NEPC Review: Teacher Prep Review: Strengthening Elementary Reading Instruction (National Council on Teacher Quality, June 2023

Teacher Prep Review: Strengthening Elementary Reading Instruction, released June 2023 by the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ), evaluates 693 out of the 1,146 elementary teacher preparation programs in the US. It claims to identify how well candidates are prepared to teach elementary reading based on NCTQ’s Reading Foundations standards for scientifically based reading practices. The evaluation, drawn simply from analyzing course syllabi and materials, concludes that “[o]nly 25% of programs adequately address all five core components of reading instruction.” Further, the report outlines model programs as well as recommended actions for teacher preparation programs, state leaders, school districts, and advocates, teachers, and parents. While addressing teacher preparation for initial reading instruction is a high priority as states increasingly adopt new reading legislation grounded in the “science of reading,” this report repeats patterns identified in external reviews of previous NCTQ reports over the past two decades. For instance, this report again relies on flawed research methodology grounded in selective use of evidence to promote NCTQ’s narrow education reform agenda. Policymakers as well as the media are strongly cautioned to view this report as narrowly constructed reform advocacy rather than a valid or scientific analysis of the quality of reading content in elementary teacher preparation programs.