The Kids Aren’t Alright: The United States Literacy Crisis by Ava Garrard

It pains me to say it, but maybe the Offspring was right—despite how I feel about their sound. The kids aren’t alright. The kids actually can’t read. At least, some of them can’t. 

I would say that

2026 has been a whirlwind of a year so far, but I feel like I said the same thing in 2025, and 2024, and so on. There have been teacher shortages, attacks on higher education, uses of AI for everything (I’m a hater), and much more. I find myself asking why. Why is all of this happening? Shockingly, I haven’t found a good answer—but I have found a particular problem. There is a literacy crisis in the United States. According to the National Literacy Institute, over half of the adults in the United States read below a sixth-grade level. That is problematic! The National Report Card cited that reading scores of high school seniors have dropped to their lowest level since 1992. In the age of internet access and research, this really should not be happening. Additionally, children and teens from low-income backgrounds are disproportionately affected by low-literacy rates. 

People blame COVID, public education, vaccines, and everything else without actually seeking out solutions to this crisis. What do I think the problem is? I do blame the basic reliance on AI, but I also understand that everything is nuanced. This country has a lot to work on, and in this time of crisis I’m not sure that defunding and dismantling systems of education are great answers! But, what do I know? 

Read a book, guys.