Aug. 28, 2024

Moving Literacy Forward gains momentum across state


-South Dakota's Next Chapter of Literacy Instruction.

One year ago, the South Dakota Department of Education (DOE) committed to the Science of Reading as it launched its literacy campaign, Moving Literacy Forward.

Since that time, more than 1,200 South Dakota educators have taken advantage of the South Dakota Literacy Framework professional development, which is an online, interactive training tool developed by the AIM Institute for Learning and Research and paid for by the DOE.

“The AIM Pathways courses have been popular with South Dakota educators,” said Secretary of Education Joe Graves. “They are truly comprehensive courses that faithfully delve into the Science of Reading, which provides educators a solid foundation to teach reading in such a way that is effective for students of all levels.”

The courses, called AIM Pathways, are curated for specific educator specialties:

  • Pathways to Proficient Reading and Pathways to Proficient Writing are geared towards K-5 core teachers;
  • Pathways to Literacy Leadership is designed for school administrators;
  • The Early Childhood Bundle is for pre-kindergarten teachers, K-3 non-core teachers, and paraeducators; and
  • Steps to Literacy II is geared towards middle and high school teachers and those who teach 4-12 non-core classes.

South Dakota educators have been quick to take advantage of the course offerings. Besides the opportunity to become familiar with the Science of Reading, completion of the courses provides teachers with continuing education contact hours and, in some cases, graduate credits. Currently, all course offerings for the Pathways to Proficient Reading and Pathways to Proficient Writing are full. Some openings are available for fall cohorts in Pathways to Literacy Leadership, the Early Childhood Bundle, and Steps to Literacy II.

During the 2024 legislative session, Gov. Noem supported a $6 million appropriation to provide professional development in literacy to South Dakota teachers. DOE is using those dollars, in part, to work with the state’s public universities to create coursework focused on the Science of Reading to be incorporated into teacher preparation programs and to be used in the long-term for teacher development. “The goal of these efforts is that all South Dakota teachers will be armed with the most proven strategies for teaching our youngsters to read,” Graves said.

The DOE’s Division of Learning and Instruction is in the early phases of planning a literacy conference for South Dakota educators. The conference, to be held June 2-3, 2025, will be held in Sioux Falls and will focus on effective teaching strategies for teaching K-12 students how to read and write.

To learn more about the AIM Pathways training available for South Dakota educators, visit the AIM Institute South Dakota website.