Houston Superintendent Responds to Teacher’s Viral Video

The superintendent of the Houston Independent School District has come to the defense of Wheatley High School’s recent “A” rating from the state, following a viral video where a teacher expressed her distress over an illiterate upperclassman.

Mike Miles, the superintendent, addressed concerns on Thursday, stating that the issue of students struggling with reading and writing isn’t new. This response followed teacher Darius Williams’ emotional social media post, which garnered considerable media attention.

Rather than expressing alarm, Miles opted to celebrate the significant improvement at Wheatley High, which achieved its first “A” in the Texas Education Agency’s accountability ratings, an impressive upgrade from an “F” just four years prior.

“I don’t believe this is new information,” Miles remarked. “We’ve all felt this way for the last few years… there’s definitely a need for more support for these children,” he explained to reporters.

“Four years back, Wheatley received an ‘F’. Many students were falling below grade level in reading and math. That’s why we’re here. It’s a serious situation, and we are actively addressing these issues,” he continued.

“Yes, we are celebrating our success, but an ‘A’ and these numbers don’t hold much meaning unless we consider the kids behind them,” he added, noting plans to celebrate the achievement at the school the following day.

In her viral video, Williams expressed her frustration during lunch break, saying she struggled to get through her class due to the low literacy skills of her students.

“I just completed a three-hour class and ended up breaking down in tears in the midst of it,” she shared.

As a career and technical education teacher, she assigned a simple two-paragraph reading task and asked her upperclassmen to write a sentence.

To her dismay, she found they had difficulty even with that.

“I basically did the writing for them,” she said, emphasizing her disbelief. “These are 17- and 18-year-olds who couldn’t fill in four words. Four words!” Williams expressed her frustration, clearly showing her annoyance.

With tears in her eyes, she pointed out that while students can verbally articulate their thoughts, they struggle to translate those ideas into writing.

“It’s only the second day of school, yet some seniors just can’t read, and others can’t write. They simply can’t,” Williams exclaimed.

The Texas Education Agency’s accountability assessment measures what students are learning at each grade level and whether they are prepared for advancement. It also evaluates how well a school equips students for post-high school life—whether that leads to college, a job, or military service.