What we're reading this week: November 11, 2021
The Education Gadfly“Education finance guru Marguerite Roza on how schools can best spend Covid aid.” —Education Week With recent elections elevating the voice of suburban parents and the conversation on critical race theory, what will the future of education p
Want your kids to thrive in school? Call the pediatrician.
Tim DalyThe pandemic has provided a stream of unsettling headlines reminding us that our kids are not OK. They have grappled with surges in loneliness, anxiety, and depression.
2021 election recap: How four key school board races shook out
Dale ChuWhile the gubernatorial upset in Virginia drew the brightest spotlight, Tuesday’s election featured an unusual surge in the number of school board candidates vying for thousands of seats all over the country. Four races were especially noteworthy, both for the charged political rancor leading up to November 2, as well as the potentially broader implications from the results.
Reconnecting knowledge and virtue
Jennifer FreyEditor’s note: We're happy to introduce Jennifer Frey, who will be writing regularly for the Fordham Institute over the next year. She is an associate professor at the University of South Carolina, where she focuses on virtue ethics.
Lessons on protecting viewpoint diversity in classrooms
Robert Pondiscio, Tracey SchirraA story that became a flashpoint in national conversations around the effects of “CRT bans” is reaching its denouement: This past week, a hearing officer appointed to adjudicate the case ruled that the Sullivan County, Tennessee, school board was justified in
The complexities of accountability and private school choice
Jessica PoinerAmong its many educational impacts, the pandemic has reenergized efforts to expand private school choice. States like Ohio, where it already existed, have expanded eligibility and increased funding.
What we're reading this week: November 4, 2021
The Education GadflyCongress is inching closer to making universal pre-K, expanded free school meals, and cash benefits for working-class families a reality.
The “big quit” is an opportunity to fix our broken education system
Bruno V. MannoCovid-19 sent a shock wave through an already changing U.S. job market, provoking “a great reassessment of work in America.”
Not everyone’s on board with turning schooling into therapy
Robert PondiscioSchools have been concerned with character formation and values since Plato sat with students under an olive tree. Today’s “social and emotional learning” is consistent with this age-old impulse. But in its form and function it can represent something different—and more worrisome—than its progenitors, especially when employed without full discussion of its priorities and methods.
The case for K–2 testing
Dale ChuUnder federal law, states must assess students annually in reading and math in grades 3–8 and at least once during high school, as well as testing science once in elementary, middle, and high school.
The fault in our genes: Should education policies consider DNA?
Matthew LeveyKathryn Paige Harden is a behavioral genetics rock star at UT Austin. Unsurprisingly for a college professor in a liberal town, she identifies as progressive. The seeming contradiction between her research interests and her political views has drawn broad attention to her first book, The Genetic Lottery.
How reopening decisions affected public school disenrollment
Amber M. Northern, Ph.D.During the first full school year after the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, enrollment in U.S. public schools fell by about 1.1 million students, or 2 percent of prior K–12 enrollment.
Students are interested in computer science, but many of them lack access
Jeff MurrayResults of a recent survey published by Amazon’s Future Engineer offshoot show several disconnects between the interests, experiences, and aspirations of U.S. students in regard to computer science.
Education Gadfly Show #793: How D.C. increased teacher diversity and quality
What we're reading this week: October 28, 2021
The Education GadflyOn March 2020, Massachusetts issued a scathing review of Boston’s public school system. With problems worsened by pandemic closures, can the district reform itself?
Declining NAEP scores are flashing red lights for the Covid generation
Michael J. PetrilliLast week brought the latest results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress’s Long Term Trend series, and they were sobering. Just before the pandemic kicked in, U.S. thirteen-year-olds saw statistically-significant declines in both math and reading—a first in the study’s nearly 50-year history. Black, Hispanic, and low-achieving students saw the largest declines. Here’s the case that the Great Recession was largely at fault.
How do parents use education savings accounts?
Amber M. Northern, Ph.D.Whether due to the pandemic, political opportunism, popular demand, or a combination, education savings accounts (ESAs) are enjoying much attention and growth
What we're reading this week: October 21, 2021
“What research tells us about gifted education.” —Hechinger Report A celebration of the late Mike Rose and his contribution to writing instruction.
5 lessons in education policy from newly-minted Nobel laureates
Adam Tyner, Ph.D.This week the Nobel committee announced that the 2021 Nobel Prize in economics would go to Joshua Angrist (MIT), David Card (UC Berkeley), and Guido Imbens (Stanford).
Reforming licensing policies will help alleviate teacher shortages
Shannon WhitworthWith the effects of the pandemic dragging on for another year, labor markets are acting strange and organizations are struggling to find qualified workers. Schools are no different. The teacher pipeline has slowed to a trickle as teacher preparation programs see fewer and fewer candidates. Teachers have been leaving the profession early.
Bill de Blasio is decimating gifted education in New York. Will Eric Adams save it?
Brandon L. WrightMayor de Blasio is axing New York City’s long-standing gifted education programs. He plans to replace them with something else, but his proposal is almost entirely wrong. Fortunately, Eric Adams, who’s almost certain to replace him in January, has a vision of gifted education that’s mostly right, and he’ll enter office in time to fix de Blasio’s blunders.
Seeking a constitutional shortcut to educational excellence
Dale ChuDo students have a right to a high-quality education? A proposed ballot initiative filed in California last Thursday says yes.
Sorry Edutopia, the research base on project-based learning remains weak
Daniel BuckAs one paper put it, there is a “paucity of robust research” on project-based learning. Yet in the ed-school world and in many journals and professional organizations, it’s often touted as a pedagogical gold standard.