LITERACY IN AMERICA

The scandal of literacy in America highlights significant issues in education and access. Despite being one of the wealthiest nations, the U.S. faces alarming literacy rates, particularly among marginalized communities.

Current Literacy Rates:

• Approximately 21% of adult citizens in the U.S. (56 million – age18 and older) are functionally illiterate, meaning they struggle with basic reading and writing tasks.
• Disparities exist, with lower literacy rates among minorities and low-income populations.
• The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reported that only about 37% of 12^th graders performed at or above the proficient level in reading. This means that fewer than 4 in 10 high school seniors demonstrate strong comprehension, analytical, and interpretive reading skills.
• The NAEP also reported that only 23% of 12^th graders scored at or above the proficient level in math. Most students struggle with algebra, problem-solving, and quantitative reasoning – skills essential for college and career readiness. The math scores have dropped more sharply than reading scores since 2019 – marking the lowest performance in decades.
• Despite major education reforms like (No Child Left Behind, Common Core, and ESSA) national proficiency rates have remained largely flat for two decades.
• Reading scores have been stable, while math has shown more volatility and recent decline.
• The gap between high-and low-income students has widened, reflecting unequal educational opportunities and resource disparities.

WHY? – Since the amount the U.S. spends annually on student education is higher or competitive with most advanced nations, and teacher’s compensation, is higher than most countries – why are America’s literacy rates so unacceptable?

Causes of Literacy Issues:

• Educational Inequality – Schools in low-income areas lack resources, qualified teachers, and adequate funding.
• Socioeconomic Factors – Poverty, lack of access to books, and limited parental support contribute to literacy challenges.
• Parental responsibility, teacher-union dynamics, and classroom discipline are major factors that many analysts, educators, and parents point to when examining why U.S. literacy outcomes lag despite high spending.

Parental Responsibility: Research tells us that literacy begins at home, long before a child enters school.

1.  Children who are read to at home begin school with stronger vocabulary, better attention spans, and more advanced literacy skills.
2. Many children, especially in low-income households – have little reading time at home or limited access to books.
3. Consistent bedtime, regular homework routines, limited screen time, and parental monitoring strongly correlate with better literacy outcomes.

Teacher Union Dynamics – How Teachers’ Unions Negatively Affect Literacy Rates:

• Teachers Unions are slow to adopt Evidence-Based Reading Instruction
• Unions often resist mandated instructional reforms – especially those requiring retraining or curriculum replacement.
• States trying to move toward “Science of Reading” approaches have sometimes faced union pushback over: Mandatory retraining; Required curriculum changes; Performance-based evaluations tied to reading outcomes.
• Teachers’ Unions often delay implementing the most effective early literacy methods that leave students behind before reforms eventually take hold.

Classroom discipline – classroom management is one of the least discussed but most critical components of literacy outcomes:

• High disruption = low learning time – teachers report that a large portion of class time is spent on:
• Redirecting attention.
• Stopping off-task behavior.
• Managing conflicts.
• Dealing with absenteeism and late arrivals

This reduces the time available for structured reading instruction.

• Administrative pressure to avoid suspensions – many districts limit suspensions or impose “restorative justice” systems.
• Students with chronic disruptive behavior often remain in class.
• Teachers lose authority.
• Learning time for other students drops dramatically.

• Safety concerns and teacher burnout – teachers describe classrooms where:
• Students challenge authority without consequence.
• Academic expectations are lowered to avoid conflict.
• Teacher retention falls because the job becomes unmanageable.

Spending per student in the United States is competitive with other countries. According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), in 2019 – spending per student at the elementary/secondary level ($15,500/student) was 38% higher than the OECD average of other nations at ($11,300/student).

Teacher pay in the United States is competitive with other countries. According to OECD’s “Education at a Glance” data, average actual salaries for U.S. primary school teachers are higher compared to other countries. The U.S. average salary for a primary teacher is around $68,153. The average salary across OECD countries for primary teachers is $57,399.

Consequences for adults who are functionally illiterate:

• Low literacy impacts employment opportunities, economic mobility, and overall quality of life.
• It affects civic engagement, and the ability to navigate essential services.
• Functionally illiterate adults significantly impact welfare rolls (the list of individuals or families receiving government assistance programs) in various ways:
• Limited literacy skills hinder job opportunities leading to higher reliance on welfare programs.
• Illiteracy can prevent individuals from effectively navigating welfare systems, resulting in underutilization of available resources.
• Increased dependency on welfare can strain public resources, affecting overall economic stability.
• Functionally illiterate adults may face social stigma, which can perpetuate cycles of poverty and limit community engagement.

American engineers have been behind some of the most transformative technological breakthroughs in the modern world. Their work spans nearly every field – computing, aerospace, medicine, energy, transformation, and communications – shaping not only American life but global civilization.

American engineers created much of the digital age. The invention of the microprocessor, by Intel in 1971, revolutionized electronics. Apple, IBM, Microsoft and others turned computing into household technology. American defense researchers and engineers developed ARPANET which became the foundation of the internet. The United States is unmatched in aerospace engineering achievements. American engineers helped create life-saving technologies in medical and biotech – used worldwide.

With all these magnificent creations, innovations, contributions, and much more, for the benefit of humanity – a reasonable person might conclude that Americans are more than capable of solving literacy problems in America.

Student progress is influenced by many factors beyond teacher control such as home environment, school funding, class size, and special education needs.

Two problem areas in student education that are easily solvable, if there is a will, is to improve literacy in the school systems by 1) keeping unions and political operatives out of the classroom and 2) mandating that teacher performance be judged solely by student progress.

Classrooms should be politically neutral spaces:

• Political party representatives or activists – left, right, or otherwise – introduce bias into instruction.
• Schools risk becoming vehicles for political messaging instead of places for academic development.
• Students should develop critical thinking skills without being persuaded toward any specific ideology.

Teacher unions and political agendas should stay separate from instruction:

• Teachers’ unions often take explicit political stances, endorse candidates, or lobby for policies.
• Union political activity can spill into classrooms indirectly through mandated training, curricular guidance, or pressure on teachers.
• Unions have become powerful stakeholders in American public education – their involvement should be limited to labor issues only.
• Classrooms are already under pressure from curriculum requirements, testing schedules, and limited time. Any political messaging – intentional or not – can detract from core academic learning.

Teachers should be evaluated solely on student progress:

• Measurable academic growth.
• Improvements in literacy, numeracy, and critical thinking.
• Social-emotional development.
• Closing learning gaps.
• Teacher effectiveness should be visible in the students’ improvement, regardless of external factors.
• Teachers who consistently help students grow should be rewarded by a merit-based recognition program.
• Poor teacher performers should receive support – and, if necessary, be removed more easily than under current union-negotiated protections.

Automation and AI are steadily eliminating low-skill jobs. Adults with limited literacy remain concentrated in occupations with the highest automation risk – basic manufacturing, service work, warehousing, and manual labor. Wage stagnation is likely to continue because employers increasingly require digital and document- handling skills even for entry-level positions. There are greater barriers to advancement, since promotions increasingly require reading complex procedures, safety documentation, or digital reporting systems.

What does the future look like for the approximate 56 million – and growing, functionally illiterate adult Americans?

Very bleak! – lacking few prospects or opportunities. James Peifer