Nev. struggling with student literacy issue
By Trevon Milliar, Las Vegas Review-Journal
The vast majority of Nevada students struggle to read, conceded several local education officials on Tuesday.
They didn’t debate the data. They focused on how to change it.
Federal assessments show only 30 percent of Nevada eighth-graders read at the level they should, slightly more than the 27 percent of fourth-graders who are proficient in reading. Trace Nevada’s high school dropouts back to fourth grade and nine out of 10 of them were behind in reading skills, according to the Nevada Department of Education.
“The statistics in Nevada are unacceptable,” said Nevada Deputy Superintendent of Student Achievement Steven Canavero to 175 people representing a who’s who of state lawmakers and public school leaders gathered to hear about the battle against illiteracy.