Posted on 02/23/2022 5:27:42 AM PST by Red Badger
BALTIMORE (WBFF) — Recent Project Baltimore reports have exposed how some Baltimore City high school students are far behind in their education. Now, one woman is sharing her story as a Baltimore City student who graduated from high school without learning how to read.
Debora Prestileo is 41 years old. She’s a 1999 graduate of Patterson High School, who 23 years later, still struggles to read.
“It’s embarrassing sometimes,” Prestileo told Project Baltimore. “Going into stores, like if I go into Walmart, and I’ve got to ask for help. Sometimes people laugh at me.”
Prestileo has a learning disability, caused in part by a hearing impairment that wasn’t addressed until recently. She’s partially deaf, which severely impacted her ability to learn.
Debora Prestileo is 41 years old. She’s a 1999 graduate of Patterson High School, who 23 years later, still struggles to read (WBFF)
“My life is hard. When you can’t read your mail, you can’t read nothing, it’s hard,” she said.
Prestileo attended Baltimore City Public Schools for 12 years. She says she was given an IEP, or individualized education program, designed for students with learning disabilities. With an IEP, she should have been given extra help, tutoring, specialized lessons. Instead, she says she was given the answers.
“Some teachers would give me, like if we’re taking a test, they would give me the paper, so I can write the answers down, so I wouldn’t fail the class. And I’m like, ‘well, that’s not teaching me, that’s just helping me cheat,’” Prestileo said.
According to her high school transcript, Prestileo got a 74 in English her freshman year. In 10th grade, she earned a 78, a C+. By 11th grade, her English score dropped to a 62. Her senior year of high school, she passed English with a 68, though she couldn’t read her assignments.
According to her high school transcript, Prestileo passed English all four years of high school (WBFF)
“They passed me. They just passed me along to get me out of the school,” Prestileo told Project Baltimore. “They knew I didn’t know how to read. They knew I didn’t know how to do a lot of stuff. But they didn’t care.”
Prestileo earned a certificate of completion in June of 1999 and walked across the stage at graduation. When she looks back at high school, what she remembers is embarrassment and ridicule from other students and teachers. The shame still follows her.
“To this day, I still get laughed at and talked about, ‘oh this person don’t know how to read,’ Prestileo said. “Bullied, to this day, and it’s not fair. You know, it’s hard for me.”
A recent Project Baltimore investigation found most of the current students at Patterson High School are far behind in both math and reading. Seventy-seven percent of the high schoolers, according to one assessment, are reading at elementary school levels. With a dropout rate of 29% and a college enrollment rate of 21%, more Patterson students quit school than enroll in higher education.
“It makes me mad. It breaks my heart. It’s sad that they’re still doing it to these children,” Prestileo said. “It’s sad, and I’m angry about it.”
When Prestileo was a student at Patterson, she had dreams of becoming a veterinarian. She wanted a career and a family. But she knew, even then, those dreams were out of reach.
“That was my dream, having kids. Being married, having kids, a bunch of kids. But that got crushed, because I can’t teach my children, I can’t help them with their homework, or nothing. And then, if I can’t help them, they are going to be just like me. And I wasn’t going to bring a child into this world, where I can’t teach them.”
A recent Project Baltimore investigation found most of the current students at Patterson High School are far behind in both math and reading (WBFF)
Prestileo never did have children. She never became a veterinarian. She tried working at a restaurant but was scared to even clean the tables because she couldn’t read the labels on the cleaning supplies. She hasn’t had a job in years. But she did get married.
“I’m blessed. I have a husband that understands my reading situation and helps me every day with everything,” said Prestileo.
Her husband helps her with everyday tasks, like reading her mail and answering text messages. She’s made a life for herself, in spite of everything. But it’s not a life she wishes on anyone else.
“I know I’m not the only one. I know it’s a lot of people out here, and I don’t want children out there like me,” Prestileo said. “I want them to learn how to read, and know how to get through life, and be able to do their dream job, to be able to have a family. I don’t want nobody out there like me.”
“Teach Your Child To Read In 100 Lessons”. It worked for both of my boys, who learned to read at age three.
How about owning up to it, woman, and take responsibility for yourself?
Children’s brains are blank slates that can be taught many things.
Adult’s brains are basically set in stone after a certain time...................
“Educated and intelligent are not the same thing.”
And?
Intelligent and ignorant can coexist in the same person.
I would not call her a typical product of the school system. She has learning disability. She went to special school.
Unfortunately, there are many people around, who do not have disability and cannot read either!
Nah, no worries.
Teachers Union head Albert Shanker would only drop his nuclear weapon on the people who disagree with him! Or send the ones who oppose his dictatorship to their “education camps” behind barbed wire.
Keep voting democrat, Son.
Imagine if the schools actually focused on teaching all kids to read instead of trying to keep their voters ignorant. There are proven ways to teach kids to read. The schools just don’t implement them. But until black parents demand better for their kids and expect better from their kids, it won’t change. Every Republican candidate should mention school choice in every campaign. School choice helped DeSantis win.
This has been happening where I live for 25-30 years. Pass ‘em on through and let the next teacher deal with the situation.
Why put effort into anything if everything is just given to you?
Passed a library yesterday that had a large banner out - about learning how to read.
Most libraries I’ve worked with have such programs staffed by volunteers. Worked next to a skills center that specialized in helping adults learn to read or improve their reading skills.
All Free. All available.
Needs to help herself instead of whining about it.
You feel there is no hope for adults to learn to read? The evidence does not support that. Adults can learn to read if they are motivated.
This woman has had 23 years to sign up for adult education. She did not.
Some years ago I volunteered to help out in an adult GED class. I was to help with simple math. First problem, almost all the students, who ranged from 25 to 45 could not read. Impossible to present math problems. For example, I had one man about my age, 45, who drove a route truck. I presented the problem orally as one going to the store to buy two pounds of hamburger at $3 an lb, giving the clerk a $20 bill and expecting how much in return? The guy was not being a smart ass and said I don’t know, my wife does all the shopping. I asked how he did his route not knowing what the signs said. He said they showed me my route. Others were worse. This was a class of 20 or so who wanted to learn. I cannot imagine how many were out there who did not and did not care to learn. After a few weeks I gave up as I do not possess the talent to teach adults to read. Sad. Worse, it is probably a bigger problem today.
Some years ago I volunteered to help out in an adult GED class. I was to help with simple math. First problem, almost all the students, who ranged from 25 to 45 could not read. Impossible to present math problems. For example, I had one man about my age, 45, who drove a route truck. I presented the problem orally as one going to the store to buy two pounds of hamburger at $3 an lb, giving the clerk a $20 bill and expecting how much in return? The guy was not being a smart ass and said I don’t know, my wife does all the shopping. I asked how he did his route not knowing what the signs said. He said they showed me my route. Others were worse. This was a class of 20 or so who wanted to learn. I cannot imagine how many were out there who did not and did not care to learn. After a few weeks I gave up as I do not possess the talent to teach adults to read. Sad. Worse, it is probably a bigger problem today.
I remember reading of the same problem back in the 1970s in which certain football players graduated college and still could not read a word.
At what point do you just suck it up and learn to read? These people depend on the govt to raise them from cradle to grave.
Well, if she’s black and can play basketball, she’ll be ok. Those morons can’t read either.
Her husband would help her more by encouraging her to tap into myriad resources available to help her to read.
Legislators! Pass laws that allow schools to deal with students with unmanageable conduct. Sorry, some people cannot be helped and they disrupt the classroom for those who want to learn. If you can't throw the disruptors out, put them all in a big room called Special First Grade and leave them there until they are old enough to expel. Don't promote them to second grade.
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