Lifting Up Literacy

In February, the Georgia House Education Committee passed the Georgia Early Literacy Act of 2026—a new bill addressing Georgia’s low literacy rates.

The bill follows a study from the Georgia Literacy Council, which found that 62% of Georgia third-graders aren’t able to read proficiently.

Third grade is an important milestone for literacy. It’s when students are transitioning from “learning to read” to “reading to learn.”

Studies show that children who cannot read well by third grade are four times more likely to drop out of school. Lawmakers hope the bill’s measures will also impact Georgia’s adult literacy rate, currently ranked 45th in the nation according to a report from ThinkImpact.

House Bill 1193

The Georgia Early Literacy Act of 2026 will attempt to help early readers by providing support and guidance to schools, teachers, and families.

Classroom literacy coaches will support teachers with things like lesson planning, co-teaching, and mentoring, while regional leadership coaches will train principals and superintendents in literacy education and make recommendations for how they can support teachers.

The bill also requires children to attend a full-day kindergarten program before they can enroll in first grade, ensuring most students begin their education at age 5 (instead of 6). It will also require schools to develop intervention plans for kindergarteners at risk of not reading at grade level.

The bill passed the Georgia House of Representatives 170-2 in February with overwhelming bipartisan support, although it still needs to be approved by the Senate before the lawmaking session ends on April 2.

Closing the Gap

Classroom interventions are important for improving literacy, although they don’t address some of the most significant factors that affect students from families with low income—many of which occur outside the classroom.

Summer learning loss and inadequate access to learning resources contribute to the literacy gap between lower-income and higher-income students. That’s why, at Emmaus House, we make a point of investing in outside-the-classroom programs like Families on the Move and the CDF Freedom School.

We’re as excited as anyone about the Georgia Early Literacy Act of 2026; it is a major step toward addressing Georgia’s flagging literacy rates. Although without corresponding out-of-classroom support, it’s possible for literacy rates to improve while the gaps between lower-income and higher-income students continue to widen.