Georgia Reads Day to spotlight literacy at College Football Hall of Fame
Courtesy of Georgia's Own Credit Union
ATLANTA - Hundreds of students from across Georgia will gather Monday morning at the College Football Hall of Fame for Georgia Reads Day, a statewide celebration aimed at improving literacy.
What we know:
The event will include reading rally exercises, story time on the field and live entertainment such as a magician. Georgia Public Broadcasting will livestream the program on gpb.org.
Gov. Brian Kemp signed legislation in April designed to improve literacy statewide. Marietta City Schools reported an 11% increase in the number of students reading at or above grade level since 2022, outpacing metro Atlanta and the state average.
The push for improved literacy comes as the Nation’s Report Card — an assessment conducted by the National Assessment of Educational Progress — shows a decade-long decline in student performance nationwide. Scores from last year revealed drops in math and reading among 12th graders and in science among eighth graders, with the steepest declines among lower-performing students.
What they're saying:
Education experts cite multiple factors, including lingering pandemic effects, widespread smartphone use and distractions from artificial intelligence. "What is driving the declining average scores are those drops at the bottom," said education analyst Tom West. "This means that we have an increasing share of students who are really graduating from high school very ill-prepared for not just college, but really the world of work."
Why you should care:
National polling shows only 35% of Americans are satisfied with K-12 education. Education leaders argue recruiting and retaining effective teachers remains the key to reversing the trend.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has pushed to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education and return power to the states, signing an executive order in March as part of that effort.