Struggling LI school districts need a fresh approach

Long Island students are scoring higher on reading and math tests, and that’s praiseworthy. Yet as always, those results are clouded by the decades-old issue of underperforming schools in low-wealth districts.

And in many Long Island districts that did see gains, too many students are still struggling to meet standards that establish a foundation for success. The good news: English language arts and math scores for Long Island students in grades 3-8, as a whole, rose in 2024-25 compared with the prior year. In ELA, 7.4% more students met or exceeded proficiency. In math, 2.4% more students met or exceeded proficiency.

These gains are commendable, particularly in the wake of the pandemic shutdown and the distractions of smartphones and social media. Many educators, on Long Island and across the country, have credited a return to basics which emphasizes phonics — called the Science of Reading — as integral to scores beginning to creep up. Math instruction is emulating these tactics and seeing promising early results.

Increases in standardized test scores are signs of progress. But cuts in federal funding put these gains at risk. New York State must fill in where the federal government is cutting money and provide support for these districts, but under strict guidelines and supervision that emphasize expanded, immediate intervention programs and high-dosage tutoring.

One of the most obvious causes of student underperformance is absenteeism. Seat time matters. Chronic absenteeism — missing 10% or more of instructional days — is a soaring problem nationwide. New York’s chronic absenteeism rate is 35%, and 20 states have rates above 30%. A Newsday news analysis found Long Island’s rates dropped to 17.6% for the 2023-24 school year, which means if it were a state, the Island would be tied with New Jersey and Idaho for the lowest rates.

Not surprisingly, Long Island districts with the highest chronic absenteeism rates also have some of the highest percentages of students performing below proficient in ELA and math.

Also concerning is that about 1 in 4 Suffolk students (23.9%) are below proficient in reading, compared with 12.9% in Nassau, the results showed. In math, 21.8% of Suffolk students scored below proficient compared with 10.5% in Nassau.

The Education Recovery Scorecard in February published a detailed look at test scores by examining 8,719 school districts in 43 states and concluded that providing funding specifically for academic interventions works, and that chronic absenteeism contributes to the “widening gaps between high and low poverty districts.” Thomas Kane, who directs the education research at Harvard University’s Center for Education Policy Research, said that educators must examine instructional reforms “and spread what’s working.”

That thinking is needed in Long Island’s struggling districts. Those that continue to lag — and the students who slip through the cracks — deserve a fresh approach.

Long Island educators deserve applause for making gains in the critical areas of reading and math, but must continue to find new solutions that may finally break the seemingly irreversible trend of lackluster student performance in poor districts.