This fall, changes are coming to New York City classrooms. Education department officials say they will require all elementary schools to adopt a phonics-based reading program — a potentially seismic shift in how tens of thousands of public school students are taught to read.

Before the coronavirus hit, less than half of the city’s students in grades 3-8 were considered proficient readers, according to state tests. The pandemic has only multiplied concerns that students have been knocked off track. The shift to recommended phonics-based curricula for kindergarten through second grade is part of a $7.4 million plan from Mayor Eric Adams to address literacy. Adams also has announced new efforts to identify and support students with dyslexia or other reading challenges, including screening students from kindergarten through high school and creating targeted programs at 160 of the city’s 1,600 schools. What should parents, students, and educators know about the changes to reading instruction officials are promising this fall? What do experts recommend when it comes to teaching young learners how to read? How can parents know if their children are getting solid reading instruction, and how can they advocate if they’re not?

Join Chalkbeat New York in this video recording as we tackle these questions and more. Thanks to our event partner, THE CITY. And special thanks to our exclusive sponsor for this event, Lexia Learning.

Our panel will feature:

Alex Zimmerman (@AGZimmerman), Chalkbeat reporter and moderator. Katharine Pace Miles (@KPMilesPhD), associate professor at Brooklyn College, CUNY. Naomi Peña (@NaomiPenaNYC), parent council president in Manhattan’s District 1 and part of the parent group working to launch a school geared toward students with dyslexia.

Mercedes Valentin-Davila (@mdavila49), kindergarten and dual language teacher at Brooklyn’s P.S. 24. Carolyne Quintana (@QCarolyneQ1), NYC deputy chancellor for teaching and learning. Darlene Cameron (@DarleneACameron), principal of The STAR Academy - P.S.63