Literacy Levels Soar at Louisiana Elementary Schools

Rapides Parish is the ninth-largest school district in Louisiana, with 32 elementary schools. A few years ago, administrators noticed many of their elementary teachers had not been equipped with the skills to effectively teach early foundational reading. Poor literacy scores illustrated the depth of the problem.

In a districtwide push to boost teachers’ foundational reading instructional skills, administrators at Rapides Parish launched a concerted effort to find a solution. A district committee overwhelmingly selected Lexia® LETRS® professional learning. One of the district’s primary goals was to improve the reading level and skills for K–3 students.

Nearly all district educators have had or are scheduled to soon receive LETRS training, which offers more than a decade of demonstrated success in improving teacher effectiveness and focuses on raising literacy achievement for all learners. LETRS gives teachers the background and depth of knowledge to teach language and literacy skills to every student and helps teachers recognize why some students struggle, ensuring all students can become proficient readers. LETRS was the missing piece for Rapides Parish, especially when so many teachers were coming from non-traditional backgrounds to teach. 

Learn how about its impressive results: Rapides Parish witnessed gains of 33% from K–3 students on the STAR Early Literacy tests.