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Jordan* was heading into the final quarter of his senior year in high school when his grades and attendance suddenly plunged. An all-star athlete, Jordan had been awarded a full-ride scholarship to a prestigious college football program, but he could lose it if his grades didn’t improve. After some tutoring and accountability, Jordan improved, graduated on time and left for college
Unfortunately, his academic struggles followed him. When classes started that fall, he quickly became overwhelmed by the rigor and pace of instruction. He couldn’t keep up and was scared.
Jordan had difficulty reading. He could do it, but he was slow — his lips moving and his finger tracing every word – and he struggled to understand and retain what he read.
Literacy isn’t just a problem for younger students; more older students are struggling to read competently. Data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress shows that in 2024, 35% of high-school seniors scored at or above proficiency on the test, while 32% scored below basic. These reading challenges begin early in the academic journey, and if left unchecked, can affect a student’s ability to learn. Many teachers are using edtech from developers that focus all or in part on literacy for older students.
Early cracks
“If a student does not acquire basic reading foundational skills early on, they fall behind,” says Amy Gonzalez-Taylor, university fieldwork supervisor in the Graduate School of Education at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Gonzalez-Taylor spent 43 years in the classroom as a teacher and reading specialist.
Students in grades 3 and 4 are generally expected to read and comprehend content areas such as science, social studies and history. Those who lack foundational skills will likely struggle to read this content independently and with fluency. “The gap between where they should be functioning as a reader and their actual ability level gets bigger as each school year passes,” Gonzalez-Taylor says.
Reading ability can also affect students’ math performance. Students with poor reading skills may excel at math computation or understand how to solve a math problem if it is read to them, but they will struggle when they have to complete an assessment on their own.
“It produces a deep feeling of defeat that they carry with them unless the school system comes to their aid,” Gonzalez-Taylor says. “They need assistance with the reading and then can usually solve it.”
Students who begin kindergarten without some exposure to reading readiness start out at a disadvantage because of the fast-paced curriculum used in schools today. “Not all kids are ready for that pace when they walk through the doors in kindergarten,” Gonzalez-Taylor says.
The best time to intervene is in grades K-2, she says. Waiting until students are in grades 3-5 can have a detrimental impact on their long-term learning.
“By the time [these] students reach fourth and fifth grade [but] are reading at a first- or second-grade level, everything is at stake for them,” she explains. It’s easier for students who are just one level behind in their independent reading level to catch up. If they fall behind by three or four levels, though, they struggle to work and meet expectations. “It is that gap between their capabilities and what they are expected to read that has an adverse effect on their education.”
Gonzalez-Taylor rejects the idea that students can simply grow out of their literacy challenges. What matters is “building the foundation for students to read for the rest of their lives,” she says.
Widening gaps
Students entering middle and high school with reading challenges often struggle with complex and overlapping deficits. These issues stem from the way their learning has compounded over the years, according to Michelle Barrett, Ph.D, senior vice president of Research, Policy and Impact at Edmentum.
“Older struggling readers will frequently present with multiple and interconnected reading difficulties across decoding, fluency and comprehension,” she says.
These students typically have a limited vocabulary and lack the focus and endurance necessary for analyzing and synthesizing challenging texts, which leads to difficulties in comprehending and retaining what they read. Compounding this, when students lack the skills to read with confidence, they experience cognitive overload, repeated failure and stress — often triggering avoidance behaviors and creating a negative feedback loop that further increases the gap to proficiency.
“So, it’s really important that we figure out how to intervene and intervene well with them,” Barrett says.
Bridging the gaps: Intervention
Navigating students away from the literacy cliff starts with effective intervention. Barrett outlines the elements for designing interventions targeted at older students.
Screening. Various edtech programs can help teachers more effectively and frequently identify the deficits and areas of struggle, which is critical to placing students into learning opportunities aligned with their needs. “A lot that is done in universal screening and diagnosis for students in kindergarten through third grade,” she says. “There has been less emphasis on that in the middle- and high-school grades, but it is important that we can accurately understand what students need in order for us to help them.”
Tools and tutoring. AI-infused tools can offer an additional layer of support, particularly when they’re paired with a qualified tutor, Barrett says. “In order to drive growth, tools have to align with methods and pedagogy for effective reading instruction.”
Content. The curriculum should align with the science of reading and include texts that are both engaging and grade-appropriate. Digital tools are available that focus specifically on older readers with literacy issues so they don’t have to read content meant for first-graders. Barrett recommends including texts tied to current events and topics relevant to teens, as well as using challenges and trophies to keep them motivated.
Foundational reading instruction. Frequent practice helps build fluency and confidence. Reading comprehension strategies across disciplines, such as summarizing, questioning and inferring, also are important.
Professional development. Ongoing training helps teachers understand what is presenting with their students. Teachers need resources and supports for small-group instruction geared toward struggling learners on a given topic.
Ultimately, helping older students improve their reading skills is challenging but not impossible.
“It requires very targeted and hopeful interventions. At your core, you have to really believe that the students are capable of learning and doing this,” Barrett says. “Provide them with quality intervention with those key elements — and ride alongside them and help them get there.”
*Name changed to preserve the student’s privacy.
Opinions expressed by SmartBrief contributors are their own.
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