During the No Child Left Behind era of education reform, now winding down, teachers, schools and districts were tacitly encouraged to focus their efforts on raising the floor rather than raising the roof on student achievement. Whether by accident, choice or neglect, high-achievers as well as those merely "above proficient" received little attention. And why should they?
Much like the typical American fourth grader, education news tends go on a ten-week vacation each June after a year of intermittently joyous, raucous, and bizarre happenings.
Two years ago, I matriculated from one of the most liberal, activist college campuses in the country. In the months leading up to graduation, I fantasized about jumping head-first into a vocation fighting for social justice. I knew that I had a passion for policy and a healthy interest in education issues (my mom is a school teacher).
It's been a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad summer for education reform. After many years of bipartisan support, key elements of the reform agenda—higher standards, better teachers, test-based accountability, parental choice—are starved for oxygen in both the Republican and Democratic party platforms.
On this week’s podcast, Mike Petrilli, Alyssa Schwenk, and Robert Pondiscio discuss states’ neglect of high achievers and how ESSA might prompt them to do better. During the research minute, Amber Northern reports on the good news about narrowing socioeconomic gaps in kindergarten readiness.
By Yasmine Rana
By Michael J. Petrilli
No Child Left Behind meant well, but it had a pernicious flaw: It created strong incentives for schools to focus all their energy on helping low-performing students get over a modest “proficiency” bar. Meanwhile, it ignored the educational needs of high achievers, who were likely to pass state reading and math tests regardless of what happened in the classroom.
Educational choice is a strategy to provide children with opportunities to receive the education that works best for them. In recent years, private-school-choice programs have blossomed, doubling (since 2010) both the number of such initiatives and the number of children benefiting from them.
Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther is passionately outspoken about Columbus City Schools. He is an alumnus of the district, and his first experience as an elected official came as a member of its board of education. He has regularly praised Columbus City Schools and publicly bemoaned those who have spoken negatively about them.
By Chester E. Finn, Jr.
On this week’s podcast, Mike Petrilli, Alyssa Schwenk, and Brandon Wright discuss Education Next’s tenth annual survey. During the research minute, Dara Zeehandelaar examines the challenges of building a diverse teaching workforce.
The games of the thirty-first Olympiad are over. Maybe now I will be able to catch up on my sleep! For two weeks I stayed up way too late, spellbound by the competition between the world’s greatest athletes. I loved the world records, the close finishes, the upsets, the rivalries, and the camaraderie. I loved the emotion.
Columbus Collegiate Academy (CCA) epitomizes the relentlessness and vision necessary to close achievement gaps in urban education.
On this week’s podcast, Alyssa Schwenk, Brandon Wright, and David Griffith discuss alternative teacher licensing in Utah and opt-out consequences in Florida. During the research minute, Amber Northern examines the lack of college readiness Baltimore.
By Chester E. Finn, Jr.
By Amber M. Northern, Ph.D.
August 16 marked the first day of school for the thousands of children who attend the Dayton Public Schools (DPS). They returned to a district with a new superintendent, but many old problems. Regrettably, Dayton is at the end of a five-year strategic plan that barely moved the needle on the city’s dismal track record for student achievement.
Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose. — Bill GatesHow do you define success? Is it the accomplishment of one’s goals? Is it the attainment of wealth, position, honors? Is it happiness? Is it all of these, selected from a number of definitions on Wikipedia?
