Montgomery County Public Schools is the largest public school system in Maryland and 14th largest in the nation. According to Niche, a popular ranking and review site for schools, there are 159,181 students in this school system with an average teacher salary of $79,791. It’s current operating budget is about $3.6 billion. 86.4 percent of their 13,994 teachers hold master’s degrees or the equivalent. An operation this large, with this sort of expertise at its disposal, ought to be able to fix any issue with its basic academic performance especially a core role of primary education: teaching kids how to read, right?

One would think so. And yet the stubborn illiteracy rates over the last ten years indicate otherwise. Why would a system consistently flub one of its core reasons for existence? Here are some possible reasons:

1. An unwillingness to use state resources.

In May 2024, MSDE received a $6.8 million grant from the IBIS Group to fund AIM Pathways professional learning opportunities and SUNY New Paltz SOR micro-credentials. These courses have been available to educators for just over one year. Many Maryland counties mandated this training for all elementary school educators. To date, only 24% of Montgomery County teachers have taken advantage of this free training. The state also provides literacy coaches which are woefully underutilized but could substantially assist the county in raising literacy rates.

2. Hiring from the wrong places.

National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) rates institutes of higher education on the focus they place on science of reading curriculum in their training of teachers. The University of Maryland, one of the premier state universities in the country, received a “C” grade for teacher training. And yet, because of its proximity to Montgomery County (UMD College Park is in Prince George’s County) the county continues to hire a disproportionately large number of teachers from this university. The acceptance of antiquated methods of teaching which are not research-based makes it difficult for students here to get the actual phonics training they need at the classroom level.

3. Lack of advocacy for the students who need it the most.

According to the data, the literacy rates of White and Asian students, those whose voices are most clearly heard in Montgomery County, are in the 70% – 80% percentiles. Meanwhile, literacy rates for the demographic with the least voice, the Latino students, tend to hover in the low 40s percentile. These parents have the hardest time advocating for their children because of barriers of race, culture, and educational backgrounds of the parents themselves. A large system typically responds to the loudest voices. But the voices of those who suffer most from the lack of good literacy instruction have not risen to the surface and won’t, without a change in approach.

When a problem persists, we all like to point the finger at someone or something as the scapegoat. Much as I would like to do the same, the reality is: the problem does not rest with a person, an institution, or an idea. Rather, it is a culture that has festered for years. Changing a culture is no easy task. But when children’s futures are on the line, we are called to step up: parents, concerned citizens, the community. And yes, we pray that our school system will do the same.