It’s easy to take the ability to read and write for granted, but even in 2024, illiteracy is a persistent problem in Louisiana. 

According to the Louisiana Department of Education's 2023 Fall Reading Report,70.5% of Kindergarteners were below reading level, and 55.4% of children in grades K-3 were below reading level. In contrast, the 2019 Reading Report reported 56.7% of Kidgerateners as below the expected reading level. The literacy problem is actively worsening. 

Paula LaCour, a literacy coach and the head of the English department at Tara High School, has years of experience with Louisiana students struggling with literacy. At Tara High School, she works on improving literacy by working with students and teachers to help the youth of Louisiana prepare for the outside world. 

"The problem is huge. [A part] of the problem is the lack of certified highly qualified educators at the elementary level. That's where it starts," she said. "You will have an entire grade level with maybe one or even no certified teachers." 

For students from Pre-K to second grade, LaCour said "you need at a bare minimum two adults in a room to be able to teach literacy to students," which she said rarely happens in Louisiana classrooms. 

LaCour said the fundamental problem is with keeping the already existing teachers. When it comes to teacher retention, "Pay is a part of the problem, but another problem is the lack of support for new teachers," she said. 

Even the teachers that don’t quit may have trouble teaching literacy, due to different approaches to education. 

"Another issue is that a lot of these educators are not properly trained in the science of reading," LaCour said.

The Science of Reading is a technique for teaching reading that has become more popular over the past few decades. The practice is focused on teaching phonics instead of making a person memorize words. 

According to a 2019 data map of adult literacy rates and other corresponding statistics made by the Barbara Bush Foundation, 27.1% of Louisiana adults have low literacy, and five out of six Louisiana parishes  have a quarter of their populations with below basic literacy.

The information from their Literacy Gap Snapshot showed a correlation between low literacy parishes and having less access to healthcare, more adults without a high school degree, more residents below the poverty line and a lower median income.

LaCour said getting students on track after they’ve fallen behind in literacy is difficult. "By the time [students] get to middle school and high school, it's incredibly difficult to close that gap for students," she said.

LaCour said a lot of kids face challenges caused by their “poor reading habits” and a perceived shame around education.

“They already devalue it, they already feel they are not good at it. It's a really difficult fight at that point. It can still be done, but pre-K to second grade is where we need to be catching these students," she said.

LaCour said she often sees a correlation between students that struggle to read and students with personal emotional problems. 

She said students in high school that struggle with reading "are usually the students who use their behavior to hide [their issues]." For these students, poor behavior distracts from their struggles. "It's better to be bad than it is to be dumb," she said.  

LaCour continued, talking about the struggles teachers go through trying to help their students meet standards for the year while helping students that are struggling with reading. "It can be done, but it is extremely difficult," she said.

It’s incredibly hard to not only keep teachers, but it's also hard for them to meet the needs of every single student. 

"I see movies where teachers, their first day, walk in and write on the board, and that's how they start, and that is so unrealistic," LaCour said. 

She said being a teacher is much more than what happens in the classroom and talked about all the work that’s done before and after the school day. 

"Sometimes it feels like we're throwing spaghetti at the wall and hoping something sticks," she said. "Teachers have so much on their plate and they are expected to do so much."

LaCour said she previously worked at a middle school with a program called Read 180. She said the program used the science of reading and was largely successful.

"The teacher who worked that program did it with fidelity and consistency, and most of our students who left us left on grade level, unless there was an extreme learning deficiency or disability," she said.

Reading and writing skills are everything. They're basic skills most people don't think twice about. However, an inability to read and write can greatly impact one's life.

Though many struggle with reading, writing, and understanding text, there are many ways illiteracy is being combated. Starting at the library. By its mere existence, the public has access to thousands of books, learning tools and activities while also giving citizens a safe place to learn and enjoy themselves. 

Libraries have always been and will always be incredibly important for communities, especially for those within communities that have less access and privilege. 

Summer reading programs are impactful ways libraries, schools and organizations encourage reading, help people grow in their abilities, and engage with the community through a healthy outlet. The East Baton Rouge Library has a summer reading program every year for both children and adults. Barnes and Noble also started its own program by rewarding children with books for reading.