Seventh-grade teacher claims his students are performing at a fourth-grade level, and educators agree it is "unbearable, ridiculous, insurmountable"

A Georgia seventh-grade teacher's viral video sparked debate after he confessed that most of his students entered the school year performing at a fourth-grade level or lower.

The teacher was honest

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The viral video surpassed 3.8 million views, and his honest confession was confirmed by many educators and even some students. Further, a high school teacher responded, as did a seventh-grade teacher from Texas, and many more.

Students have fallen behind

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The teacher, who uses the user name QBSkiiii (@qbthedon), started by saying, "Let's take a moment to be real." He continued, “We all know that the world is behind, like you know, globally, like because of the pandemic and stuff,” he added, “But I don’t understand why they not stressing to y’all like how bad it is."

The teacher's confession

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The Atlanta-based teacher explained, "I teach seventh grade, they are still performing on a fourth-grade level.” The educator wondered why kids are being moved up grade levels even when they shouldn’t be and added, "Ain’t nobody talking about how they just keep passing them on."

Teacher is hopeless

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He further stated that no matter what grades he gives his students, they will end up in the eighth grade next year. So he asked, "Why don’t y’all know that your kids are not performing on their grade levels?"

The gap has never been wider

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Many educators agreed that the underperforming was never this bad, and the gap between where students are and where they should be has never been more staggering.

Blaming the pandemic

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One high school teacher said, "The pandemic caused a learning gap − plain and simple," and added, "The education system as a whole, we have not really done anything to fill that gap effectively." Despite many understanding that the pandemic caused underperforming, things look like "hell," said a Texas seventh-grade teacher.

Kids cannot read or write

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"When I tell you that these babies cannot read, they cannot write, and they cannot comprehend, I'm not being funny," a Texas teacher shared. He added he was being "dead serious." But it is more than just education, as the music teacher said, "The kids are 100% different."

People recognize the issue

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One comment said, "And it’s not just academics- they’re behind in their behavior and emotional regulation as well!" Another reminded, "Parents think learning starts and stops at school with no learning at home."

Students agreed with the original poster

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One student revealed, "Honestly, I’m in senior year, and I can’t remember math that well." Another wrote, "I only know how to add, subtract, and divide, I hate it and wish I went back."

Fourth graders are two levels behind

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“As a 4th-grade teacher, I completely agree!!” one person wrote., while another added, "I am a new teacher, and some of my 4th graders are on a 2nd-grade level!" Sadly, this person shared "Reasons why I had to leave education."

More issues

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Laverne Mickens, a teacher of over two decades in Massachusetts, told USA TODAY that COVID isn't the only cause of the gap. Mickens said, "COVID just pulled back the curtain and lifted the veil, so everybody else now sees what we've been seeing for years."

All this causes more stress for teachers

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State of the American Teacher survey reported in 2022 that 73% of teachers experience regular job-related stress, 59% feel burnout, and 28% report signs of depression. Saving the children who are underperforming is "unbearable, ridiculous, insurmountable." said Mickens.

Source: TikTok 

source https://www.womenio.com/47908/seventh-grade-teacher-claims-his-students-are-performing-at-a-fourth-grade-level-and-educators-agree-it-is-unbearable-ridiculous-insurmountable