Mission
The Orton-Gillingham Center of Charleston brings experts, stakeholders, and donors together to transform literacy instruction for ALL students.
Vision
OGCC has a vision that all students will have access to evidence-based reading instruction regardless of age, race or socioeconomic status.
The Problem
In 2022, only 26% of 8th graders in South Carolina scored as proficient readers.
(Source: NAEP)
In 2000, the National Reading Panel concluded its three-year study of the research surrounding reading. They recommended explicit instruction in phonemic awareness, systematic phonics instruction, methods to improve fluency, and ways to improve reading comprehension. This approach was very different from that of the Balanced Literacy Approach, based on the Three-Cueing Method.
The Science of Reading remains clear on how the brain learns to read, yet parents and educators remain frustrated by the lack of progress in aligning all reading instruction with the Science of Reading and ensuring our teachers have the training needed for delivery in the classroom.
Repercussions
3 out of 4 people on welfare are illiterate. – Washington Literacy Council
80% of America’s prison inmates are either low-level readers or illiterate.
– US Census Data, 200085% of all juvenile offenders have reading problems. – U.S. Department of Education
More than 20 percent of adults read at or below a fifth-grade level, which is far below the level needed to earn a living wage. – National Institute for Literacy, Fast Facts on Literacy, 2001
21 million Americans cannot read at all, 45 million are marginally illiterate, and one-fifth of high school graduates cannot read their diplomas. – Department of Justice, 1993
50 percent of American adults are unable to read an eighth-grade level book. – Jonathan Kozol, Illiterate America
The Solution
Aligning Classroom Instruction with the Science of Reading
While all students deserve to have access to evidence-based instruction, all teachers deserve to be equipped with the understanding and knowledge of the Science of Reading and practice in teaching a child to read.
