On Wednesday, Nov. 15, Georgia Council on Literacy met to review its annual report and recommendations. As stated in SB 211, the Council is required to submit a report by Nov. 30 each year.
During the meeting, each of the working groups (Birth to Five Years Old, Kindergarten to Third Grade, Teacher Training and Professional Development, and Community Engagement) presented a set of goals and recommendations. During these presentations, there was substantial discussion about whether the Council was moving too quickly and if more research is needed before recommending specific action. Several council members expressed the need for state funding to support Council recommendations.
At the meeting’s conclusion, Chair Scott Johnson mentioned that the report would be revised, that working group recommendations would be removed, and this section of the report would instead provide an overview of topics discussed.
2023 Council Report
The full text of the 2023 Georgia Council on Literacy Report can be found HERE
The report provides a background on the impetus behind the formation of the Georgia Council on Literacy and its official duties. It transitions to a breakdown of HB 538’s requirements and provides status reports on implementation. Also included in the report are several pieces of relevant Georgia literacy data presented at prior Council meetings. While not formally included in the report, updated English Language Arts and Lexile Data is linked in the appendix.
Council Recommendation
The Council made one recommendation relating to universal reading screeners. In the report, the Council states that Dr. Lindee Morgan of the Sandra Dunagan Deal Center for Early Language and Literacy conducted a psychometric analysis of the 16 reading screeners approved by the State Board of Education (SBOE). The Council approved distribution of the final report of this analysis to the SBOE, Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE), and all public charter schools and school systems. The SBOE was expected to review the Deal Center report and make any necessary changes to the list of approved screeners. The Council states that, as of Nov. 30, GaDOE has acted on this reading screener report and provided the information to all local school systems and charter schools.
The 2023 report also notes that the Governor's Office of Student Achievement (GOSA) has entered into a Memorandum of Agreement with the Georgia Foundation for Public Education for dedicated funds to support the Georgia Council on Literacy.
Finally, the report’s recommendation section includes a statement that the 2023 report reflects the start of the Council's work and that additional goals and priorities will be presented in the 2024 report.
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