The Gap in Reading Scores Persists Across U.S. Schools

Indian School Boy Reading the Book” by Nithi Anand licensed under CC BY 2.0

Source: The Atlantic

Experts of the National Association of Educational Progress spoke at a panel in D.C. earlier this week and discussed the lack of improvement students have shown over the years in their reading scores.

Since 1998, the scores for reading have remained relatively flat as reported by The Atlantic, and gaps between low-income students and students of wealthy families have remained relatively high.

The lack of improvement has been attributed to the way in which schools are teaching reading. Researchers have found that students are more likely to succeed if they are learning about different core subjects in the process of learning how to read because it facilitates comprehension. Currently teachers are more likely to teach students about basic reading skills while ignoring the importance of learning about the world, learning about subjects that makes reading comprehension possible.

“If readers can’t supply the missing information, they have a hard time making sense of the text,” wrote The Atlantic.

Furthermore experts have pointed out that students from wealthy families have an advantage because they are more likely to travel at a young age and more likely to have access to afford tutors who can help them learn about other subjects.

Read Full Story: The Atlantic

Education, News
Education, News