DEAR EDITOR:

While Youngstown teachers remained out on strike, refusing to return to their classrooms and teach, we should remember this is a school district that for decades remained among the very bottom of Ohio school districts in academic performance and proficiency at virtually all grade levels. It remains most troubling that, year after year, our Youngstown third graders perform dismally on reading and math proficiency, far below almost all other districts in Mahoning County.

From birth through third grade, children learn to read. After third grade, children read to learn. The often 70% or more of students failing to achieve grade-level reading proficiency by third grade in Youngstown City Schools sets up these young children for continued academic struggles and failure for years to follow.

Granted, a much more challenging student population may show up on the doorstep of the Youngstown City Schools than arrive at Boardman, Poland, Canfield, Austintown and other schools. But why can’t our Youngstown professional teachers and administrators realize how they continue to teach simply is not working and aggressively try something different? Why can’t our Youngstown elementary school teachers achieve levels of third grade reading and math proficiency comparable to their same-age classmates attending other nearby districts?

We don’t need excuses; we need performance and results. No more blaming “poverty” or “family” or “home life,” etc. Be innovative and find ways to mitigate any issues these small children may have. Maybe longer school days? Year-round school? Whatever it takes, so that, after three years of education in the Youngstown schools with our Youngstown teachers, they can read and do math at levels comparable to all their nearby young counterparts.

Striking teachers shouted, “It’s about the children!” No, it’s not. Strikes are about you. If it was about the children, we’d be hearing assurances from the teacher’s union that if the board provides what is needed, students will, indeed, meet or exceed academic performance proficiencies being met by teachers and students in surrounding districts.

No more excuses. Figure out why it’s not working in Youngstown, hunker down and fix it.

How about having courage to eliminate in 2027 social promotions to the fourth grade for any Youngstown students not meeting third grade Ohio reading and math proficiencies? Is it fair to these kids to set them up as 8- or 9-year-olds destined to struggle and fail for years to come, substantially because you failed to successfully teach them how to read in the first three years in your classrooms?

PAUL WITKOWSKI

Canfield