Tennessee students make gains with tutoring and a back-to-basics approach that emphasizes phonics

See National Test Scores Are Dropping. This State Is Fighting Back by Chao Deng of The WSJ. Excerpts:

"As schools across the nation search for remedies, one of the most closely watched efforts is playing out in Tennessee. The state’s schools—once among the U.S.’s worst-performing—have made gains with intensive tutoring, mandatory summer school for struggling pupils and a back-to-basics approach that emphasizes phonics."

"From 2022 to 2025, Tennessee ranked second out of 38 states in math improvement and fourth out of 35 states in reading gains"

"The state’s most recent scores on a key national test placed it 17th out of 50 states and Washington, D.C."

"up from near the bottom in 2009"

"Much of the work has revolved around early literacy and carefully tracking schools’ and students’ progress."

"American schools have wrestled with learning loss for the better part of a decade and no one has found a panacea. Stalling of student progress in K-12 math and reading coincided with less emphasis on standardized tests and a rise in social-media use."

"Researchers believe the secret lies in the components of a state’s plan and how they are implemented. Mississippi, which began emphasizing phonics-based literacy instruction over a decade ago, has since made major academic strides, for example. Researchers say the key ingredients likely included investing in literacy coaches, holding schools and districts accountable, and holding back struggling students at the end of third grade."

"Tennessee policymakers required districts to adopt high-quality instructional materials and trained teachers on how to implement evidence-based reading in classrooms. A 2021 state law required third-graders scoring just below reading proficiency to show “adequate growth” at the end of summer camps to advance to fourth grade."