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An Editorial Opinion of The Selma Times-Journal

A lot of data was released by the Alabama Department of Education, and a lot of it is good news for Selma City Schools.

Selma saw a big gain in third graders that are reading at or above grade level. The final numbers showed 90% of all third graders are reading at least on grade level. That was only 58.5% two years ago.

About 72.16% of second graders in Selma City Schools were reading at or above grade level, compared to only 41.77% in 2022-23.

In Dallas County, 83.1% of third graders for 2024-2025 made their benchmarks compared to 73.42% at or above reading level two years. The same trends were true for second graders.

This is great news for all of our local districts. And that is happening even as benchmarks for reading are increasing.

Congratulations to all of our local public schools. These trends are great. Reading is one of the most fundamental skills that students must have if they want to be successful not just in school, but also in life.

We hope that the school districts will be able to keep up the great work as they help more students become college and career ready, and it starts with a good foundation in reading.