Cover story for Mediaplanet's "Early Childhood Education" issue, published with USA Today.

When children start kindergarten, they may exhibit varying levels of literacy skills, as well as differences in their learning approaches. Some children may struggle with paying attention, following rules, or completing tasks. Unfortunately, overcrowded classrooms and lack of resources can exacerbate these challenges, making it difficult for children to keep up with their peers. When a student is more than one grade level behind, they fall into a "literacy gap." However, the traditional educational model does not provide these students with the intensive help they need to achieve grade-level reading.

“I believe that literacy is the single most important factor when looking at how we might mitigate all the gaps that our children face — the achievement gap, the word gap, the hope gap — literacy is the key,” explains education advocate LeVar Burton.

“Only 34% of eighth graders are able to read at a proficient level, and nearly 2 out of 3 students leave high school lacking proficient literacy skills.”

LeVar Burton is best known for his prominent role in the iconic TV series "Roots" and as the host of "Reading Rainbow," which is the fourth-longest running show in the history of PBS. The program has been honored with over 200 broadcast awards, including a Peabody Award and 26 Emmy Awards, 11 of which were in the Outstanding Children's Series category.

Learning early

Burton says his mother sparked his passion for learning at an early age.

“It was my mother who inspired my love of literature and the written word,” he recalls. “She was an English teacher, so reading was mandatory in her household. When I was a child, my mother didn’t simply read to me, she read in front of me so I got that very important modeling. She set the example that reading is as necessary for the human species as breathing.”

A recent study by the Nation’s Report Card found that only 34 percent of eighth-grade students are able to read proficiently. Unfortunately, this situation hardly improves with time as nearly two out of three students leave high school without possessing proficient literacy skills. However, despite these bleak statistics, Burton believes that parents and educators can improve the outcomes by customizing the experiences.

“We have to expose children to enough different sources of reading materials until we find that gateway source that is going to turn them into a reader,” he urges. “I believe that you can take any information you want a children to learn — history, math, language, social studies — and embed that information in storytelling. Use the native storytelling idioms of that child’s culture, add in some gaming mechanics and a leveling-up system, and we can turn this educational crisis around."

A new platform

Today, Burton is hoping to reach a new audience — adults — with his podcast LeVar Burton Reads. Each episode features a short story in genres ranging from comedy to science-fiction. In the show's opening sequence, he states, “The only thing that these stories have in common is that I love them, and I think you will too.” He hopes the show will help parents rediscover the simple joys of reading.

“Parents ask me all the time, ‘how do I get my child to read more?' I ask one question — does your child see you read? You have to demonstrate to your kids that reading is an important part of life," he explains. "If you can teach a child to read in at least one language, they have the opportunity to become a lifelong learner. And a lifelong learner is someone who will never finish the job of self-educating." ■

LeVar Burton's Plan to Tackle America's Education Crisis

Learning early

A new platform