Reading (via K-5 Literacy Endorsement legislation).
• By 2029: Identify additional preschool investments to support early learning and meet progress goals.
• By 2030: Reduce chronic absence to pre-pandemic levels.
Included in the Literacy Plan presentation are five ‘Scale to Succeed Strategies’ to assess progress toward key goals:
Sustain K-5 Literacy Endorsement requirements so all certified K-5 teachers are trained in reading instruction and intervention by 2028. Currently, 2,048 teachers have that certification and the goal is to have 22,918 with it.
Expand PreK-3 literacy coaching by placing literacy coaches where most needed. Currently, there are 34 coaches and the goal is to increase that number to 125.
Ensure all schools serving K-3 are using high-quality materials by 2027 since only about three-quarters of all those schools use those materials.
Reduce chronic absenteeism to pre-pandemic levels by 2030. Currently, 24% of all Arizona students are considered chronic absentees and the goal is to reduce that percentage to 13%.
Current status: 24% | Target goal: 13%
Increase access to quality early learning opportunities from a current 32% to 45%.
A major component of the plan is training all K-5 educators in the Science of Reading, an interdisciplinary body of scientifically-based research about reading and issues related to reading and writing.
It informs how proficient reading and writing develop; why some students have difficulty; and how schools can most effectively assess and teach – and, therefore, improve – student outcomes through prevention of and intervention for reading difficulties.
Educators will use Structured Literacy – an approach to teaching reading and writing, rooted in the Science of Reading – to provide a clear path and guide classroom instruction.
Through Structured Literacy, instruction is explicit, in that the essential components of reading integrate listening, speaking, reading, and writing; systematic, so that students move from simple to complex reading matter; cumulative so that new concepts are linked to previously learned.
Moreover, Structured Literacy is based on individual student needs.
The K-5 Literacy Endorsement is a certification that requires literacy teachers in grades K-5 to participate in additional training in instruction and intervention, and get a passing score on the Foundations of Reading Assessment by Pearson.
Under Arizona law, that endorsement is a requirement for literacy teachers in kindergarten through fifth grade.
Move on When Reading (MOWR) is Arizona’s K-3 reading legislation designed to ensure early identification and immediate intervention for struggling readers.
Under MOWR legislation, all K-3 serving school districts must submit a literacy plan to the state Department of Education and meet specific requirements.
Among the requirements is an evidence-based reading program that follows state standards and teaches key early reading skills like sounding out words, reading smoothly, building vocabulary, and understanding what’s read.
Schools also must devote reasonable time for reading instruction and independent reading and provide a thorough system that periodically tests students’ reading skills, identifies areas needing improvement, and monitors progress.
Schools also must provide high-quality ongoing professional development in reading instruction and use money provided by the MOWR legislation to build the literacy skills of K-3 students.
To outline how they will help implement key strategies, various Literacy Plan partners have made action commitments.
For example, the Department of Economic Security, focusing on the key driver of building educator capacity, committed to the Arizona Early Childhood Educator Apprenticeship Pathway, a federally registered apprenticeship program that supports wage enhancements for apprentices and teacher mentors so early childhood educators can earn while they learn.