10/14/2024

See the Growth: NYS ELA and DIBELS 8 Scores Improve Alongside Core5 Use

New York education leaders set a 2025 goal for all school districts to align with the science of reading best practices. Like most states, New York had a long-standing history with teaching methods that reportedly supported individual student needs and fostered a love of reading, but needed evidence-based foundational skills to make most Empire State students capable readers. Now, only 30% of New York’s fourth grade students read proficiently.

As school districts statewide pivot, one urban New York district began reshaping literacy instruction with Lexia® Core5® Reading, embedding the science of reading in K–5 classrooms for more than 12,000 students. District leaders leaned on Core5 to accelerate learning because it helps close gaps in as little as eight weeks. 

In one year, New York school leaders found they helped more than double the number of students meeting or exceeding grade-level reading. Seventy-five percent of this highly diverse student population began the year reading below grade levels—some by more than two grades. By the end of the year, the number of students reading below grade level was cut in half when they met usage targets, reinforcing the impact of the district’s equitable, high-quality instruction for students at every intervention level. 

If it’s time for your school or district to adopt proven practices, let this New York district show you how to give every student the best learning opportunities and build a strong reading foundation for years to come.