A student’s TikTok videos demonstrating how his adolescent peers couldn’t read or comprehend simple sentences have drawn criticism from a Philadelphia charter school.
South Philadelphia’s Preparatory Charter High School claimed the films, which garnered millions of views and made fun of its pupils, were out of context and did not align with its academic standards.
Students were handed a piece of paper with a simple text on it in the “Can You Read?” films, but many of them were unable to read the words or explain what they meant.
The phrase “She wore a silhouette of clothes that were extraordinary but somewhat gauche” appeared in one video, and several pupils struggled with the terms “silhouette” and “extraordinary.”
One pupil, who was having trouble reading, remarked, “She wore a soooo.. clothes that were… who is this for?”
The student @whatthevek uploaded a second version of the video after the original one went viral, stating, “The colonel asked the choir to accommodate the governor’s schedule.”
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the video went viral on social media as stunned viewers expressed their disbelief at the literacy rates of Philadelphia students. This led to accusations that the student who posted the clips had been expelled.
In response, Prep Charter argued that its children are more literate than the clip depicted and said in a statement that the student was not being punished for the videos.
A student’s TikTok videos demonstrating his peers’ inability to read or comprehend simple sentences were criticised by a Philadelphia charter school, which claimed they were “out of context.”
In films that received millions of views, preparatory Charter High School students were seen straining to comprehend phrases like “The colonel asked the choir to accommodate the governor’s schedule” and “She wore a silhouette of clothes that were extraordinary but somewhat gauche.”
The video “does not accurately reflect our school community or the values we strive to uphold every day,” according to Prep Charter’s statement.
“The way the footage was presented lacks important context and has led to a portrayal that is misleading and unfair, even though some students may have consented to be filmed,” the school stated.
“The character, effort, or ability of our students as a whole are not represented in the video titled “Can You Read?” What context was absent from the damaging videos was not disclosed by the school.
Over 70% of the approximately 600 pupils enrolled at Prep Charter come from low-income families, according to state data that the Inquirer reported.
at the 2024–2025 school year, just 46.5% of the students at the school received proficient scores in English language arts on state assessments in Pennsylvania.
Additionally, according to the school’s state test results, only 19% of its pupils were proficient in maths.
Social media users reacted negatively to the videos, with many expressing concern about the future of the American educational system.
In a statement, Prep Charter said that its students are more literate than the footage depicted and that the student was not being disciplined for the videos.
In the 2024–2025 school year, only 46.5% of the school’s pupils received proficient English and 19% received proficient math scores on Pennsylvania state exams. Jo Ann Moore, the principal of the school, is shown.
Social media users reacted negatively to the videos, with many expressing pessimism about the future of the American educational system.
According to one X user who works in a high school, they frequently witness pupils having difficulty reading simple sentences.
They stated, “Students cannot sound out words.”They will simply begin speculating about other random words that begin with the same letter if they come across a word they are unfamiliar with.
Another reader remarked, “I’m Dutch, and I can read that with ease.” “If that’s where the bar is at for youths in the USA… doesn’t bode well for the future.”
