New Battle Over Reading: Will Special Interests Give State Lawmakers Chance to Get It Right This Time?

An advocate of the "Science of Reading" method faces tough political opposition in the form of the California Teachers Association, which opposes change

By Cheri Rae

Does it matter that fewer than half the kids in California can read at grade level?

Apparently not, at least to judge by the lackadaisical approach to improving reading instruction displayed by the state Legislature: Its members should have had the chance to address this crucial issue last year - but didn’t - after Assembly Member Blanca Rubio introduced a bill to require the state to adopt reading instruction based on scientific research about how the brain learns to read.

More than 70 organizations, including the CA-HI NAACP, the California State PTA, and the Children’s Defense Fund—as well as the local Santa Barbara Reading Coalition and The Dyslexia Project - supported AB2222, the reading bill by the West Covina Democrat.

Despite that, pressure from the powerful California Teachers Association (CTA) and the California Association of Bilingual Educators (CABE) succeeded in tanking the bill—before legislators even had a chance to consider it, much less vote on it.

Although they acknowledged that the state’s low literacy rate is a “serious problem,” Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas (D-Salinas), and Education Committee Chair Al Muratsuchi (D-Torrance), cited needs for additional study by stakeholders and budget concerns as reasons for their refusal to schedule a hearing.

Give Rubio credit, however, for her persistence and determination to change California’s refusal to move forward from its backward approach to reading instruction.

Last month, she introduced a new bill, AB1121, in another attempt to align the Golden State’s reading instruction with decades of scientific research. And to join dozens of other states—including perennially low-literacy ones like Alabama and South Carolina—that have already done so.

(UPDATE 4-9-25: The organization “Decoding Dyslexia,” one of the sponsors of AB 1211, sent out this notice today: “Assemblymember Blanca Rubio's evidence-based reading instruction bill, Assembly Bill 1121 (AB 1121), will likely be heard by the Assembly Education Committee at the State Capitol in Sacramento on Wednesday, April 30. The hearing date will be confirmed by Thursday, April 24.”)

With 60 percent of California students unable to read at grade level, it would seem obvious that educators and legislators would jump at the chance to finally jettison the disproven, discredited theory of “balanced literacy,” long used throughout California, in favor of solid science. But, no, it looks like AB1121 is in for another battle.

Although the CTA has yet to take a position, CABE is once again in opposition, claiming it “fails to address the needs of English learners.”

However, they might take a look at districts with a large number of English learners who are flourishing with science-based reading instruction. One such standout is Bonita Unified, in L.A., where 53 percent of English language learners and nearly 60 percent of low-income Latino students exceed state standards—far outpacing their peers in other districts, by two and three times respectively.

That district is expereiencing the benefits of a years-long commitment to a comprehensive approach that includes leadership promoting the science of reading, teacher training and teamwork with parents.

Last school year, Santa Barbara Unified School District adopted curricula based on the science of reading and began using it in classrooms.

Curiously, the administration has not actively promoted this positive change from the “balanced literacy” previously used. The SBUSD webpage that explains the then-new Elementary Literacy Curriculum is currently titled, “Welcome to the start of the 2023-24 school year!” and explains aspects of the two curricula selected, but is clearly in need of an update to show current conditions.

Successful implementation of this very different instructional approach requires strong leadership, intensive teacher training and support for classroom teachers.

Many consultants recommend selecting a highly trained and well-experienced “literacy czar” as the key person to accept accountability for all these aspects of implementation and to provide outreach to the public.

We look forward to learning more about the district’s literacy goals, and strategies, timeline and accountability for successful implementation of the science of reading.

The Political is Personal. If the facts and figures are not persuasive enough, perhaps a bit of compassionate understanding might move lawmakers to finally act to improve reading instruction in California.

Low literacy has a massive impact on individuals and our community. Below are just some of the situations I’ve encountered as an advocate:

Students: Every kid in every classroom believes that Reading = Smart, Struggling to Read = Dumb. Of course that’s not the case, but tell that to a kid who gets laughed at or feels embarrassed, stumbling when trying to read aloud. Or who can’t do much of anything except daydream during periods of “silent sustained reading.” Emotional damage sets in early and lasts a lifetime.

Beyond that, background knowledge and academic work in every subject becomes more and more difficult to access when a kid is still learning to read. The struggling reader even has difficulty with math these days, with so many word problems requiring reading skills before setting up or solving the math portion. By the time these struggling readers age into junior high and high school, that sense of “what’s the point” sets in, and negative behaviors too often take over.

Adults: Those who drop out or receive a diploma without gaining sufficient reading proficiency face difficulties in daily life that may never occur to proficient readers: Consider menus, prescription instructions, ingredients listed on labels, checking in at the airport, accessing an automobile owner’s manual. Job-seekers may not be able to fill out an application in person or complete one online before it times out. Poor reading skills are typically accompanied by poor spelling skills—which erroneously brands far too many adults as uneducated and leaves them the butt of jokes.

There are more private miseries adults encounter as well: Imagine the humiliation of being asked by a religious leader to read aloud a passage in a house of worship or a page in a public meeting or even a paragraph in a 12-step group and being unable to do so. And perhaps the saddest: the desire but inability to snuggle in with your child and read them a bedtime story. Struggling readers get very good at storytelling, making excuses and figuring out workarounds to cover up.

Community: A person who struggles to read is unlikely to spend time engaging with essential information in any official document—from a contract for a phone to a loan application to agendas and staff reports for community meetings. They may sign without full understanding of their obligations or be excluded from participation in local civic matters.

Those voters’ handbooks with their arguments for ballot measures are difficult enough for proficient readers to plow through and fully comprehend—nearly impossible for someone who struggles. Interpreting the nuances of a candidates’ platform is similarly challenging, perhaps leading to gaining information from social media—which is likely unreliable—or not even feeling qualified to vote at all.

Employers want and need to hire individuals who can quickly master the employee handbook, interpret the company website policies and procedures, master communication in writing; without those skills, even the most promising prospect never gets the chance; the employer might miss out on someone who is otherwise well-qualified for the position—and never even recognize their potential.

Bottom line. The notion that reading is a civil right, that everyone deserves the right to read is so fundamental, so undeniable it is absurd that the debate continues. Yet so many California kids, Santa Barbara kids, never get close to experiencing that right.

Next school year, the long-delayed screening of students for “reading difficulties” will finally be required in K-2 classrooms, as mandated by long-ago state legislation. What kind of instruction they receive afterward remains to be seen.

Assembly Member Rubio is termed out in four years, and she wants to make her dream for proper reading instruction a reality before she’s forced to leave. Let’s hope this latest literacy bill gets to a vote—and an embrace of science—this time around.

Award-winning journalist Cheri Rae is the Founder of The Dyslexia Project and author of “DyslexiaLand: A Field Guide for Parents of Children with Dyslexia.”

Further reading:

California Kids Read. All about AB 1121; many resources about the issue of literacy in California.

The California Reading Coalition hosts the annual Reading Summit and offers information about the top-scoring districts in the state—and how they got there.

The Santa Barbara Reading Coalition is a local organization supporting the implementation of the Science of Reading in our schools. Includes resources and information about test scores in local schools.