The Nation’s Report Card, released last week, shows the K-12 school system as bad and getting worse. A record 32% of high school seniors cannot read proficiently, and almost half cannot do basic math. Fourth and eighth-grade math and reading scores also fell, continuing a collapse that began before the COVID-19 school closures. 

The new National Assessment of Educational Progress numbers should spur leaders to abandon harmful diversity, equity, and inclusion curriculum and discipline policies that distract from education fundamentals and cause chaos in classrooms. Collective bargaining should also be rolled back because unions raise pay for employees but harm student performance, especially among those who need the most help.