Two-thirds of eighth graders are not proficient in math and reading.
Nearly four out of five Black and Hispanic eighth graders are not proficient in these areas. Due to COVID-19, the national 2021 assessment is delayed until 2022. Source USAFacts.org
Forget the noise about minimum wage, or student loans, this is the basic problem and at least some if it can be traced to the state of the American family.
QUINNSCOMMENTARY 
Due to Covid-19, my 8 year old grandson, who is or was a math wiz, has been out of school for almost a year. My grandson can do basic arithmetic in his head. Yesterday, his school district has started back with one day a week in a physical classroom, the rest of the week is still virtual classes.
This marking period he failed math without any warning. Maybe this was because yesterday he started with his 4th teacher of this year and no one teacher is taking responsibility of basic parental notifications?
Or maybe it is because both his parents work and cannot stand over him to make sure that an 8 year old is actually paying attention the entire time while online? His father was unemployed until Christmas so he was able to keep an eye on things until then. I can’t imagine how far behind my grandson would be if that didn’t happen. His father also had to keep an eye on his bother and sister who are also taking online classes at the same time too when he was unemployed.
Forget the minority scores. If tests are given in 2022, they are going to be a disaster for all groups. They will report the scores of the minority groups are horrible and they need more money to help them. What they need to do is to make the reports by who had parents home and those who didn’t. My guess would be that they will twist the results in time for another presidential election sometime in late 2023 or 2024 when the results become available. It will take years before any thing can actually be done to help students as they are pushed to the next grade.
Either the minorities lost their jobs and were home with their kids or they were forced to work all the low paid essential work and were not home for their kids. Then you have the single parent families or parents who just don’t care. In the meantime, the “privileged” got to work from home and supervise their kids thus their kids did better?
There are three main problems with public schools today. 1) Government mandates, restrictions, and interference and 2) academic “experts” and their teacher unions, 3) parents. No amount of money will fix this and the school system needs to be rebuilt from the ground up. But that is its own blog.
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School choice vouchers would be a better option for students, but the politicians and unions have a lock on our students and taxpayer money.
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Math can be learned entirely from books, though I’m not sure a child as young as 8 can cope. When I was 11, I discovered an algebra text that had pictures and exercises at the ends of each chapter, with worked out answers for even numbered exercises in an appendix at the end of the book. I could do my best at exercises and check my work, without a teacher (on or off line). I think this is a better way to learn, anyhow.
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more money for education has never worked before, but somehow the usual suspects are gonna raise your taxes to fix it …democrat panacea to every problem !!
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