Dear Editor,

I am deeply troubled by recent reports indicating that Grade 7 students at Pembroke Hall High are reading at levels far below the Grade 3 curriculum standards. This is not just a statistic, it’s a huge red flag.

The learning disruptions caused by COVID-19 some six years ago clearly derailed academic progress, and the aftershocks are still being felt in our classrooms today. The pandemic stalled many students’ learning curves and, more disturbingly, undercut the hard-won gains made by educators fighting to hold the line during that difficult period.

This revelation casts a long shadow of doubt over the credibility of our primary-level literacy assessments. If students are arriving at secondary school so drastically behind, then we must seriously question whether our current assessment tools are truly capturing the depth, or absence, of foundational literacy skills. Perhaps it’s time to urgently revisit and revise how we measure literacy at the early stages.

What struck me most was not just the percentage, but the implication: some students will continue to struggle with basic reading skills as they move through the grades. This is not just an academic issue; it’s a societal one. Students must first be able to read, write, and reason with numbers before they can engage meaningfully with any subject. These core skills are the bedrock of all learning. Without them, navigating subjects like science, mathematics, and even the creative arts becomes an uphill battle.

We can no longer afford to treat literacy and numeracy as isolated classroom goals as they must be actioned as national priorities now more than ever. And when left unaddressed, they have far-reaching consequences, including poor performance in higher education.

From my experience as a tertiary level educator, I’ve seen students entering university who struggle to analyse information, engage in critical thinking, or express themselves clearly in writing. These are not merely academic gaps; they are barriers to graduation, employment, and upward mobility.

So where do we go from here?

Here are a few practical, research-backed steps we can take to begin turning this crisis around:

1. Implement early screening and assessment before students transition to secondary school. Identifying reading challenges early allows for targeted intervention before learning gaps widen.

2. Invest in teacher training focused on evidence-based literacy instruction. Not all teachers graduate with the skills necessary to teach reading effectively, especially to struggling learners.

3. Build partnerships with community organisations to support students facing instability at home — whether it’s due to inconsistent attendance, hunger, or lack of access to learning resources.

Tackling illiteracy must be a team effort. This isn’t just the work of teachers. Parents, school leaders, policymakers, and communities must lock arms to confront this issue head-on. If we fail to address it now, we are condemning yet another generation to navigate the world without the basic tools needed to thrive.

Let’s not wait until the problem becomes too big to fix. Let’s act urgently, collaboratively, and with the resolve that every child deserves the right to read.

Dujean Edwards

dujeanedwards@gmail.com