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Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 1d

Kelsey Piper (the author of the piece above) and I just teamed up to provide more detail on the Mississippi outcomes, and in short, this piece debunks any possibility that Mississippi’s testing cohort is influencing its success story:

open.substack.com/pub/theargum...

Is Mississippi cooking the books?

No. The skeptics are wrong. The Southern Surge is real.

open.substack.com

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Reposted by Karen Vaites

Lakshya Jain @lakshya.splitticket.org · 12d

By many independent standards, Mississippi’s educational standards now exceed California’s.

Illiteracy is a policy choice.

www.theargumentmag.com/p/illiteracy...

Illiteracy is a policy choice

Why aren’t we gathering behind Mississippi’s banner?

www.theargumentmag.com

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Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 1d

Highly recommended reading:

Christopher Huffaker @huffakingit.bsky.social · 2d

In yesterday's Boston Globe Magazine: My story on the Southern Surge and the Northern Nosedive.

New England schools are failing — and ‘nobody seems to care’ - The Boston Globe

Our math and reading scores have been declining for a decade. The “Southern Surge” should be a wake-up call.

www.bostonglobe.com

Reposted by Karen Vaites

Christopher Huffaker @huffakingit.bsky.social · 2d

In yesterday's Boston Globe Magazine: My story on the Southern Surge and the Northern Nosedive.

New England schools are failing — and ‘nobody seems to care’ - The Boston Globe

Our math and reading scores have been declining for a decade. The “Southern Surge” should be a wake-up call.

www.bostonglobe.com

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Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 1d

The Mississippi success story is regularly misrepresented – dismissed as fluke or fakery, or reduced to “just phonics.”

Kelsey Piper and I are having none of it.

We tag-teamed on this new piece for The Argument magazine:

open.substack.com/pub/theargum...

Is Mississippi cooking the books?

No. The skeptics are wrong. The Southern Surge is real.

open.substack.com

Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 3d

And @katonv.bsky.social has made upper grades her superpower, I know she will have things to add.

Please share your favorite reads and podcast episodes in the replies?

@mjliben.bsky.social @abbyteachesdsm.bsky.social @shannonsaglio.bsky.social @tinaengberg.bsky.social @missypurcell.bsky.social

a cartoon girl is laying on a bed holding a book and the words pretty please are behind her

ALT: a cartoon girl is laying on a bed holding a book and the words pretty please are behind her

media.tenor.com

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Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 3d

I also recommend the @katasolow.bsky.social Science of Reading classroom substack highly.

They just published a 3-part series on science of reading in HS, for example: scienceofreadingclassroom.substack.com/p/what-does-...

What does the science of reading look like in high school (part 1 of many)?

What does the science of reading or structured literacy look like in high school?

scienceofreadingclassroom.substack.com

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Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 3d

Robert Pondiscio wrote about it here:
open.substack.com/pub/thenext3...

Cracking the Code Behind Dismal 8th Grade Reading Scores

Compelling evidence suggests students hit a "decoding threshold" below which reading comprehension grinds to a halt. Fixing it won't be easy.

open.substack.com

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Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 3d

Rebecca Kockler’s work suggests that the ability to decode multisyllabic words is major factor in literacy success. Huge implications for upper grades screening and intervention. We can’t talk about it enough.

@natwexler.bsky.social wrote about it here: nataliewexler.substack.com/p/how-to-hel...

How to Help Older Students Who Struggle to Read

Many students above third grade need help deciphering words with multiple syllables

nataliewexler.substack.com

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Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 3d

I’m getting this Q a lot, and I may pull together a reading list blog, BC there is a LOT of good content coming out right now specific to upper grades.

Let’s start with some crowdsourcing!

As for new research, the most striking thing reading is the decoding threshold research…

🧵

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Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 3d

My thoughts:

Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 3d

Overdue leadership transition at EdReports:

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Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 7d

A literacy post in Blue Sky!

a woman in a blue dress with #schitts creek on the bottom right

ALT: a woman in a blue dress with #schitts creek on the bottom right

media.tenor.com

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Reposted by Karen Vaites

Tom K @gctom.bsky.social · 8d

When I taught 5th grade at FCPS in Maryland, I was shocked that their language arts curriculum (Into Reading) did not include any books.

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Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 9d

I’ve been surprised to find discover hesitation about value of whole books in SO Reading spaces.

Also, both orgs reviewing curriculum don’t consider the use of whole books in reviews. EdReports & Reading League both give high marks to curricula lacking books. 😳

open.substack.com/pub/curricul...

Is the Science of Reading Community Anti-Book?

We didn’t think so, but reactions to our column on book-starved curriculum got us thinking.

open.substack.com

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Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 11d

I was pleased to learn that Dana has read my writeup on elementary and middle school curricula. But the explanation she gave about focusing on HS first just doesn’t make sense.

My rationale below:

Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 11d

I was pleased to learn that Dana has read my writeup on elementary and middle school curricula. But the explanation she gave about focusing on HS first just doesn’t make sense.

My rationale below:

Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 11d

More here:

bsky.app/profile/kare...

Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 11d

I would implore you to broaden your focus.

HS ELA is a problem, but the call is coming from inside the elementary & middle school buildings.

I recently wrote about the issue of book-starved elementary/MS curriculum, to capture the issue:

1/2

open.substack.com/pub/curricul...

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Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 11d

Good news: it looks like NYT will cover the issue of books going missing from US classrooms.

Bad news: they are only focused on high school. But the call is coming from the elementary and school buildings, too.

Pls join me in encouraging @danagoldstein.bsky.social to broaden her focus.

Dana Goldstein @danagoldstein.bsky.social · 13d

Were you or your kids assigned full books to read in high school English — novels, nonfiction or plays from beginning to end — or mostly shorter excerpts? We are digging into this very controversial maybe-trend and need your help:

www.nytimes.com/2025/09/24/u...

Were You Assigned Full Books to Read in High School English? Tell Us.

www.nytimes.com

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Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 11d

I would implore you to broaden your focus.

HS ELA is a problem, but the call is coming from inside the elementary & middle school buildings.

I recently wrote about the issue of book-starved elementary/MS curriculum, to capture the issue:

1/2

open.substack.com/pub/curricul...

1

Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 12d

My favorite response to the latest piece on the Southern Surge

Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 12d

A superb new piece on the Southern Surge. I was honored to speak with Kelsey Piper for her excellent reporting.

Truly the must-read, send-to-all-your-friends article of the week.

It is all over my feed, for good reason.

open.substack.com/pub/theargum...

Illiteracy is a policy choice

Why aren’t we gathering behind Mississippi’s banner?

open.substack.com

Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 13d

@natwexler.bsky.social takes a clear-eyed look at traction of federally-funded Ed research and reminds us that we are doing a weak job of getting research to be translated into classroom practice.

W/ an excellent point about shallow focus on explicit instruction.
open.substack.com/pub/nataliew...

Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 13d

But, parents continue to give much higher marks to their own local schools.

I have always found this to be the most interesting dichotomy.

Karen Vaites @karenvaites.bsky.social · 13d

Satisfaction with the quality of education in the US reaches record lows.

And 73% of Americans think schools are headed in the wrong direction.

New Gallup poll:

news.gallup.com/poll/695174/...

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