Teacher's Claims About Student Literacy Face Student Pushback

<p>A high school teacher gained attention after posting a video in which he expressed distress over some senior students' reading and writing abilities. However, students at Wheatley High School are contesting his claims.</p><p>One student informed Houston Public Media that Darius Williams, a new teacher at the school, was "lying" in the video. Another student, Alexis Salgado, acknowledged that while some students faced challenges with essay writing and advanced English assignments, they were capable of reading.</p><p>Wheatley High School has previously faced literacy challenges but recently received its first "A" accountability rating from the Texas Education Agency.</p><p>The Houston Independent School District's press office stated, "At Wheatley High School, students have made significant academic gains, demonstrating that strong instruction, high expectations and targeted support are making a difference." </p><p>In the now-deleted video, recorded on his second day at the school, Williams stated, "I simply don’t know where the problem is. This is only day two, and I have seniors who simply cannot read and seniors who cannot write." He added, "I basically completed the sentence for them. These are 17- and 18-year-old kids, and they couldn’t fill in four words. Four words." </p><p>Williams has a substantial social media following under the username "DariusCooks," with nearly 700,000 followers on Instagram and over one million on TikTok, primarily due to his cooking videos.</p><p>Williams did not respond to The Daily Wire’s request for comment regarding his transition from an online cooking personality to a high school teacher, or the reasons for posting the video on his second day of work.</p><p>In addition to sharing cooking videos, Williams sells cookbooks and dining experiences. However, the Better Business Bureau of Metro Atlanta has cautioned consumers about engaging with DariusCooks. The bureau stated, "BBB advises consumers to use caution when doing business with DariusCooks, LLC." </p><p>Customers have reported issues with dining experiences not being honored and difficulties in receiving purchased cookbooks.</p><p>Williams previously operated a credit-repair service but agreed in 2019 to pay $145,750 to settle allegations of illegal upfront charges and misleading claims regarding debt removal and bankruptcies. He ran this business in Georgia, where the state attorney general's office mandated him to cease operations as part of the settlement.</p><p>Williams has since relocated to Houston to pursue a career in education. According to Wheatley High School’s directory, he is a career and technical education teacher.</p>