Urge Congress to Support Literacy Education for All

About the Issue

Literacy Education for All, Results for the Nation Act (LEARN) Act (S. 929 and H.R. 2272) was introduced in the U.S. Senate and House this year by Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and Reps. John Yarmuth (D-KY) and Jared Polis (D-CO) respectively. The LEARN Act authorizes the Secretary of Education to award grants to states for comprehensive planning to improve the literacy of children from birth through grade 12 and also gives priority to states serving a high number or percentage of impoverished children and, for those serving students from kindergarten through grade 12 because of the high percentage of students reading and writing below grade level.

The National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD) supports the LEARN Act because it provides funding to schools to provide interventions and professional development to teachers to help the struggling learners that are reading and writing below grade level. NCLD also supports the bill including the definition and allowing the use of Multi-Tier System of Supports (MTSS) or Response to Intervention (RTI) as it is known, to help struggling learners read and write at or above grade level. The inclusion of MTSS in S.929 and HR 2272 allows states and schools to help provide effective instruction and targeted intervention to those students who critically need help to succeed.

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Dear [Decision Maker], I want to express to you my support for passage of the Literacy Education for All, Results for the Nation (LEARN) Act and ask for you to Co-Sponsor the legislation. The LEARN Act S.929 and H.R. 2272 was introduced by Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and Representatives John Yarmuth (D-KY) and Jared Polis (D-CO). I urge you to support the LEARN Act which would support comprehensive state and local literacy programs to ensure that children from birth to grade twelve will have the reading and writing skills necessary for success in school and beyond.

• Please personalize your email - required As you are aware, literacy development is an ongoing process, beginning in early childhood and continuing through elementary and secondary school. Even before the beginning of formal schooling, children from low-income families are less likely than students from higher-income families to recognize letters and understand the relationship between letters and sounds. Without intervention, disparities in educational outcomes persist throughout elementary school and beyond. We cannot minimize how important this is for the 2.5 million students identified with learning disabilities (LD). On average, students with LD are 3.4 years behind their enrolled grade level in reading. These discrepancies validate researchers’ findings that the achievement gap between students with LD and those without widens as students move from one grade to the next. These discrepancies are also significant given how dependent learning in any subject is on sound skills in reading. Accessing, understanding, and mastering academic subjects when basic reading skills are significantly below grade level pose major challenges for students with LD. The instructional support and interventions provided in LEARN are essential for students to become successful in today’s society. What students need to know and do to be ready for higher education, work, and civic life is much more demanding than it once was. Creating globally competent graduates requires high level reading and writing skills, and these skills are prerequisites for success in other high-growth fields, including science and technology. The LEARN Act will ensure that students from birth though grade twelve acquire the reading and writing skills necessary to succeed in school and after graduation. The LEARN Act would create much-needed federal support for comprehensive state and locally led literacy programs to ensure that children from birth to twelfth grade have the reading and writing skills necessary for success in school and beyond. It would authorize $2.35 billion to fund state and local school-based literacy programs that span from birth to grade twelve. The grants would provide dedicated funds for early learning, elementary, and adolescent literacy programs. The LEARN Act would provide funds for high-quality professional development that would prepare teachers to improve literacy instruction; analyze data to improve student learning; use diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments to inform instruction; and effectively implement literacy intervention strategies. Teachers would then be able to provide students, including students with LD and English language learners, with excellent instruction in reading and writing.

I urge you to support the Literacy Education for All, Results for the Nation (LEARN) Act. Sincerely, [Your Name] [Your Address] [City, State ZIP]

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