A majority of Michigan students did better on their reading test scores this year compared to last year, but literacy rates are still lagging behind especially for third and fourth graders.
The state faces teacher shortages and rising chronic absenteeism which might also be impacting how students are learning.
WKAR's Sophia Saliby spoke with Isabel Lohman who reports on education for Bridge Michigan.
"A lot of grades saw an increase compared to last year, but when you look compared to pre-pandemic, we're still down in a lot of those grades," Lohman said. "For example, third grade reading just reached an all time low on the MSTEP."
There are a lot of contributing factors to why students aren't hitting the benchmarks they should be hitting. In a recent series for Bridge, Lohman explored the causes of chronic absenteeism and why it's gotten so bad in Michigan.
"We talk to teachers and principals and superintendents all across the state, and they do talk about, you know, when a kid isn't in class, they can't learn, and that's going to affect their test scores. That's going to affect their grades, and it could also affect the other students in the class," Lohman said.
Recent laws have mandated screenings for dyslexia and other measures to boost teacher support, but Lohman say there's not going to be changes immediately.
"You do have state money for curriculum, for teacher training, materials for student supports, but again, it's going to take time for that money to trickle down to the schools, for them to implement it."
Lohman added school districts and teachers continue to grapple with the impact that students' cellphones and other smart devices have during the school day.
Interview Highlights
On MSTEP reading scores this year
A lot of grades saw an increase compared to last year, but when you look compared to pre-pandemic, we're still down in a lot of those grades. For example, third grade reading just reached an all time low on the MSTEP. We're at 38.9% of third graders are deemed "proficient" or "advanced" on the MSTEP. You're also seeing declines in the fourth grade and the fifth grade, the sixth grade and seventh grade. There is one bright spot, which is that eighth graders are actually testing better than they were pre-pandemic.
On the impact of chronic absenteeism on the classroom
We talk to teachers and principals and superintendents all across the state, and they do talk about, you know, when a kid isn't in class, they can't learn, and that's going to affect their test scores. That's going to affect their grades, and it could also affect the other students in the class. If there's several students missing from a class, a teacher may decide to wait a day to teach the lesson, and then they get further behind, and by the time the spring test rolls around, they haven't gotten through as much content as they want to, and that shows up on the tests.
On teacher shortages
The state had a lot of money over the last few years for Grow Your Own programs, or other ways to basically incentivize people who are already working in schools to get their teacher credentials or community members who are interested to get their teacher credentials. So, there's money for people to become teachers. But like everything else, it takes time to get the people trained and then in the classroom. And then you think about what's a the first year teacher's experience versus a fifth year teacher's experience? They gain that confidence, they gain those skill sets. So, there's that.
Interview Transcript
Sophia Saliby: A majority of Michigan students did better on their reading test scores this year compared to last year, but literacy rates are still lagging behind, especially for third and fourth graders.
The state faces teacher shortages and rising chronic absenteeism which might also be impacting how students are learning.
Isabel Lohman reports on education for Bridge Michigan, and she’s here with me now. Thank you for joining us.
Isabel Lohman: Thank you.
Saliby: In the long term, how did this year's reading scores in Michigan compare to years past?
Lohman: Sure, so you're right in that a lot of grades saw an increase compared to last year, but when you look compared to pre-pandemic, we're still down in a lot of those grades. For example, third grade reading just reached an all time low on the MSTEP.
We're at 38.9% of third graders are deemed "proficient" or "advanced" on the MSTEP. You're also seeing declines in the fourth grade and the fifth grade, the sixth grade and seventh grade. There is one bright spot, which is that eighth graders are actually testing better than they were pre-pandemic.
Saliby: I want to tie in some of these other factors that may be contributing to these scores. You recently did a series about chronic absenteeism becoming a major problem in schools. Is there a connection that we can track or that we can observe?
Lohman: So, we talk to teachers and principals and superintendents all across the state, and they do talk about, you know, when a kid isn't in class, they can't learn, and that's going to affect their test scores. That's going to affect their grades, and it could also affect the other students in the class.
If there's several students missing from a class, a teacher may decide to wait a day to teach the lesson, and then they get further behind, and by the time the spring test rolls around, they haven't gotten through as much content as they want to, and that shows up on the tests.
Saliby: There's also been some legislative changes that have taken effect in recent years, including new requirements to screen students for dyslexia.
Have they had an impact? I mean, clearly the scores are still depressed, but is there a path forward with these new laws?
Lohman: Yeah, so both Republican and Democrats supported this legislation that passed in 2024, and there is optimism that those changes will make a difference, but we're years out from possibly seeing that. First of all, some of those requirements don't go effect until the '27, '28 school year.
Second of all, while, there's a lot of money for teacher training. Some of that training takes a lot of time to do, and it's not everyone's taking the exact same training and getting the exact same results. That's not happening.
And then you do have state money for curriculum, for teacher training, materials for student supports, but again, it's going to take time for that money to trickle down to the schools for them to implement it.
And then what educators always tell me is like, it takes time for that implementation to show up, for students' learning and for those tests.
Saliby: We're facing a teacher shortage here in Michigan. Many states are dealing with these same problems. Are districts doing anything innovative or different to pull new educators in? And is that going to help? And when is that going to help?
Lohman: Yeah, the state had a lot of money over the last few years for Grow Your Own programs, or other ways to basically incentivize people who are already working in schools to get their teacher credentials or community members who are interested to get their teacher credentials. So, there's money for people to become teachers.
But like everything else, it takes time to get the people trained and then in the classroom. And then you think about what's a the first year teacher's experience versus a fifth year teacher's experience? They gain that confidence, they gain those skill sets. So, there's that.
There's also the fact that even if you keep putting a ton more teachers in the classroom, what about the teachers who are leaving? Are we filling those positions at the same rate that we're losing teachers? And that remains to be seen.
The Education Policy Innovation Collaborative, which is outside of MSU. MSU runs it. They do some really good work looking at the teacher shortage, and I think we still have some significant challenges we need to tackle, including teacher credentials.
Saliby: So, how does Michigan compare to other states when it comes to how proficient students are at reading?
Lohman: Yes. So when you look at scores, we have the state test, which is the MSTEP, and then we have the national test, which is done every two years. It's called the NAEP. They take a sample of students from each state, and they compare.
Michigan is ranked 44th for fourth grade reading, and that's something that alarms a lot of folks, and they have talked about what those changes would look like, and we're going to continue to see what changes actually, if any get passed.
Saliby: Just to have some perspective, I don't have any kids, so I don't really know what students are learning in classrooms. Is it the way students are learning? Is it the material that is so different from, you know, 10 or 20 or beyond that years ago, that is that is kind of contributing to this? I'm sure there's a lot going on, but is the material at all a role?
Lohman: I think it could be. I don't have a definitive answer on that. One thing I hear is like the role of cell phones in schools, right? Like, are the students distracted? Are they communicating with their friends via text messages throughout the day instead of paying attention to the lesson?
I think there's always been distractions in schools. But I have heard that cell phones has made things more challenging for teachers. I think you also have some national reporting talking about just the changing dynamics of education post-pandemic that could be a factor in here too.
I mean, schools will say that they are responsive, that they're trying their best, that they are moving along with the times, but I think there are just challenges about being in a classroom these days that maybe didn't exist when you and I were in school.
Saliby: Isabel Lohman is an education reporter for Bridge Michigan. Thank you for joining us.
Lohman: Thanks for having me.
This conversation has been edited for clarity and conciseness.
