Mississippi 'Miracle' Catapults 4th-grade Reading Scores from Bottom into top 10 by getting back to Phonics

Joseph MacKinnon November 29, 2025

In 2013, Mississippi ranked 49th out of the 50 US States in grade four reading on the National Assessment of Education Progress -- the largest continuing national assessment of American students' knowledge and capability in math, reading, science, and writing.

In what has repeatedly been dubbed a "miracle," the sate made its way up the list-- to 29th in 2019 and then 10 spots higher to ninth place nationally for reading scores last year.

According to the NAEP, black students in Mississippi ranked third nationally last year among their cohort for reading and math scores.  Hispanic students in the state ranked first in the nation for reading and second for math scores.  An poor students in the Magnolia State ranked first for reading and second for math scores nationally. ....

https://www.theblaze.com/news/mississippi-miracle-catapults-4th-grade-reading-scores-from-bottom-into-top-10-by-getting-back-to-phonics