Letter to the Editor: North Dakotans' comments sought On state literacy instruction plan

State Superintendent Kirsten Baesler is asking North Dakotans to provide their reviews and opinions about a comprehensive state literacy instruction plan that is being updated this summer.

The plan is a framework for strengthening all students’ abilities to read, write, speak and listen. It includes these essential elements: leadership, instruction and intervention, standards alignment, assessment and evaluation, professional development, and family and community engagement.

The updated plan’s most recent draft is on the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction’s website https://www.nd.gov/dpi/uploads/1579/LiteracyPlanPublicReviewCopy.pdf. North Dakotans who want to comment about the plan, or suggest changes to it, may consider using this online form to make their views known. Additional information about the North Dakota Comprehensive Literacy Instruction Plan is available https://www.nd.gov/dpi/SchoolStaff/AS/SRCL/NDCSLP/

Local literacy plans are common in North Dakota, but not all of them are aligned with the standards and goals of the state’s updated literacy instruction plan, Baesler said Wednesday.

Amanda Peterson, assistant director of the Office of Academic Support in the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction, said the plan update is being drafted by a group of 10 educators, whose expertise ranges from early childhood to high school and universities.

Public comment is being taken through June 15.