Year 4 Reading Academies Updates

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) has posted Year 4 Reading Academies updates in the summary of changes released in the commissioner’s superintendent call on February 16.  

House Bill 3 (HB 3), passed during the regular session of the 86th Texas Legislature, required all kindergarten through Grade 3 general and special education teachers and principals to attend a teacher literacy achievement academy referred to as the HB 3 Reading Academies. HB 3 was updated in the regular session of the 87^th Texas Legislature to extend the completion deadline of the Reading Academies to the end of the 2022-2023 school year.

Reading Academies have created a path for teachers and administrators to use research-based strategies to improve reading skills of students across the state. An exemption for art, health education, music, physical education, speech communication, and theater arts teachers continues to be available.

Year 4 Updates

To date, 81,198 teachers and administrators have completed Texas Reading Academies. Another 50,849 are currently in process of completion. This will result in over 132,000 educator completions by December 2023.

It is estimated significantly fewer teachers will need Reading Academies next year and beyond. This estimate is as low as 25 percent of enrollment in years two and three. Because of the decline in the number of teachers who will participate, available funds per teacher will increase. HB 3 provided several new funding sources that can be used to pay for teacher attendance at Reading Academies. The early education allotment in 2024 is expected to total over $760 million and is not expected to decrease.

All Year 3 pathways offered a blended model, with the English, language arts, reading (ELAR) pathway and the biliteracy pathway also offering a comprehensive model. Comprehensive Model vs. Blended Model is found on the TEA website and provides a comparison of the two models. A TEA survey revealed there was a much higher rate of timely artifact submission and higher satisfaction scores of the comprehensive cohort learners than the blended cohort learners.

Year 4 adjustments to support a more positive experience for learners include a shift to the comprehensive model for all pathways except the administrator pathway and the extenuating circumstances pathway.

Year 4 also will provide an opportunity for educator preparation programs (EPPs) to embed the Reading Academies content in their curriculum. The 2023-2024 school year will be a pilot year for three to six EPPs preceding voluntary implementation for other EPPs in the 2024-2025 school year. 

Comprehensive Model

The comprehensive model includes pre-work in Canvas and live sessions. It is delivered by a learning coach who leads a single cohort of 30 to 60 participants. Feedback is provided to participants through Canvas and four personalized, job-embedded coaching sessions. Participant mastery must be shown through checks for understanding and artifacts. Pathways can be completed in 60 hours.

The cost of the comprehensive model is $3,000, compared to the blended model at $400 per participant. While local education agencies (LEAs) will send fewer teachers to the Reading Academies starting in the 2023-2024 school year, the cost incurred per participant is over seven times greater. Additional costs include substitute teachers for participant coverage. 

Resources

See the TEA resources below to help navigate Reading Academies requirements.

• HB 3 Reading Academies
• Reading Academies Implementation Information
• Math Teacher Waiver Application (available until May 31, 2023)
• Authorized Provider List
• Reading Academies Pathways