Superintendent Jill Underly delivered her annual “State of Education” address last week. If you tuned in hoping for an honest assessment of how Wisconsin students are doing, you were left disappointed. The event began, not with a frank discussion of student achievement, but with a land acknowledgment. Like much of what followed, it was a gesture more concerned with appearances than with the urgent problems facing Wisconsin classrooms.
Parents don’t need speeches to tell them what’s happening in classrooms. They see it every day. Schools are increasingly unsafe and chaotic. Teachers are leaving in frustration, and those who try to impose discipline often find themselves undermined by administrators. Children cannot focus enough to learn in disorderly classrooms. Too many Wisconsin students cannot read or do math at grade level. Even after DPI artificially inflated student performance on the state exam, more than 46% of students in the state are rated as not “meeting expectations” when it comes to reading.
That is the crisis.
Instead of addressing these realities, Superintendent Underly spent her time talking about “belonging” and “inclusivity.” Of course, students should feel welcome in their schools. But confidence and belonging are not created by slogans or buzzwords. They come from learning. A child who can read, solve math problems, and write clearly is prepared for success. A child who cannot is being failed, no matter how many times the system congratulates itself for fostering inclusivity.
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Did taxpayer funded Wisconsin DPI Superintendent Underly Juice Test Scores for Reelection?
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“An emphasis on adult employment”
Wisconsin Public Policy Forum Madison School District Report[PDF]
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