However, many say they are not being given the skills and knowledge they need to deliver literacy outcomes in their subjects.
The findings have come from a survey of more than 2,300 teachers, teaching assistants and literacy co-ordinators carried out by the National Literacy Trust (NLT).
The current curriculum requires teachers of all subjects to develop pupils’ spoken language, promote reading for enjoyment, and emphasise accurate spelling, grammar and punctuation in written work.
However, they survey found that 52 per cent of teachers say a lack of knowledge is a key barrier to improving literacy in their school.
Furthermore, 24 per cent do not feel confident teaching the literacy requirements of the new national curriculum.
The survey sample included teachers from 24 primary schools and 88 secondary schools, with the majority of respondents being from a secondary background.
Elsewhere, 77 per cent of the respondents said that pupils’ home environment was a barrier to literacy, 51 per cent cited a lack of time in school for literacy promotion as a problem, and 63 per cent said that their colleagues could do with improving their own literacy.
As a result of its findings, the NLT is urging schools to consider investing in CPD to increase teachers’ confidence and understanding and awareness of “appropriate strategies” for literacy.
NLT director Jonathan Douglas said: “Literacy must now be taught by every teacher even if their specialism is in maths or science. A changing education landscape over recent years means that some teachers will not have been trained to teach literacy and other teachers may not even have learnt literacy at school themselves but are now required to teach it. There is a clear need for literacy to be embedded in CPD plans to equip teachers with the knowledge and confidence that they feel they lack to meet the literacy requirements set out in the national curriculum."