Board reviews results of district-wide literacy audit

K-5 Literacy report

John Jay Middle school literacy report

By JEFF MORRIS 

The Sept. 4 Katonah-Lewisboro Board of Education meeting saw the release of the Literacy Audit Report from Sterling Literacy Consulting. Sterling Literacy was contracted by KLSD to complete a thorough Literacy Audit for grades K–12 in the spring of 2025.

Board President Lorraine Gallagher said the board had been eager to get a sense of the health and vibrancy of the district’s instructional program, and literacy in particular, and after Ray Blanch arrived as superintendent, he supported that endeavor. After a search they engaged Sterling Literacy, which conducted its audit from January through May. Gallagher said the district has already started to implement some of the recommendations.

The report was presented by Molly Ness, lead literacy consultant and Krista Morrison, director of literacy and learning.

John Jay High School literacy report

The main purpose of the KLSD Literacy Audit was to identify strengths and opportunities for improvement in core literacy instruction and achievement across the district. It was also to assess the usability of existing resources; evaluate the synchrony between tiers, schools, and instructional materials and programs; assess alignment of instructional materials and screeners/assessments with evidence-based practices and standards; evaluate disciplinary literacy instructional practices in grades 2–12 and adolescent literacy support in grades 6–12; examine curriculum alignment with state standards and research-based literacy practices; review the efficacy of Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (which includes Response to Intervention, or RTI) for literacy, including its intervention frameworks; and assess professional development opportunities for teachers and leaders, emphasizing their alignment with the sciences of reading and learning.

Grades K-5

The audit found that the district has many strengths, having made a strategic investment in structured literacy instruction, with an intentional focus on providing coherent instruction through coaching support and professional development. It found a strong professional culture, supportive leadership, availability of instructional resources, and a clear commitment by leadership to evidence-based reform.

Recommendations in the report, many of which Ness said had already begun to be implemented, include developing data-informed instructional practices using validated assessment methods. Ness said previously the district was using methods that research has proven to not be as rigorous as they should be. Another significant recommendation is to ensure that instructional materials are high quality and aligned with research-based practices. The last major recommendation, which Ness said is ongoing work that the district has already begun, is job-embedded professional learning around the science of reading. She said many people have taken coursework in the science of reading and are wanting to really connect it with their instructional materials.

John Jay Middle School

Morrison said the staff reported how collaborative they are, and having an experienced staff with a strong professional culture is a strength. They also saw additional support for students in reading and writing, and bright spots in intentional vocabulary development. There was also a lot of use of text-based work, which is something the literacy audit looks for. And, Morrison said, students reported a lot of positive teacher feedback, modeling, and writing support.

The audit found that some students with disabilities were not performing at the same level as the general student population, and recommended that they be spread out in more heterogeneous peer-to-peer groupings to have more inclusive access. It also found current materials do not align with best practices, and recommended adopting high quality ELA instructional materials that integrate reading and writing. Also recommended were multi-paragraph writing tasks. Finding appropriate text sets, said Morrison, is something they should have curriculum companies do for the district, freeing teachers up to focus on the art of teaching rather than spending time looking for texts.

The final recommendation, she said, is to align content and professional development. Morrison said teachers are asking for professional learning that is relevant to their subject area.

John Jay High School

There is a lot of consistency and coherence between the strengths at the middle and high schools, said Morrison, with both having a supportive instructional environment and deep teacher expertise.

“Amazing teachers, they love your kids,” Morrison said. “They love what they do, they’re super passionate about their jobs and their careers, and they love making teaching relevant for kids — I heard that over and over and over, that they want to make teaching relevant for students, and they want them to be passionate about learning and the world around them; that they want them to be educated citizens so that they can go out and be really thoughtful when they go out into the world.”

Morrison also found integrated use of complex, content-aligned texts; source-based writing embedded across disciplines; and support for writing and text engagement. She found a really strong foundation in AP coursework, with instruction elevated in those courses.

Opportunities for growth exist, Morrison said, especially in a need for additional rigor and raised expectations among all students, including those with disabilities. She said the district is already addressing developing curriculum maps. Assessments should be the same for every unit of study, with everyone receiving the same standards and expectations, she said.

Another goal cited by Morrison is an increase in academically productive talk, with students doing most of the talking rather than just the teachers, because “the person doing the talking is doing the thinking.”

Districtwide

Opportunities for growth across the district include establishing a shared, systemwide vision for literacy. Morrison said the district has already hired someone to develop a “Multitiered Systems of Support” model, and is also building  professional learning communities. She said teachers were asking for more professional development collaboration time.

Next steps, she said, include building leadership teams for MTSS; developing a coherent assessment system; adopting a data-driven decision-making model; and sustaining progress through professional development. 

Morrison also recommended review and adoption of high-quality instructional materials.

“You have such an amazing district,” said Morrison. “You’re already really successful; your student scores are already really really strong. We know with this great work you’ve already started, it’s going to be really great for your students and for your educators. They’re just primed and ready and excited about this work.”