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When high school students can't read
Angie Hackman teaches chemistry -- and reading, reports Hechinger's Julian Roberts-Grmela. Every teacher at Health Sciences High and...
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 19, 20242 min read
10 comments


Bible stories should be cultural literacy, not forbidden fruit
Teaching students about religion is fine in public schools, writes Natalie Wexler. "Inculcating specific religious beliefs" is not....
Joanne Jacobs
Jun 21, 20242 min read
4 comments


The great reading rethink: What does it mean?
Once students have learned phonics, what's next? Reading comprehension relies on a blend of decoding, vocabulary and general knowledge,...
Joanne Jacobs
May 22, 20242 min read
4 comments


Johnny can't read, and he's not in K-3 any more
Students who don't learn to decode quickly and automatically do not improve their reading comprehension.
Joanne Jacobs
May 21, 20243 min read
2 comments


College students can't -- or won't -- read, say profs
Many college students don't do the work -- perhaps because they have trouble reading and understanding college-level texts.
Joanne Jacobs
May 20, 20242 min read
5 comments


Core Knowledge students learn more -- a lot more
Students taught a structured, knowledge-rich curriculum starting in kindergarten earned higher reading, math and science scores in third...
Joanne Jacobs
Mar 15, 20241 min read
1 comment


Poet X replaces Romeo: Why high school students can't read
Adam Kotsko, who teaches humanities at a small liberal arts college, finds that even his best students are unprepared to read and...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 23, 20241 min read
11 comments


Why Joe College can't read
College students have trouble reading anything long or complex, complains Adam Kotsko, in Slate. He's taught humanities classes in small...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 19, 20242 min read
5 comments

It matters how kids read: On-screen reading doesn't build comprehension
It doesn't matter what kids read as long as they're reading, people often say. Maybe so. But for "developing readers," leisure reading...
Joanne Jacobs
Dec 15, 20231 min read
1 comment


It's 'our fault' Johnny and Juanita can't read, says NYC chancellor
New York City's public schools have been teaching reading badly for decades, ignoring research on how children learn to read, said...
Joanne Jacobs
May 10, 20232 min read
2 comments


History, civics and reading comprehension go together
The more students know about the world, the better they can understand what they read, writes Susan Pimentel in Education Week. The...
Joanne Jacobs
May 5, 20231 min read
3 comments
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