COVID pandemic contributed to historic number of students falling below reading benchmark
The COVID pandemic contributed to a third of young grade school students missing reading benchmarks, which is up significantly from pre-pandemic rates, according to several studies.
A recent Virginia report discussed data collected from The Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening (PALS) K-2 assessment, a tool used to evaluate students’ risk for reading difficulties that spanned three fall assessment periods in 132 school divisions. The study looked at rates of “at-risk” students K-2, pre-pandemic (2019) to the fall of 2021 when students returned to in- classroom learning.
The report found the number of first and second-grade students who scored below reading benchmarks in the fall of 2021 hit historic highs, at 36.5 percent and 42.2 percent, respectively.
The report found in 2019 the percentage of students in the low-risk group for reading difficulties was 2.1 times greater than that of the high-risk group but by 2021, the percentage of both groups was nearly identical.- READ MORE
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