A school classroom in Holyoke. (Sarah Betancourt/CommonWealth Beacon)

The state Legislature appears poised to pass the “Right to Read Act” — legislation that would require school districts to adopt evidence-based literacy curricula. With more than half of students across the state reading below grade level, the legislation serves as a significant step toward addressing Massachusetts’s literacy crisis.

As a special education teacher at the Oliver Hazard Perry School in South Boston, I see every day how crucial evidence-based reading is for students’ success, and how preparing teachers for effective reading instruction is essential.

For more than 10 years, I struggled to teach my students how to read. While my students were able to have high-level discussions about the books I read aloud to them, they were not developing the skills to read texts independently. That changed once I sought an evidence-based literacy curriculum and the training I needed to implement it effectively.

Quality literacy instruction is simply too complex to take a “DIY” approach. With this additional training, I have been able to be even more responsive to individual students’ needs, which is critical in my classroom, where every student has an IEP, half are multilingual learners, and many have high support needs.

My experience with struggling to teach students how to read is true for most teachers across the state. Only 16 percent of teacher preparation programs in Massachusetts adequately prepare teachers for effective reading instruction.

Teachers shouldn’t have to seek additional training after going through a teacher preparation program. They should arrive in the classroom prepared from the start. A key part of the legislation passed in the House (H.4672) addresses this need by ensuring that colleges and universities adopt teacher preparation programs that align with evidence-based reading practices.

The Senate version of the bill (S.2924), which passed unanimously last week, does not include any guidelines for pre-service teacher preparation. The two bills now go to a House-Senate conference committee, which will iron out any difference in the two versions. I strongly urge Senate members to adopt the House language that addresses the need for better teacher preparation.

Some argue that requiring evidence-based literacy instruction in classrooms would stifle teachers’ autonomy and creativity, but I have had the opposite experience. Since receiving the proper training, I no longer have to spend hours each week creating or finding supplemental materials for an ineffective curriculum. That extra time has allowed me to incorporate more creative elements into my daily instruction.

Evidence-based reading curriculum, also known as the science of reading, emphasizes systematic and explicit instruction based on five key areas: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. It is supported by decades of research and is used widely across the United States. Massachusetts is just one of a handful of states that do not mandate evidence-based reading practices in schools.

Since I shifted to an evidence-based curriculum, the rate at which my students have learned to independently read books has increased dramatically, and my multilingual learners have acquired English language skills more quickly.

Last school year, one of my fifth-grade students began the year reading at a Pre-K reading level, not knowing all the letters of the alphabet and their corresponding sounds. After receiving science of reading literacy instruction, he grew almost two grade levels in his reading skills, ending the year being able to read short books independently.

At our end of year trip to Canobie Lake Park, the student was able to look at a map and read the names of the rides with his friends. He turned to me and said, “Ms. S! I can read it by myself!” His experience is an example of how proper literacy instruction opens opportunities for students both inside and outside the classroom.

Literacy is a fundamental right, and every child can learn to read with the right type of instruction. Our children deserve this opportunity, and our teachers deserve the tools to deliver it to them.

Luisa Sparrow is a fifth- and sixth-grade special education teacher at the Oliver Hazard Perry School in South Boston, a Teach for America alum, and former Teach Plus fellow. She was the 2025 Massachusetts Teacher of the Year.