Illiterate Graduate Sues School District, Shines Light on Nationwide Issue

January 6, 2025 TruthUSA

Weeks ahead of her high school graduation, Aleysha Ortiz expressed her frustration to members of the Hartford Board of Education at their meeting in Hartford, Connecticut on May 7, 2024.

“It felt like they were indifferent to my future,” she remarked about her school. “I genuinely believe you do not value me as a student and as a person, and you are not invested in my education.”

Despite claiming that she had never learned to read or write, Ortiz still received her diploma from Hartford High School and was accepted into the University of Connecticut-Hartford, based on a lawsuit she filed against the Hartford Board of Education in December 2024.

The lawsuit noted that due to language barriers, she had needed an individualized learning plan since first grade. It stated that throughout her entire schooling, she was supported by a team of case managers and special education teachers. By the time she reached middle school, her academic skills were reportedly at the levels of kindergarten or first grade.

In a report issued by a school social worker at the end of her junior year on May 23, 2023, it was indicated that Ortiz “consistently and persistently advocated for reading and writing assistance; stated that she couldn’t write and could barely grip a pencil; mentioned her struggles to write in class; and that she had to take assignments home to use voice-to-text features on her computer,” as detailed in the lawsuit.

The Epoch Times attempted to reach Hartford Public Schools for a comment but did not receive a response.

Recent state assessment findings highlighting low literacy rates among students nationwide, alongside high graduation rates, imply that Ortiz may not be a unique case.

Challenges in public school literacy, exacerbated by language barriers, special education needs, and the adoption of assistive technology that may bypass traditional learning methodologies, could become a significant discussion point for education policymakers and legislators in the near future.

Jason Dudash, the West Coast director for the Freedom Foundation think tank, indicated that the historical standards for reading and writing are diminishing.

To maintain state funding for special education and other programs, school districts are required to show some evidence of performance improvements—often resulting in a greater focus on graduation rates compared to state standardized testing outcomes.

“This ties back to government incentive structures,” Dudash stated to The Epoch Times. “Graduation has lost its significance; it’s essentially become a mere participation award.”

The Barbara Foundation for National Literacy reports that out of 130 million Americans, around 54 percent between the ages of 16 and 74 read below the sixth-grade level, with nearly one in five adults in the United States reading below the third-grade level.

A student reads a book in the library at Yung Wing School P.S. 124 in New York City on Feb. 2, 2022. Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

Oregon Eliminates Requirements

In Oregon, students are no longer obligated to demonstrate proficiency in reading or writing to graduate from high school. The state Board of Education voted in September 2023 to suspend state assessments of these crucial skills until the 2027–28 academic year.

A report from the state Senate in 2022 recommended to the Legislature and State Board of Education that Oregon’s graduation requirements reflect a commitment to equity, inclusion, and access.

“While graduation rates have shown positive trends, significant inequities persist, including systemic bias and limited access to quality educational resources,” the report emphasized.

One school counselor was quoted as saying that action must be taken to combat “systemic approaches that favor white supremacy, middle-class values, and inadequate access to resources and support.”

State Representative Christine Drazen, who previously ran as a Republican candidate for governor, opposed the removal of the skills requirement.

“We shouldn’t lower our expectations; our public schools require a plan to enhance academic achievement for students,” Drazen stated in a letter to the state Board of Education on October 19, 2023. “Without such focus, students will continue to face challenges.”

National Standards

The latest report by the National Assessment of Educational Progress, commonly referred to as the Nation’s Report Card, revealed that over half of U.S. eighth graders were rated at the basic reading level in 2022.

New Mexico and Washington, D.C. had the lowest rates at 57 percent, while New Jersey and Massachusetts achieved the highest rates at 77 percent. Connecticut and Oregon were at 72 percent and 67 percent, respectively.

However, proficiency rates were significantly lower, with New Mexico at the bottom with only 18 percent; New Jersey led with 42 percent; Connecticut recorded 35 percent; and Oregon had 28 percent.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), 98 percent of public schools reported that some students were behind a grade level in both math and English Language Arts, noted.

A teacher instructs second graders during a math class at Stark Elementary School in Stamford, Conn., on Sept. 16, 2020. John Moore/Getty Images

As per NCES, the high school graduation rate for U.S. high school students was 87 percent in 2022, showing an increase of 7 percent from 2012.

Additionally, the Northwest Evaluation Association found that public education has not seen significant improvements since the COVID-19 pandemic.

This nonprofit organization, focused on K–12 assessment and research, collaborates with state education departments and school districts to create state tests, implement additional tests to track progress, and identify areas where teaching can be enhanced.

The Northwest Evaluation Association’s latest assessment involving 7.7 million students from grades 3 to 8 across all 50 states found that average reading scores decreased by 36 percent between fall 2023 and spring 2024. It also indicated that based on English Language Arts scores, most middle school students lack the necessary vocabulary and decoding skills needed for reading upon completing elementary school.

Globally, test results published on December 10, 2024 from the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) for the 2022–23 academic year ranked the U.S. 14th in literacy among 31 developed nations. More than half of U.S. adults rated at or below Level 2 on a five-level, 500-point scale, where Level 1 refers to the ability to read short, simple paragraphs, and Level 2 indicates the capability to navigate several pages and pinpoint information from various sections of a text. Level 3 denotes the ability to evaluate and interpret entire texts.

This assessment measured cognitive and workplace skills essential for meaningful participation in today’s economy among working-age populations aged 16 to 65.

“We are witnessing a diminishing middle tier in terms of skills within the U.S.,” stated NCES Commissioner Peggy Carr in a news release on December 10, 2024. “There is an increasing number of Americans found at the lower proficiency levels, resulting in an expanding skills gap between high- and low-skilled adults, exacerbated by a growing population of very low-skilled individuals. In fact, the U.S. gap in numeracy between the highest and lowest skilled adults is the most extensive among all nations.”

Low Proficiency in Hartford

At Hartford Public High School, only 27.4 percent of students achieved the proficiency rate in English Language Arts, while the school’s graduation rate for the 2022–23 academic year was 69.7 percent.

Statewide, the English proficiency level stood at 63.9 percent, with an average graduation rate of 88.4 percent.

Students wait in line for the graduation ceremony at Uvalde High School in Uvalde, Texas, on June 24, 2022. Jordan Vonderhaar/Getty Images

The school’s percentage for “demonstrating post-secondary (college) readiness” was just 10.8 percent, contrasting sharply with the statewide average of 44.3 percent.

In the 2022–23 academic year, the college entrance rate at Hartford was 28.7 percent, compared to the state average of 68.4 percent, according to the Connecticut Department of Education.

Last year, the per-pupil expenditure at Hartford Public High School was $30,853.

During the 2022–23 academic year, over a quarter of the district’s budget exceeding $452 million was allocated to special education, as reported by the Connecticut Department of Education report.

At that school, 43 percent of students were still in the process of learning English, and the chronic absenteeism rate was 65.1 percent.

Carol Gale, president of the Hartford Federation of Teachers union, noted that the Ortiz case has opened avenues for teachers and administrators to address ineffective policies.

These discussions include the regulation that awards every student a baseline score of 50 in all classes during each grading period, irrespective of attendance, assignment completion, or test performance resulting in a zero score, she explained. With this minimum score, students can still pass if they perform better in later marking periods as long as the overall passing grade is 60.

The Hartford district has also not enforced a policy specifying that 20 unexcused absences result in a failed grade level, Gale conveyed to The Epoch Times.

“Some students have passed with 40 or 50 absences,” she remarked.

Gale, who teaches English Language Arts, shared that union leaders in various districts have similar worries.

“We observe this as a trend to artificially inflate graduation rates,” she commented. “We feel our district is lowering expectations for our students. I wonder, what have they actually passed? I’m not certain we are preparing them for future success in the real world.”

Source link