Literacy is a superpower and a fundamental human right. But overall, reading is on the decline worldwide and, perhaps most egregiously, in America. This is especially problematic for young people who are still developing their reading comprehension and critical thinking skills.

Educators all over are sounding the alarm, and it’s a critical conversation to have. But how we go about having that conversation is equally important.

Teacher breaks down in tears over student’s reading struggles

Wheatley High School teacher and content creator Darius Williams recently made international headlines when he posted a video on his Facebook page during his lunch break at school.

“I literally broke down in the middle of class because I’m teaching Seniors. These kids are leaving high school and going to college, hopefully. We had two paragraphs to read, one sentence to write. I basically completed the sentence for them,” he said through tears. “These are 17 and 18-year-old kids. And they couldn’t fill in four words … I simply don’t know where the problem is. I have seniors who simply can not read and seniors who can not write.”

@therootnews Darius Williams says he’s seeing students reach high school without the literacy skills they need. And he’s asking a question we should all be asking: Where did we fail them? For students of color, the stakes are even higher. What happens when children aren’t given the tools they need to read, write and fully engage with the world around them? Something is broken. The question is: Are we willing to fix it? @iamdariuscooks #blackeducator #blackliteracymatters ♬ original sound – therootnews – therootnews

Darius Williams says he’s seeing students reach high school without the literacy skills they need. And he’s asking a question we should all be asking: Where did we fail them?........

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