Analyzing the Impact of LETRS Training on Academic Achievement in North Carolina Schools

All public elementary school teachers in North Carolina were required to complete the Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS) professional development course for teachers. Utilizing a quazi-experimental difference-in-difference design, this study analyzes the impact of LETRS on school-level average 3rd Grade End-of-Grade reading scores. This study finds that, holding year and school fixed effects constant, LETRS training is associated with an increase in student reading scores per month of exposure to LETRS.