Due to the lack of reading teachers and no graduation reading requirements in Arizona, some Central High School students are reading below grade level.
While money and research are devoted to elementary schools with the hope students will not need help in the future, teens also fall below reading level. There isn’t a national commitment that devotes resources to teen literacy so if high school students fall behind, chances are they will never catch up.
Only 34 percent of ninth grade students in the state passed the AzMERIT English Language Arts test in 2016.
Central High School has approximately 2,100 students and the reading department serves about 400 students. Between Brad Huff, a reading specialist at Central High School, and his three colleagues, the reading department serves roughly 20 percent of the student body in reading classes.
Students get referred to reading classes if their middle school or high school English teacher believes the student is reading below grade level. Huff said this issue is often due to the lack of access to reading material as young children, learning a second language from a young age or an unstable household.
Huff said the reading classes are full every semester and the department is doing everything they can to serve students who need assistance, but with the lack of teachers “kids will, unfortunately, fall through the cracks.”
Lori Armatage is a language arts content specialist for Phoenix Union High School District, said the district offers a variety of reading interventions to meet the needs of the students. The reading department is only one intervention for students who struggle with reading that the district provides.
English, electives and career and technical education classes offer literacy strategies, Armatage said. All students have an advisory period every day where they are given additional individualized support and are welcome to attend tutoring on Saturdays.
“More individualized interventions are offered to students instead of a one size fits all viewpoint,” Armatage said.
Huff said reading programs have become less crucial in recent years. When Huff was hired as a reading specialist 20 years ago, the reading department had six teachers. Today, there are four and will be reduced to three teachers next school year. He believes this is due to lack of graduation requirements by the state.
Students are required to take the AzMERIT test, a statewide assessment testing language arts and math. The test is a measurement of the school’s overall performance. Students reading below grade level affect the point system schools are ranked on. Armatage said because the AzMerit test is still relatively new, it is not a graduation requirement.
Before AzMERIT went into effect, students had to take Arizona’s Instrument to Measure Standards, or AIMS, a different statewide achievement test assessing reading, math and science. Students had the choice to pass the AIMS test or reach a certain level on the ACT test in order to graduate.
Huff recalls when he first started teaching at Central High School, the district had a minimum reading requirement that was measured by a district reading exam. Students who were placed in reading classes had to demonstrate proficiency in reading in order to graduate.
Ulises Romero, a junior at Central High School, was placed in Huff’s reading class his freshman year, under recommendation from his middle school. He placed in a higher reading class after a few weeks.
Romero said Huff was a great teacher and very much enjoyed his class. Huff’s curriculum included workbooks, quizzes and spell checks.
“Freshman year was a good start for me,” Romero said.
The evidence that the reading program is working is mixed, according to Huff. They have weekly meetings where they analyze data and discuss ways to intervene with students who continue to struggle.
Huff said there are students who are not being served, which is evident from the feedback from the English department. He also said the need for reading specialists is needed more now than ever, but school districts don’t see the need for them unless it’s for special education students.
“We have experienced moderate success over the last 15 years, but it’s been nowhere near what we’d hope for,” Huff said.
Contact the reporters at Emily.Garcia.1@asu.edu and mmartis@asu.edu.
