Key points:

An oft-cited phrase is that students “learn to read, then read to learn.”  

It’s time to put that phrase to bed.

Students do need to learn the fundamentals of reading in the early grades, including phonics, which is critical for reading success and mastery. However, it is not true that students learn all they need to learn about reading by the end of elementary school, and then spend the rest of their lives as reading masters who only read to learn. 

Teachers are noticing that older readers need ongoing support to read materials used in their classrooms. In a study commissioned by the Advanced Education Research and Development Fund (AERDF), a national nonprofit, 44 percent of grade 3–8 teachers reported that their students always or nearly always have difficulty reading instructional materials.

In grades 6-12, students are still learning to read and are still reading to learn. However, “learning to read” matures into more advanced decoding of multisyllabic words, syntax (all those annoying grammar rules that the reader needs to pay attention to to understand a sentence), fluency on longer sentences and paragraphs, and comprehension, which requires an increasingly sophisticated understanding of a wide range of topics across content areas.

Consider the word “sad.” Most elementary school students can decode the word sad and would easily recognize it in both speech and print. Now, consider the words “crusade,” “ambassador,” “Pasadena,” “misadvise,” and “quesadilla.” Each contains the letters “sad” within the word, none of the pronunciations are the same as “sad,” and none mean unhappiness or sorrow. Without instruction on multisyllabic words (and morphemes), we can’t assume that middle schoolers can decode words containing “sad,” especially with different pronunciations and meanings. But middle schoolers are expected to navigate these types of words in their language arts, social studies, and science classes.   

“Sad” and its many appearances in words is just one example of the increasing complexity of literacy beyond elementary school, and middle schoolers will also encounter more interdisciplinary subjects that play a unique role in their developing literacy skills. Here are four points to consider when it comes to adolescent literacy:

1. Reading and writing instruction must become increasingly discipline-specific. While foundational reading skills are universal, students must enhance their skills to meet the unique expectations of different subjects, like literature, science, social studies, and math. Texts in those subjects vary widely, from historical documents to graphs to fictional literature, each having its own language, rules, and comprehension demands. Students must be taught to read for science in science, for math in math, and for social studies in social studies. How and what they read in language arts is not sufficient enough to transfer to different content areas. The reading approach to “The Old Man and the Sea” is different from “The Gettysburg Address,” and both are different from a scientific article on cell division. Along with reading, students must be taught how to write in ways that reflect the uniqueness of the content.  
2. This means that it’s all hands on deck for upper-grade educators. Adolescent literacy is often associated with language arts, but reading and writing are integrated practices that underpin every discipline. This calls for all educators to be experts in their discipline’s literacy practices, supporting and developing student skills, from reading and writing poetry and prose in language arts; to primary and secondary source documents, maps, and political cartoons in social studies; graphs, reports, and research in science; and equations and word problems in mathematics.
3. Build background knowledge to enhance comprehension. As students advance to higher grades, their discipline-specific reading skills impact their ability to attain content knowledge. The more students understand about the discipline, the better they can engage with the content and its unique vocabulary. Precise language like “theme,” “mitosis,” “amendment,” and “equation” requires students to read with increasing sophistication. To meet the content and knowledge demands of their discipline, educators must incorporate background knowledge building, starting with the meaning of words to help students unlock comprehension. 
4. Teaching fluency, vocabulary, and syntax is evergreen. Along with multisyllabic decoding, students should continue to receive instruction and practice in each of the above, as they all play a starring role in how well readers comprehend a text.

And most importantly, the education community must take a K-12 approach to literacy if it’s serious about improving reading outcomes for students. As more data emerges on the reading challenges of adolescents in this post-COVID era, it’s more critical now than ever to include adolescent literacy in funding and planning. The data are clear that support for literacy instruction cannot stop at fifth-grade graduation.

While middle school students are “reading to learn,” we must remember that they are also “learning to read” well into and through high school. It’s more important than ever that state and local education leaders support policies and resources that seamlessly provide for the ongoing academic literacy needs from kindergarten to 12th grade.

ASSIST Software, one of Romania’s most innovative technology companies, plays a central role in transforming European education through EdTech programs such as IDEATE – the Inclusive Digital Education and Teacher Empowerment Academy.

The IDEATE project, funded by the Erasmus+ Teacher Academies program, officially launched this year in Suceava and unites leading universities, teacher training centers, and education authorities from across the continent.

As the technical partner, ASSIST Software is tasked with developing the project’s digital backbone: adaptive and gamified learning platforms that will equip teachers with cutting-edge tools to create inclusive classrooms. Built in Suceava by a team of Romanian engineers, these solutions combine technological innovation with social responsibility

Romanian innovation supporting inclusive education

IDEATE’s vision is clear: to empower educators with the skills, confidence, and resources they need to meet the diverse needs of students, particularly neurodivergent learners. ASSIST Software’s engineers are building a platform that integrates gamification, adaptive learning pathways, and digital collaboration features, ensuring that teachers can personalize their teaching while maintaining high levels of student engagement.

The technology will also incorporate artificial intelligence, enabling the platform to provide real-time feedback, suggest tailored resources, and help teachers track student progress. For neurodivergent learners, this means access to learning environments that adapt to their strengths and challenges. At the same time, it provides a powerful assistant that reduces workload and increases teaching effectiveness.

European impact: 1,700+ teachers, 180 mobilities, and a Digital Hub

The scale of IDEATE reflects its ambition. By 2027, more than 1,700 pre-service and in-service educators will complete accredited training in inclusive education. The project also predicts 180 cross-border mobilities, including workshops, summer schools, and virtual exchanges, connecting teachers from across Europe in a dynamic practice network.

ASSIST Software’s digital platform will host all these users, with elements designed to boost engagement and encourage teachers to create and share their own open educational resources (OERs). At least half of trained teachers are expected to contribute to this growing digital library, while 35% will report improved well-being and self-efficacy as a direct result of the program.

For classrooms, this means better prepared teachers, stronger inclusion of neurodivergent students, and digital tools that make teaching more active and accessible.

A consortium for change and pioneering

IDEATE brings together an international consortium of universities, teacher training institutions, and education authorities, anchored by Ștefan cel Mare University of Suceava (USV). Partners include Bielefeld University (Germany), Universitat de Lleida (Spain), the University of Patras (Greece), and the University of Perugia (Italy). Romanian partners such as the Suceava County School Inspectorate, the George Tofan Teachers’ Training Center, and Mihai Eminescu National College are also actively involved.

This diverse partnership ensures that IDEATE is a Romanian achievement as well as a truly European effort, with best practices and expertise flowing across borders.

Turning AI into teaching tools

Integrating AI into education is one of our time’s defining challenges and opportunities. While debates continue over how automation and machine learning will reshape work and society, IDEATE demonstrates a constructive and ethical application: equipping educators with intelligent tools that adapt to diverse classrooms, reduce administrative burdens, and unlock new methods of personalized teaching. 

The ASSIST AI Center is already a hub for developing trustworthy, human-centered technologies that ensure AI enhances rather than disrupts education. By advancing research in adaptive learning, gamification, and ethical AI, the center is paving the way for EdTech solutions that not only empower teachers and students but also open new career paths and growth.

Through adaptive algorithms and gamified experiences, ASSIST’s platforms will help educators address the complexity of modern classrooms, where students come with varied backgrounds, abilities, and learning styles. For policymakers and education leaders, the project offers a blueprint for how AI can be responsibly embedded into teacher training and classroom practice.

Romania’s role in Europe’s education future

For ASSIST Software, participation in IDEATE builds on a strong record of European collaboration, with over 30 EU-funded projects already in its portfolio. Certified to international standards and employing more than 400 engineers, the company continues to demonstrate that Romanian technology firms can lead on issues of global importance, from cybersecurity to digital education.

By contributing its expertise in AI, software engineering, and user-centered design, ASSIST ensures that the IDEATE project will deliver more than training courses. It will leave behind a sustainable digital ecosystem that empowers educators and enriches learning for years to come.

A shared European mission

As Europe seeks to prepare its education systems for the challenges of the 21st century, ASSIST’s role in IDEATE confirms that the future of inclusive, AI-driven learning is already taking shape and that Romania is helping to lead the way.

*This is a Press release.

On a visceral level, it feels far too common.

A week ago, conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated while speaking at a college in Utah. That same day, a student opened fire at a Colorado high school, critically wounding two peers. Just two weeks earlier, a mass shooting at a Minnesota Catholic church killed two children and injured 21 others.

Once again, a series of horrific, high-profile shootings has gripped the country and brought national focus to the issue of gun violence, especially as it relates to school safety and politically motivated attacks.

NPR spoke with experts on mass shootings, political violence, and school attacks about the data, trends and context to better understand this moment.

Here’s what to know.

Are mass shootings becoming more frequent? 

There’s no universal definition for a mass shooting, so data can vary based on the number of victims killed or injured, where the shooting took place, and whether it was related to gang activity or terrorism.

For example, the Regional Gun Violence Research Consortium at the Rockefeller Institute of Government, a nonpartisan think tank, only tracks shootings that occur in public or populated places, involve at least two victims (injured or killed), and excludes incidents related to gang violence or terrorist activity. By their definition, there have been 12 mass shootings in 2025.

Meanwhile, the Gun Violence Archive — which counts all instances in which four or more people were shot (injuries and deaths), not including the shooter, and regardless of location — reported over 300 mass shootings this year.

Still, by most standards, mass shootings are more frequent now than they were 50 years ago, according to Garen Wintemute, director of the  Centers for Violence Prevention at the University of California, Davis. At the same time, mass shooting deaths represent only a tiny fraction of people killed by gun violence. Wintemute said that most also don’t resemble the attacks that dominate national headlines.

“ Most mass shootings are not events that generate a lot of publicity,” he said. “ Most mass shootings have some connection to domestic violence.”

Everytown for Gun Safety, an advocacy group that uses data from the Gun Violence Archive, found that in 46% of mass shootings from 2015 through 2022, “the perpetrator shot a current or former intimate partner or family member.”

What about school shootings?

Gun-related incidents on school grounds have surged since the pandemic, according to David Riedman, a researcher who tracks all cases in which a gun is fired, brandished or in which a bullet hits K-12 school property. His K-12 School Shooting Database shows that there have been more than 160 incidents so far this year.

Before 2021, the number of instances had not surpassed 124. But by 2023, that figure climbed to 351. While the recent attack at Evergreen High School in Colorado is front of mind, Riedman said most shootings are the result of an escalated dispute.

“ That really escalated in the late 2010s and then became an even bigger problem post-COVID during the return of both students and community members to the campuses,” he said.

At large, only a small share of K-12 schools report gun-related instances each year, according to Riedman. Among school incidents, part of the issue is that some students live in homes where firearms are easily accessible or not properly secured, he said.

“There are students arrested with guns at schools just about every single day, and they don’t have a plan to shoot anyone,” Riedman said. “They just carry the gun with them often for either the prestige of having it or for protection because they themselves fear being victimized.”

Are politically motivated attacks becoming a bigger threat in the U.S.?

Political violence has been rising over the past decade, according to terrorism and gun violence experts. Joshua Horwitz, the co-director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions, said while the issue has existed throughout American history, the recent surge is significant.

“Just in the last 12 months we’ve seen terrible, terrible examples of political violence,” he said. “ We’ve just seen a lot more intimidation lately.”

There are a few ways to measure this, but one indicator comes from the U.S. Capitol Police. In 2024, the agency investigated over 9,400 “concerning statements and direct threats” against members of Congress — more than twice the number in 2017.

In a study published on Monday, Wintemute of UC Davis found that while most Americans reject political violence, those who hold harmful beliefs — such as racism, hostile sexism, homonegativity, transphobia, xenophobia, antisemitism, or Islamophobia — are also more likely than others to believe that political violence is justifiable. Support for political violence was even higher among individuals who harbored multiple hateful phobias, according to his survey of over 9,300 adults.

But Wintemute’s research also suggests there are small steps that can help curb political violence. In a survey conducted last year, a small number of respondents said they would participate if a civil war broke out. Yet, of that group, about 45% said they would abandon that position if urged by family members.

“  We just need to make sure that those of us who reject it speak as loudly as do those who support it,” he added.

How widespread is the issue of gun violence? 

More than 46,000 people died from gun-related injuries in 2023, according to an analysis by Pew Research Center using the latest available data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Gun homicides have declined since 2021, while suicides continue to make up a majority of gun deaths, Pew Research found. But for many Americans, gun violence may hit closer to home than many people expect.

In 2023, Liz Hamel and her team at KFF, a health research group, conducted a survey of more than 1,200 adults across the country about their experiences with gun-related incidents. The survey found that 1 in 5 respondents said they have personally been threatened with a gun, while nearly 1 in 6 said they have personally witnessed a person get shot. Worries about gun violence also affected Black and Hispanic respondents disproportionately.

“We often see national attention to the issue of gun violence in the wake of high-profile events,” Hamel said. “What our polling really shows is that experiences with gun-related incidents are more common than you might think among the U.S. population.”

In the survey, 84% of all participants said they have taken at least one precaution to protect themselves against gun violence. The most common step was speaking to loved ones about gun safety. But about a third said they have avoided large crowds or big events. Meanwhile, 3 out of 10 said they have purchased a firearm to protect themselves or their family from gun violence.

Of the people who have a gun in their home, nearly half of participants said a firearm was stored in an unlocked location and more than one-third said a gun was stored loaded. More than half said at least one gun is stored in the same location as the ammunition. Those results suggest the need for more efforts to teach the public about safe gun storage practices, according to Hamel.

“  We do see opportunities for improved awareness around gun safety,” she said.