April 2, 2025
Increasing student literacy across all content areas is a key priority for state and local education leaders. This Spotlight looks at two of our most popular blog posts on literacy. It also showcases a success story about 9th graders who significantly improved their literacy skills and whose experience could serve as a model for other states and districts aiming to achieve similar results.
Importance of Comprehension in the Science of Reading
This 2023 blog post explains the definition of the “science of reading” and explores the essential skill of reading comprehension. Read an excerpt:
“Just as biology is the scientific study of living organisms or chemistry is the scientific study of elements and compounds, the science of reading refers to a body of research about how people learn to read. The research is extensive, dating back over 100 years, and includes research from many disciplines, such as cognitive science, developmental psychology, educational psychology, neuroscience, linguistics, and others.
The science of reading combines both theoretical models and empirical studies of how people learn to read. Theoretical models summarize what we know (and what we don’t know) based on evidence from empirical studies and are useful in testing new approaches or developing effective instructional materials. The research is rigorous and replicable, not based on opinion.”
Read more of “The Science of Reading: The Importance of Comprehension.”
A Close Look at Close Reading
Written by Kevin Perks, Director of Quality Schools and Districts at WestEd, this insightful post explores the significance of teaching close reading and offers strategies for educators to implement it effectively. Read this excerpt:
“I once observed a high school social studies teacher asking students to engage in a close reading of Charles Joseph Minard’s map of Napoleon’s march to Moscow.
At the end of the lesson, the teacher asked students to respond to what it felt like to read and analyze the map so closely. Although most of the students had been very engaged in the task, many responded with some variation of the following comments:
» Why do I have to read this?
» Why can’t my teacher just tell me what I need to know?
» This made my brain hurt.
In my years working as a literacy specialist, I have found that many students, at all performance levels, pose questions or make comments like these when asked to closely read challenging texts.
Students are not the only ones who wonder about close reading. Many teachers who do not teach English language arts (ELA) have their own version of these questions and comments. They want to know why they are expected to help develop students’ reading skills when they are teaching history or science or some other non-ELA content area. And they wonder how they can be expected to teach close reading when they were never taught how to do it themselves.”
Read more of “A Close Look at Close Reading.”
Enhancing Literacy With Reading Apprenticeship
This blog post explores the story of 9th graders in a Chicago school district who made remarkable gains in literacy during the 2023/24 school year. Their experience serves as a valuable example for other states and school districts aiming to achieve similar results. Here’s an excerpt:
“Amid many challenges common to schools in the early 2020s, Rich Township High School District 227 9th graders nearly doubled their reading growth in 2023/24. This notable achievement is the result of a strategic and sustained approach to literacy and professional learning.
Located in South Cook County outside of Chicago, Rich Township High School District (RTHS) serves over 2,300 high school students and has experienced many of the challenges shared by districts all over the country since the pandemic—lower student engagement, consolidation of schools, and students entering high school with lower proficiency in core academic subjects.
RTHS leaders have also noticed that, since the pandemic, there is less dialogue and collaboration in classrooms. To get their community reengaged and moving forward together, RTHS set goals, sought out evidence-based supports, and shared learning experiences for their teachers and administrators.”
Read more about how the district worked with WestEd to elevate student literacy.
Literacy Support From WestEd
WestEd works to enhance literacy and improve learning for all by providing
- high-quality, teacher-focused professional learning;
- research and evaluation support; and
- technical assistance services.
Discover how WestEd helps states, districts, and schools achieve their disciplinary literacy goals.
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