Almost 70 Percent Of Eighth Graders In Public Schools Fail proficiency In English and Math

The United States continues to fail our children in public schools in cranking out children who are below basic proficiency in both math and English.  With an increasingly competitive economy demanding higher levels of skills, we are leaving most of our children in a position with dwindling opportunities and futures.  According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress test results released by the U.S. Department of Education, sixty-five percent of the eighth graders in American public schools in 2017 were not proficient in reading and 67 percent were not proficient in mathematics. That dire situation is even worse in cities like Detroit.

In Detroit, only 5 percent of Detroit public-school eighth graders were proficient or better in math and only 7 percent were proficient or better in reading.  Schools in Cleveland, Fresno, and Baltimore are little better.

We have previously discussed the ongoing failure of our public schools.  Again, I understand that many of these kids are coming from broken homes or extreme poverty that makes the task far more challenging for the schools. However, these statistics are still an utter disgrace for any system and show massive budgets being spent without minimal and measurable success. I still believe in public education and I have sent my kids to public schools. I believe these schools play an important role in our democratic systems in raising future citizens. We cannot fail in this basic task as a nation and remain a viable and successful country in the increasing challenging global economy. These scores reflect a permanent underclass where these children are finished before they even start to make their way in life.