Effectiveness of Early Literacy Policies When Statewide Efforts Support Them

MSU Affiliation

College of Education; Department of Teacher Education and Leadership

Creation Date

2026-03-22

Abstract

In 2022, Mississippi fourth-grade students surprised the rest of the nation when their reading achievement scores on the Nation’s Report Card from National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) jumped from 49th place to a first-ever 21st place in the nation. (U.S. Department of Education, 2022). Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) may have been the only one not surprised by this announcement given that in 2019, “Mississippi achieved the No. 1 spot in the nation for NAEP gains when fourth-grade students made the largest score gains from 2017 to 2019 in reading and mathematics, eighth-grade students outpaced the nation for growth in mathematics, and eighth-grade reading held steady,” (MDE, 2022). The announcement in 2022 that Mississippi’s students were continuing to climb in national rankings was even more intriguing when considering the nationwide concerns about post-pandemic learning loss (Betebenner, & Wenning, 2021). The magnitude of these improvements has been described in the popular press as “The Mississippi Miracle” (Barnum, 2023; Lurye, 2023; Kaufman, 2022; Kristof, 2023) but a closer examination of Mississippi’s efforts shows that rather than a miracle, these reading scores are just one outcome of what has been a long, deliberate process. This article describes the multiple literacy initiatives and stakeholder collaborations that have propelled Mississippi on a continued upward trajectory in student reading achievement.

Publication Date

Summer 7-1-2025

Publication Title

SREB Journal of Education Practices and Trends

Publisher

Southern Regional Education Board

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