More than half of students in grades 3-5 in New York state failed basic reading tests this year. It’s an absolute disgrace.
In New York City, they spend upwards of $40,000 on each student per school year. What is the money going to> Lessons on critical race theory and gender studies topics? Social justice activism?
Reading is one of the most basic and necessary skills that schools are expected to teach children. People who cannot read are absolutely doomed in adult life.
Part of this can be blamed on draconian school shutdowns during Covid but not all of it.
The New York Post reports:
NY 3rd-5th graders fail basic reading tests with more than half not even proficient: data
More than half of 3rd- to 5th-grade students in the Empire State failed their reading proficiency state exams this year, according to shocking new data.
Preliminary results released this week by the state Education Department that 57% of 3rd graders, 52% of 4th graders and 57% of 5th graders failed to make the grade on their 2025-26 English Language Arts tests.
City kids in grades 3-8 saw a 6% drop in their ELA scores from last year, with just about half overall rating proficient.
Overall, just 48% of students in the testing grades, 4th-8th, rated proficient on the ELA — a “significant” 5% plunge from the previous year, the department said.
Fifth graders saw the largest drop of any grade level, with those students’ reading proficiency declining by an incredible 14 points, according to the results.
In New York City — where about 40% of the state’s public school students are enrolled — the decline was even more concerning.
In 2025, about 56% made the grade on the reading test, which had been a 7% increase from the previous year, data shows.
Big Apple 3rd graders were the poorest performers on the ELA, with scores for that age group plummeting 13.8% from the previous year as only about 44% ranked proficient. Fifth graders followed behind with a 13.1% drop, according to the data.
Stephen Miller made a very good point about this, linking it to the immigration issue.
Nearly 40% of children in New York State are foreign-born or the children of migrants. Of that group, about 85% are migrants from the third world. The education debate (like so many others) often disguises the real debate. https://t.co/1aYIBWHFkW
— Stephen Miller (@StephenM) August 8, 2026
All of this is just another excellent argument for home schooling.
Kids who are home schooled typically excel in reading and writing.
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