MOSS POINT — In a Moss Point school conference room, teachers took on the role of students — reading, discussing and analyzing a scientific passage in small groups. As conversation quieted, all eyes turned to the instructor.

“According to your discussion, what is the most important genetic trait to consider when bringing plants into the United States?” asked Laurie Lee, a senior research associate at the Florida Center for Reading Research at Florida State University.

Some teachers chose fertility; others pointed to origin. The structured debate anchored a mock lesson designed to model a key strategy from Mississippi’s new Adolescent Literacy Pilot program — an initiative for grades 4-8 that brings trainers into schools to demonstrate evidence-based reading practices.

Lee said the train

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