That basic deficiency was the target of former Gov. Olene Walker's reading initiative for children in kindergarten through third grade. Last year, legislators whittled Walker's initial $30 million request to $15 million in state funds with a local option for school districts to make up the other half by raising taxes.
This year lawmakers discontinued $2.5 million in one-time funds that kicked off Walker's reading program and that most districts used to hire reading specialists for young children. The losses range from $4,878 in Rich County to $357,803 in Granite School District.
Legislators' failure to convert that money into ongoing funding was shortsighted. Despite annual tutorials from educators, they continue to underfund public education at its most basic levels. A math initiative for grades four to six also went unfunded.
As Jean Gordon, a 22-year teaching veteran and principal of East Midvale Elementary School, said, "The literacy specialist is one of the very best - if not the very best - ideas that has happened in this school system since I've been here."
The reading specialists in Jordan District, whose jobs probably will be eliminated, are training teachers in the best ways to teach reading and tutoring seniors who failed the new high school graduation exam the first time around. If those students don't do better on subsequent exams, they will not receive diplomas. That has some officials worrying that the state might be sued for requiring seniors to pass a test for which the schools did not prepare them.
Children and teenagers who are struggling with reading are undoubtedly performing below their potential in other subjects, as reading is basic to all academic achievement. Walker understood that, but legislators are slow to learn.
The Legislature boosted education funding overall by more than $130 million. That will slightly boost deplorable teacher salaries and help pay the expense of burgeoning enrollment. But their failure to recognize the importance of reading and the effort to help all Utah children improve in core subjects is shameful.
The state is sure to see the consequences as seniors leave school unprepared for jobs or further education.
