Responding to President Joe Biden's State of the Union address, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R-AR) observed, "I believe giving every child access to a quality education , regardless of their race or income, is the civil rights issue of our day." She added her rejection of a "policy of trapping kids in failing schools and sentencing them to a lifetime of poverty."

She is exactly right.

Academic progress across America is in decline. The 2022 National Assessment of Educational Progress showed the largest decline in math scores since 1990. In most states and jurisdictions, students in fourth and eighth grade received lower scores compared to 2019 results. When one examines nationwide reading scores, the reality becomes even more concerning.

"Reading proficiently by the end of third grade (as measured by NAEP at the beginning of fourth grade) can be a make-or-break benchmark in a child’s educational development," according to a report published by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Yale University researchers found that three-quarters of students who are poor readers in third grade won’t be able to catch up and will still struggle with reading in high school.

The latest NAEP scores showed a decline in fourth grade reading scores in every region of the country and in 30 states and jurisdictions. A total of 66% of fourth graders scored at or below the NAEP Basic level, including 37% of students who performed below that level. Statistically speaking, low literacy early in a child’s development has long-lasting effects on the trajectory for the rest of their lives.

"Academic success, as defined by high school graduation, can be predicted with reasonable accuracy by knowing someone’s reading skill at the end of third grade," according to the National Research Council. "A person who is not at least a modestly skilled reader by that time is unlikely to graduate from high school."

America is not setting our children up for success.

This failure not only jeopardizes our children’s future but also the future of our country. As the Reagan administration’s National Commission on Excellence in Education concluded, "The educational foundations of our society are presently being eroded by a rising tide of mediocrity that threatens our very future as a Nation and a people." The commission’s conclusion is just as true now as it was in 1983. However, rather than focusing on improving educational outcomes, America’s parents, students, and teachers are today forced to contend with a woke, left-wing mob that seeks to indoctrinate our children with radical ideology and a distorted view of our nation’s history.

How well our children learn is certainly important, but what they learn will also shape their character, their values, and their identity as Americans. That is why I launched the Little Patriots program. Through fun and engaging stories about U.S. history, children learn about the freedoms that make our country exceptional and the values that have shaped who we are.

Sanders has also announced a bold education reform plan for Arkansas. The Arkansas LEARNS plan will educate, not indoctrinate, children, empower parents, and recruit and retain good teachers. To combat low literacy rates in the state, the plan will deploy 120 literacy coaches and offer $500 per year for supplemental education services for students in grades K-3 who are struggling to read. Rather than churning children who are struggling through the system, the plan will require that students read at a third-grade level before they advance to the fourth grade. Additionally, the plan will set up education freedom accounts so that families can send their children to a school of their choice. And every Arkansas teacher will also receive a raise, and the minimum base salary for teachers will increase by $14,000, making Arkansas teachers the fourth highest paid in the nation.

What happens in classrooms across the country will have a significant impact on the future of America and each of our children. By championing solutions such as Arkansas LEARNS, Sanders and conservatives are leading the charge to place the next generation on the path to success.

Dr. Ben Carson is the founder and chairman of the  American Cornerstone Institute  and the former secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.