> being able to read itself is more than sufficient to send them on to the next class This is why my kids go to private school and I support school choice: whe

> being able to read itself is more than sufficient to send them on to the next class This is why my kids go to private school and I support school choice: when students are treated like widgets that only have to meet some minimum quality standard, that necessarily results in teachers doing exactly as you describe: tolerating mediocrity because mediocrity is the standard. It’s not the teachers’ fault, it’s the way public schools are designed: to output students at a minimum level of competency. Until parents start demanding something beyond the minimum and voting accordingly, just “passing,” is all that we can expect.