{"id":46732,"date":"2026-08-15T13:58:23","date_gmt":"2026-08-15T08:58:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=46732"},"modified":"2026-08-15T13:58:23","modified_gmt":"2026-08-15T08:58:23","slug":"new-yorks-literacy-crisis-letters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=46732","title":{"rendered":"New York&#8217;s literacy crisis: Letters"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F2%2F2026%2F08%2Funnamed-file-e1786734891735.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p><strong>The Issue: Majority of third- to fifth-grade students in New York public schools failing their ELA test.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>There is no excuse for the declining literacy of New York students (<a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/08\/08\/us-news\/nycs-schools-get-failing-grade-with-fed-up-new-yorkers-poll\/\">\u201c95% give NYC schools a failing grade,\u201d<\/a> Aug. 9).<\/p>\n<p>My parents attended segregated schools in the Jim Crow South and still knew how to read, even though their schools didn\u2019t receive the same amount of funding and attention as other schools.<\/p>\n<p>Why don\u2019t we go back to teaching children how to read the way anyone over the age of 40 learned how to read: good old-fashioned phonics?<\/p>\n<p><em>James Johnson<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Brooklyn<\/em><\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-primary-tag\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>What is missing from stories about the abysmal reading and math scores in grades 3-8 is consideration of the cultures children live with at home. The awful teachers unions are culpable, but no more so than these children\u2019s parents and guardians.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking English proficiently, reading to your children and emphasizing learning \u2014 rather than watching TV \u2014 are crucial example-setting activities. To believe otherwise is a nanny-state mentality that will continue to result in wasted taxpayer money.<\/p>\n<p><em>Cary MacDonald<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Boulder, Colo.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Many decades ago, the method of teaching reading in public schools was changed from phonics to the dumb \u201clook-say.\u201d Now, New York City public school students can barely trudge through a sentence when asked to read from a selection.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, parochial school students are excellent readers. Why? Many parochial schools kept the phonics method of teaching reading.<\/p>\n<p>Public schools have wasted endless dollars on education methods that don\u2019t work. Parents must insist the city rely much more on phonics.<\/p>\n<p><em>Maureen Healy<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Manhattan<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The teachers union deserves most of the blame for the stunning drop in ELA proficiency, but there\u2019s another factor that has to be considered, and not just in New York City.<\/p>\n<p>Today\u2019s families need to have two incomes. That means kids are getting picked up by a latchkey program, instead of after-school hours. Then comes preparing dinner, cleaning up and baths. Throw in weekend chores and organized activities, and parents are overwhelmed.<\/p>\n<p>Parents today lack the time to sit and read with their children, the way it used to be when I was a youngster.<\/p>\n<p><em>Rob Feuerstein<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Staten Island<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Remote learning during school closures forced by the teacher unions\u2019 was a learning and developmental disaster for all children. Parents, especially the poor, need to demand school choice.<\/p>\n<p>Also, The Post should investigate where the politicians and teacher union members send their children to be educated.<\/p>\n<p><em>Bruce Collins<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Middletown, NJ<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"single__inline-module inline-module inline-module--newsletter aligncenter inline-module--nypostbusinessunit aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-newsletter\" data-source-unit=\"Inline Newsletter Module Post Opinion\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__inner\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__title-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__unsubmitted-title-wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGet opinions and commentary from our columnists\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<p class=\"inline-module__cta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSubscribe to our daily Post Opinion newsletter!\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong>The Issue: President Trump\u2019s executive order affirming the CDC\u2019s new childhood vaccine schedule.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I had a friend in college who had polio. Additionally, my late wife suffered from that dreadful disease (<a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/08\/10\/us-news\/trump-signs-executive-order-to-limit-childhood-vaccines-claims-mmr-shots-can-be-quite-lethal\/\">\u201cVax \u2018split\u2019 decision,\u201d <\/a>Aug. 11).<\/p>\n<p>Having seen the challenging lives they led, I cannot understand how any caring parent would not vaccinate his or her child based on a medically-recommended schedule \u2014 not one endorsed by an unqualified politician and his equally unqualified health secretary.<\/p>\n<p><em>Paul Newman<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Merion Station, Pa.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Science says vaccines don\u2019t cause autism. Yet President Trump and his supporters are promoting this fallacy and even issuing executive orders that should be shredded.<\/p>\n<p>Vaccines should be available to everyone, free of cost and easily accessible, but that\u2019s not the reality. Getting three vaccines at once takes less time, costs less for appointments and you don\u2019t have to worry about forgetting one. Separating the shots will not help anyone.<\/p>\n<p><em>Dennis Fitzgerald<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Box Hill, Australia<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Want to weigh in on today\u2019s stories? Send your thoughts (along with your full name and city of residence) to letters@nypost.com. Letters are subject to editing for clarity, length, accuracy, and style.<br \/><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Issue: Majority of third- to fifth-grade students in New York public schools failing their ELA test. There is no excuse for the declining literacy of New York students (\u201c95% give NYC schools a failing grade,\u201d Aug. 9). My parents attended segregated schools in the Jim Crow South and still knew how to read, even&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":46733,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/unnamed-file-e1786734891735.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-46732","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46732","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=46732"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46732\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/46733"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=46732"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=46732"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=46732"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}