Superintendent Praises ‘A’ School After Teacher’s Viral Tears

A Houston school superintendent has defended a controversial high school rating after a teacher’s video revealing his students’ shocking illiteracy went viral and sparked national outrage.

Mike Miles, superintendent of the Houston Independent School District, dismissed concerns about systemic reading failures at Wheatley High School, according to Patrick Reilly writing in New York Post. Instead of addressing the crisis, Miles opted to celebrate the school’s recent “A” grade from the Texas Education Agency, marking what he called a remarkable turnaround from an “F” rating just four years ago.

When questioned Thursday about teacher Darius Williams’ tearful social media post exposing widespread illiteracy among seniors, Miles claimed the reading crisis was not “new information,” KHOU reported.

“I don’t think that’s new information,” Miles told reporters. “The sentiment, I think we all shared for four years or three years, the sentiment that there are kids who need support.”

The superintendent continued to emphasize what he framed as progress. “Four years ago, Wheatley was an ‘F’. There were many more students who could not read at grade level or do math at grade level. That is why we’re here. That’s why this is serious. That’s why we’re doing something about the fact that the students can’t read at grade level,” Miles stated.

Miles announced plans to visit Wheatley High School to celebrate the “A” rating, saying the achievement matters because of the students behind the numbers.

Teacher’s Viral Breakdown Exposes Reality

The controversy erupted after Williams, a New Education System Career and Technical Education staffer, posted a video during his lunch hour on just the second day of school. The emotional educator said he broke down in front of his class after confronting the harsh reality of his seniors’ abilities.

Williams gave his class of 17- and 18-year-old students what he considered a simple assignment: read two short paragraphs and write a single sentence. The results devastated him.

These are 17- and 18-year-old kids, and they couldn’t fill in four words, Williams said in the video, his eyes red and tears streaming down his face.

The teacher admitted he essentially completed the assignment for his students. Despite their inability to handle basic written tasks, Williams noted his seniors could speak, reason, and defend their reasoning verbally, but completely failed when attempting to apply those skills to reading or writing.

“This is only day two, and I have seniors who simply cannot read and seniors who cannot write. They cannot write,” Williams stated in obvious frustration.

The Rating System

Texas Education Agency accountability ratings are designed to measure student learning at each grade level and determine readiness for advancement. The system also evaluates how effectively schools prepare students for post-graduation life, whether that involves college, workforce entry, or military service, according to KHOU.

The stark contrast between Wheatley High School’s “A” rating and the classroom reality documented by Williams raises serious questions about the validity and effectiveness of current educational assessment methods.

With information from New York Post