See tweet at the bottom of this post.

This is not unique to Title 1 schools. This is not unique to those who misbehave. My own youngest child "wrote" a story in 5th grade, while attending a public charter school in Charlotte everyone wanted to attend that wasn't a whole lot better.

I had counted our lucky stars she'd gotten in because her older sister had lotteried in their first year of operation. The waiting list is thousands long.

What was wrong with the story her teacher praised with an "Exceeds expectations?" No punctuation. I mean it, ZERO. I'd say 1/3 of the words were spelled incorrectly, and so much so you had to guess what they were. There was text shorthand in there too.

Yes, my kid, and no, I had no idea it was this bad. They'd done all work that year in chrome books. I didn't see work come home, and at conference time they didn't show me much either. The teacher beamed about her, and seemed to resent my questions. I'd have pulled her on that basis alone, but my ex husband wouldn't allow it. To think I'd put her in that public school because the zoned school had failed her already, and this school promised to remediate. Lies, damn lies.

Fast forward three years, the last two of which have been in a homeschool arrangement she didn't initially want: she's a straight A student--REAL As mind you--still doesn't read with ease and speed, but 100% better than before. Her handwriting is clear and perfect, as is her spelling. Her writing (which I now read) accurately reflects her high intelligence and creativity, and her academic confidence isn't based on lies from self-interested teachers avoiding conflict (and covering their malpractice).

It wasn't easy! She had to work hard, there were lots of tears at first, and anger once she realized how far behind she was, how much she'd missed. But that bumpy start gave way to a work ethic any parent would be proud to see.

It's not too late in 5th, or 6th grade, but move on out to 10th or 11th? I can't say. I have one who came out in 10th, probably my highest IQ kid, and most proficient reader, and yet sue is by far the one who had the hardest time adjusting to real standards. Her spelling and grammar was never as bad as her younger sister's, but it also hasn't improved as much as it should have. What's my point? Well it's not to embarrass my kids, they're great kids and none of this is their fault. It's to warn you: what you think you know about your child's learning loss isn't even the tip of the iceberg, and it's not just because of COVID. These lockdowns and lockouts provide nice cover (as do DEI initiatives), but the truth is, the system is abysmally bad, and nationwide our kids are so far behind even third-world counterparts, it's terrifying.

If you can't homeschool, find another way to assess where your kids are, and get them help. Treat school as daycare if you must, but don't assume there's much going on there in the way of skill development.

If yours is the rare school that looks like the 1950s, where everyone works hard and standards are high, you're atypical in the extreme. Happy for you, but millions of American children aren't so lucky, and someday they'll be drinking, driving, legally owning firearms, and voting.

That is all.
https://twitter.com/goinggodward/status/1470913318139404292?s=21