The latest test scores from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) have sparked concern about the state of education in America.
But one thing is clear: where a state stands today is not a fixed destiny. With the right leadership, policies and commitment, real change is possible.
Mississippi’s Transformation: From Last to Leader
For decades, Mississippi, one of the poorest states in the nation, consistently ranked at the bottom in academic outcomes. As a former Mississippian, we were accustomed to hearing the phrase “Thank God for Mississippi”—a backhanded remark from other states implying that at least they weren’t dead last. It was a painful, accepted reality.
But in 2013, Mississippi made a bold decision to rewrite its future. At the time, 80% of its fourth graders scored below proficient in NAEP reading, a grim statistic with far-reaching consequences. Research has long shown that third grade is the critical marker for literacy—if children cannot read by then, their chances of catching up shrink dramatically. Worse still, illiteracy is a direct pipeline to incarceration and poverty, as most people in prison struggle to read well enough to secure and maintain stable employment.
That year, Mississippi lawmakers adopted the Literacy-Based Promotion Act, modeled after a groundbreaking Florida law. While critics focused on the “third grade reading gate”—a policy preventing students from advancing to fourth grade without reading proficiency—the real power of the law lay elsewhere. It emphasized prevention, ensuring struggling students were identified early and given targeted interventions, screenings and support to master reading skills before it was too late.
The Results: A Dramatic Shift in NAEP Rankings
To make this transformation possible, Mississippi raised academic standards, deployed trained reading coaches and reoriented teacher training around the science of reading. The resistance was fierce. Change always invites backlash, and opponents warned that too many students would be held back. Others claimed education funding was inadequate. But state leaders—from the Governor to the Superintendent of Education—held the line and pushed forward.
The results have been nothing short of extraordinary. In 2013, Mississippi ranked 49th in NAEP’s 4th grade reading scores. Today, it ranks 9th. Florida, which was the first state to adopt this type of policy, ranked 34th in 1998 (the first year comparable data was available) and has climbed to 10th—having previously reached as high as 3rd two years ago. Georgia, once ahead of Florida in 1998, now sits at 28th—virtually unchanged 27 years later.
The Lesson for Georgia: Will We Follow or Fall Behind?
Mississippi and Florida have proven that dramatic improvement is possible. They refused to accept the status quo, set higher expectations and made literacy a non-negotiable priority. Their results speak for themselves.
Georgia has every opportunity to replicate this success—but only if its education system embraces change. That means implementing research-based reading instruction, setting clear standards and resisting the urge to defend ineffective practices simply because they are familiar.
The state has adopted legislation to require the State Board of Education to approve high-quality instructional materials to be used for teaching students in kindergarten through third grade. Now the implementation is what matters. Will Georgia follow the path of progress, or will it remain stuck, doing what it has always done and hoping for different results?
