While tech giants push to improve AI literacy, some of the nation’s worst-performing states are already seeing real results as they leverage AI to solve their literacy crisis.
san francisco, March 27, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — On National AI Literacy Day, Amira Learning (Amira), a learning agent that combines the Science of Reading and AI to deliver proven student reading improvement, is calling on technology and education leaders to rethink the rush to AI literacy and focus first on the literacy crisis already in front of us. With less than one-third of fourth-grade students in the United States reading at grade level, moves to teach students how to use AI risk widening the very gap that AI promises to fill.
Tech giants like Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI are pushing schools to teach AI literacy, but it’s a luxury for millions of children who still can’t read at grade level. The technology industry has repeatedly forced society to adapt, from learning how to use computers and navigate the Internet to mastering social media, mobile devices, and virtual reality. This time, in our haste, we risk overlooking more fundamental challenges. In other words, before AI literacy becomes an issue, students need reading comprehension.
“AI literacy is a great idea for students who can already read. For the millions of students who can’t read, it’s just another way the gap widens,” said Amy Scholz, COO of Amira Learning. “The question we need to ask is not how do we teach kids about AI? It’s how do we leverage AI to ensure that all students, regardless of their background, have the foundation they need to become strong, confident readers.”
Some of the states with the lowest reading scores in the country won’t wait. Louisiana and Oklahoma have implemented Amira statewide, and school districts in all 50 states are using the award-winning learning agent to help more students reach reading proficiency. Rather than concentrating AI tools in already well-resourced schools and widening disparities, Amira’s proven approach uses AI to expand the reach of trained educators to deliver one-on-one reading practice with micro-interventions and real-time feedback at scale. Students who read with Amira for just 30 minutes a week gain an average of 9 weeks of growth during a typical 36-week school year. This progress has been shown time and time again in independent studies.
“The most powerful thing AI can do right now is solve the basic literacy crisis, not add another skill on top of it,” Scholz said.
Amira is calling on superintendents, chief academic officers, and state education leaders to make an important distinction: not all AI is created equal. The real opportunity is not to teach students about AI. It’s about deploying agent AI that’s purpose-built, with science-based data privacy, and designed to extend the reach of educators to every student in every classroom across the country.
About Amira Learning
As a leader in agentic learning, Amira Learning helps every student become a proficient reader. This promise becomes a reality with Amira, the first learning agent for reading growth.TM Developed from Carnegie Mellon University’s 30 years of neuroscience research and expertise in the science of reading and AI, Amira is a catalyst for each district to create consistency across assessment and tutoring and execute their unique literacy vision from strategy to high-fidelity implementation in every classroom. Independent studies have shown Amira to be effective time and time again. Students who read books with Amira in regular doses experience tangible benefits. Amira serves 5 million K-12 students worldwide and is growing every day. For more information, please visit www.amiralearning.com.
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Source Amira Learning
