Our update today includes several statewide stories as well as news from Waukesha and Marathon Counties, UW Madison, and more. We begin with a troubling look at literacy in our state. Welcome to Thursday’s Key Reads.

A new law, if properly implemented could address a pressing issue in Wisconsin schools.

Wisconsin students failing reading exams, and so are future teachers | The Capital Times

Most Wisconsin students are poor readers. Each year, about three out of every five typically fail to score proficient in state reading tests. 

But it’s not just students struggling. Wisconsin’s prospective teachers haven’t fared much better in exams they must pass to become a licensed educator. 

…“We have kids struggling to read and teachers that don’t have the adequate skills to teach reading,” Hejtmanek said. “They don’t understand how kids learn to read. They’re using ineffective practices of what they had learned in college because that’s what they were told.” 

…Educator preparation programs are required under the new law to show the Department of Public Instruction that evidence-based instruction is part of their curriculums. The law mandates science-of-reading training for faculty who teach reading instruction at Universities of Wisconsin campuses, as well. 

And here’s a roundup of links to news from around the state.