06/09/2026
The Group That Changed Everything
A teacher was frustrated because a group of students kept missing inference questions.
At first, it looked like a comprehension problem.
But after digging into the data, something else appeared.
Many of those students didn't understand key vocabulary within the text.
The problem wasn't inference.
The problem was access.
Once vocabulary became the focus, comprehension improved.
Sometimes the skill we see isn't the skill that's causing the difficulty.
That's why data should guide instruction—not assumptions.