Teaching grade level standards when students are extremely behind
Teachers are expected to cover current standards, but huge gaps in basic math and writing make this impossible. Because educators are forced to constantly put out fires and provide letter-by-letter help, they are prevented from reaching the required curriculum. This leaves teachers feeling like defeated failures who will ultimately be blamed if students cannot graduate.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Pulling small groups during independent work time to differentiate instructionDid this help you?
- 2Focusing on basic fact fluency before attempting to cover the full curriculumDid this help you?
- 3Requesting admin and special education support for replacement or modified curriculumDid this help you?
- 4Sending extra math homework home for practiceDid this help you?
- 5Abandoning the prescribed high school curriculum to teach foundational primary-school reading skills (phonics, sounding out words) directly.Did this help you?
- 6Using mad libs outlines with fill-in-the-blank brackets.Did this help you?
- 7Recording all conversations with administration for personal protection when pressured to pass failing seniors.Did this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I truly am at a loss as to how to teach kids this low.”source ↗
“They do not know how to write words and I have to stand over them and give them each letter.”source ↗
“Instead of teaching kids resilience and stamina we are caving to their limited abilities instead of challenging them.”source ↗
“I used to teach seniors and I felt I was the last person in the hot potato game! They can't do basic math, but of course it's going to be my fault if they don't graduate, because apparently they were able to complete all previous grades without a problem!”source ↗
“The biggest issue is that my students are extremely behind in math.”source ↗
“I’m trying to differentiate during small groups, but I feel like I’m constantly putting out fires.”source ↗
“I’m starting to feel really defeated myself because I know they have huge gaps, but I also have 4th grade standards I’m expected to teach that we are not reaching.”source ↗
“I came here looking for the same thing. I can’t sleep and feel like an endless failure.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 59Why are students coming to class missing basic foundational skills?
- 2How to grade trash student work without sugarcoating it
- 6Why do mandated teaching methods fail in the classroom?
- 2Why are honors classes full of average students?
- 8Why won't students do the reading assignments?
- 9Why do high schools pass and graduate students who don't do any work?