Red States Quietly Improve Schools — and Why Maryland Should Pay Attention

By MDBayNews Staff

A growing body of education data is forcing an uncomfortable conversation in blue states: some of the strongest post-pandemic gains in public education are coming from places long written off as policy laggards.

In a recent column, New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof points to Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi as examples of states that improved reading, math, attendance, and graduation rates by largely ignoring the national culture wars that dominate education debates elsewhere.

His argument is simple but provocative: while much of the country turned classrooms into ideological battlegrounds, these states stayed focused on instruction.

The results are hard to dismiss.

What the Data Shows

According to national assessments and independent analyses:

• Louisiana ranks No. 1 in recovery from pandemic-era reading losses.
• Alabama leads the nation in math recovery and reports the lowest chronic absenteeism rate among tracked states.
• Mississippi, once synonymous with educational failure, now ranks near the top nationally in fourth-grade reading — and No. 1 after adjusting for poverty and demographics.
• Black fourth-grade students in Mississippi outperform their peers in Massachusetts, a state often cited as having the nation’s best public schools and one that spends roughly twice as much per student.

These gains did not come from sweeping new funding formulas or constant policy churn. They came from consistency.

What These States Did Differently

Kristof’s core point is not that these states embraced conservative education politics — but that they refused to let politics dominate classrooms at all.

Instead, they emphasized:

• Early literacy and phonics-based instruction
• Clear academic benchmarks
• Attendance enforcement
• Stable standards that didn’t change with every political shift

Mississippi’s literacy reforms, launched more than a decade ago, were maintained across administrations. Alabama and Louisiana similarly resisted the temptation to continually redefine success.

Why This Matters for Maryland

Maryland spends among the highest amounts per pupil in the nation and prides itself on progressive education policy. Yet the state continues to struggle with:

• Persistent achievement gaps
• Chronic absenteeism, particularly in urban districts
• Uneven post-pandemic academic recovery

The contrast raises an uncomfortable question: is Maryland too focused on managing education politics instead of education outcomes?

In recent years, Maryland debates around schooling have increasingly centered on symbolism, governance, and ideological alignment — often with less attention to whether students are mastering core skills.

Kristof’s argument suggests that success may depend less on political posture and more on institutional discipline.

A Lesson Beyond Red and Blue

This is not a call for Maryland to copy Southern states wholesale, nor is it an endorsement of any partisan agenda.

It is a reminder that education systems perform best when leaders:

• Resist constant reinvention
• Insulate classrooms from political crossfire
• Prioritize measurable learning outcomes over messaging

For a state like Maryland — wealthy, diverse, and policy-heavy — the takeaway may be especially relevant. High spending and good intentions are not substitutes for focus.

The Real Question

If states with fewer resources and deeper challenges can produce sustained academic gains by tuning out the noise, Maryland policymakers may need to ask whether they are listening too closely to it.

Sometimes the most effective reform isn’t bold or ideological.
Sometimes it’s boring, consistent, and stubbornly focused on teaching kids how to read, write, and do math.

That may not drive headlines — but it does drive results.

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