Astaggering 65 percent of third- through eighth-graders in Fort Worth failed to meet minimum grade-level standards in core subjects such as reading, math, and science. This is nothing short of an educational catastrophe. Fort Worth mayor Mattie Parker captured the urgency when she said, “This moment calls for visionary, student-centered leadership that sets ambitious goals, crafts a strategic plan for academic excellence, and ensures every taxpayer dollar is spent wisely.” We couldn’t agree more.
Even more troubling, this failure rate marks a one-percentage-point drop in proficiency from the previous year, underscoring a worrying trend in student achievement that is raising alarms among local leaders. Even the highest-performing city council district (district 10) saw just 49 percent of students meeting basic grade-level academic standards.
Comments