Middle & High School: School-Wide Literacy Planning

This month’s post is an updated version of an article I originally wrote in 2011. Unfortunately, since that time, the literacy skills of adolescent students have not improved. This is evident in the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reading results, which show that only 31% of Grade 4 students and 30% of Grade 8 students are performing at or above the proficient level. Literacy skills are more essential than ever for success in college and the workplace, as well as for managing the everyday demands of an increasingly complex society and global economy.

An increasing number of middle and high schools are beginning to acknowledge the need for a school-wide approach to literacy instruction that includes multiple tiers of instruction. Tier 1 instruction consists of content-area literacy instruction for all students and is delivered within subject area classes such as history, science, math, and English. Tiers 2 and 3 provide supplemental and intervention instruction for struggling readers and writers, delivered partly in regular content classes and partly in intervention settings, including extended English/language arts blocks and individual or small-group instruction.

My new book, The Essentials of Adolescent Literacy: Integrating Evidence-Based Reading and Writing Instruction in Grades 5-12, was recently published alongside Keys to Literacy’s companion Keys to Adolescent Literacy professional development course. Together, the book and course help secondary educators understand the unique aspects of adolescent literacy, offer practical instructional suggestions for teaching reading, writing and discussion skills across all subjects, address the needs of adolescents with learning difficulties, and present a secondary literacy assessment model that supports individualized, data-driven reading interventions.

A school-wide adolescent literacy initiative that incorporates the instructional and assessment suggestions described in the book and course should be guided by strong leadership and comprehensive literacy planning that includes the structures and processes needed to meet the diverse needs of  middle and high school learners.

What is a Comprehensive, Strategic Literacy Plan?

A literacy plan, sometimes called a literacy action plan or comprehensive literacy plan, is a strategic roadmap for improving literacy outcomes for all students. It is used to identify the current strengths and gaps in school or district literacy improvement efforts, prioritize areas for improvement, and outline the actions needed to achieve those priorities. The plan provides a shared direction for literacy leaders, educators, and the other stakeholders throughout the school community.

A literacy plan is not a static document. An essential part of the planning process is establishing how the plan will be reviewed, monitored, and revised each year as priorities are accomplished and new priorities emerge. In this way, the plan becomes part of an ongoing cycle of continuous improvement rather than a one-time initiative.

The Keys to Literacy Planning Model

I developed the initial version of the Keys to Literacy Planning Model in 2009 (Sedita, 2011) and refined it over the years based on its implementation in schools and districts across the U.S. When used in middle and high schools, the model provides a structured process for developing a long-term literacy plan that improves school-wide literacy outcomes aligned with a multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) framework. At the center of the model is a building-based literacy leadership team that, along with the principal, leads the development, implementation, and ongoing refinement of the plan.

The model is organized into five phases and six components, described below.

Five Phases

1. Initiation: Assemble a literacy leadership team; develop the team’s foundational literacy knowledge; develop a vision statement; develop a making-the-case statement; establish a communication and document-sharing system.
2. Self-Assessment: Gather information about current literacy practices.
3. Action Planning: Develop goals and prioritize action steps.
4. Plan Writing: Write the plan; include vision and making the case statements, summarize current practices, outline the prioritized goals an corresponding action steps; conclude with an implementation plan.
5. Implementation: Share the plan; implement the plan; monitor and sustain the process.

Six Components

The literacy plan must be multifaceted, addressing six interdependent components that function like cogs in a well-designed machine, guided by effective leadership. Each plays a distinct role, but all must work together as a coherent system to improve literacy outcomes.

1. Literacy Leadership: School leaders, working with a literacy leadership team, guide the development of the systems and processes that support all components of the literacy initiative.
2. Universal, Core Literacy Instruction: Standards-aligned, evidence-based literacy instruction using high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) is provided to all students. Content and disciplinary literacy instruction is integrated across all subjects, with differentiation and scaffolds incorporated to address the needs of all students.
3. Intervention Support and Instruction: Literacy support and intervention instruction is provided to students with below-grade level literacy skills. Instruction is individualized based on student needs, uses evidence-based instructional practices and intervention programs, and is delivered by well-trained intervention educators. Effective scheduling provides sufficient time for intervention while maintaining students’ access to core academic instruction.
4. Assessment and Data-Based Decision Making: Screening, diagnostic, progress monitoring, and summative literacy assessments, along with systematic analysis of assessment data, are used to identify student needs, monitor progress, and inform instructional decisions.

5. Professional Learning: Ongoing, job-embedded professional development and instructional coaching are aligned with implementation of the literacy plan. Educators are also provided regular opportunities for collaboration and collaborative planning.

6. Literacy Resources: Adequate resources are provided to support implementation, including qualified staff, sufficient instructional time, appropriate technology and instructional resources, as well as family and community partnerships that are actively engaged to support the literacy initiative.

The first step in Phase 1 is assembling a literacy planning team that represents the major stakeholders responsible for implementing the literacy plan. Team members should include teachers from all subject areas, intervention educators, literacy coaches and specialists, administrators, and parents. It is important to recognize that literacy planning is a process, not a single event. As with most school-wide initiatives, developing and executing a literacy plan requires time and sustained effort. Planning teams should expect to spend a year developing the plan, followed by another year or two for full implementation.

Once the planning team is assembled, the team takes stock of what is already in place in relation to the six components. This includes gathering information to answer questions such as:

• What assessments are currently used to identify proficient and struggling readers and writers?
• How is assessment data used to inform instructional decisions across multiple tiers of instruction?
• What effective literacy practices are already occurring in content-area classrooms, and what gaps exist?
• What interventions and supplemental literacy programs are currently available for struggling students, and what is missing?
• What additional professional development do content-area teachers need to address all components of reading and writing effectively?
• What additional professional development do intervention educators need to deliver effective intervention instruction?
• Is the school schedule flexible enough to support a variety of grouping patterns for intervention instruction?

After gathering this information, the planning team can set and prioritize goals and action steps for each of the six components. Some action steps may be “low-hanging fruit”—easy to accomplish quickly and with minimal cost. Others will require more time and resources. A concrete plan for addressing these action steps over the next one to two years is essential for sustaining progress.

The six planning components are interrelated. Action steps for one component should align with action steps for others. For example, decisions about all tiers of instruction should be based on assessment data, as should decisions about how to group students and schedule supplemental instruction. Plans for professional development should reflect the needs of teachers who will embed literacy into content instruction and the intervention goals addressed by specialists.

A literacy assessment plan is central to successfully implementing a school-wide adolescent literacy initiative. Screening assessments identify which students are struggling, diagnostic assessments determine why they struggle, and progress-monitoring assessments measure whether instruction is effective in both Tier 1 content classrooms and Tier 2 and 3 supplemental instruction. Read my November 25, 2024 blog post titled Reading Assessment Model, Grades 5-12 for recommendations.

Secondary Literacy Leadership

Middle and high school administrators must play a key role in improving adolescent literacy outcomes by prioritizing the development of literacy skills and allocating instructional time for reading and writing within the school schedule. Administrators must also support flexible scheduling and grouping practices that enable a multi-tiered model of literacy instruction across both content classrooms and intervention settings. Ongoing professional development for both content-area teachers and literacy specialists is essential to support these efforts.

Although the time, effort, and expertise required to develop a school-wide literacy plan can be challenging for many middle and high schools, the investment is well worth the effort. There is an urgent and ongoing need to strengthen the literacy skills of adolescent learners.

Note: this post was updated on August 28, 2026

References:

Sedita, J. (2011). Adolescent literacy: Addressing the needs of students in grades 4–12. In J. R. Birsh (Ed.), Multisensory teaching of basic language skills. Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.

Sedita, J. (2026). Essentials of adolescent literacy: Integrating evidence-based reading and writing instruction in grades 5–12. Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.

Sedita, J. (2025). Keys to adolescent literacy professional development course. Keys to Literacy.

Literacy Planning Services:

Contact Keys to Literacy to learn about support for developing an adolescent literacy plan and literacy leadership services.

Additional Resources:

Rissman, L. M., Miller, D. H., & Torgesen, J. K. (2009). Adolescent literacy walk-through for principals: A guide for instructional leaders. Portsmouth, NH: RMC Research Corporation, Center on Instruction.

Smith, K. G., Dombek, J. L., Foorman, B. R., Hook, K. S., Lee, L., Cote, A.-M., Sanabria, I., & Stafford, T. (2016). Self-study guide for implementing high school academic interventions. (REL 2016–218). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Regional Educational Laboratory Southeast. Retrieved from http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs.

Smith, K. G., Dombek, J. L., Foorman, B. R., Hook, K. S., Lee, L., Cote, A.-M., Sanabria, I., & Stafford, T. (2016). Self-study guide for implementing literacy interventions in grades 3-8. (REL 2016–224). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Regional Educational Laboratory Southeast. Retrieved from http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs.

St. Martin, K., Harms, A., Walsh, M., & Nantais, M. (2023). Reading Tiered Fidelity Inventory Secondary-Level Edition. (Version 2.2). Michigan Department of Education, Michigan’s Multi-Tiered System of Supports Technical Assistance Center