May 26, 2024
Opinion | Test scores were terrible before the pandemic, too

Opinion | Test scores were terrible before the pandemic, too

Sadly, the June 27 editorial “Send in the tutors” blew it. The best remedy for education and learning issues before and after the pandemic would be for some students in kindergarten through eighth grade to repeat their grade.

It is important to understand that before the pandemic, many students were not capable of reading, writing or counting at grade level. This is the result of bad education policy that enables grade promotion without proficiency in core subjects.

This is especially true with reading. The research is very clear. If the student is not a proficient reader by the third grade, including the ability to comprehend, interpret and apply the reading material, the student will not “catch up” in later grades and is likely to suffer in other core subjects, because reading is a foundational requirement to success in math, history and science.

Michael Gargano, Hartford, Conn.

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