What we're reading this week: June 17, 2021
The Education Gadfly“Why ed-tech startups Clever and Nearpod are expected to sell for a combined $1 billion.” —EdWeek A man from Angelus, Kansas, a dwindling town, ruffled feathers by turning a beloved old schoolhouse into a barn.
President Biden’s $220,000,000,000 “American Family Plan” should also pivot home
Miriam Kurtzig FreedmanSitting on a Boston city bus, I watched a mother with a young child. For the twenty-five-minute ride, they didn’t speak a word. No “Look at that little girl on the bicycle” or “We’re having pizza for dinner!” When you’re with a young child for that long, do you talk to her?
Charter schools at 30: Looking back, looking ahead
Chester E. Finn, Jr., Bruno V. MannoToday, forty-four states—plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam—have public charter school laws on their statute books, laws that have led to more than 7,500 schools employing 200,000-plus teachers and serving 3.3 million students.
Tennessee’s excellent plan to address unfinished learning
Dale ChuNearly three months have passed since the third round of ESSER funding was signed into law as part of the American Rescue Plan (ARP). These dollars can be used for almost anything under the education sun, and most of them will flow directly to districts, but the limited set aside for states merits attention if only for the staggering scale of Uncle Sam’s total outlay.
Zombie ideas in education
Bryan GoodwinEditor’s note: This was first published in Educational Leadership.
Fast break: Instilling emotional safety and engaged learning in high schools
Barry E. Stern, Ph.D.Editor’s note: This essay is an entry in Fordham’s 2021 Wonkathon, which asked contributors to address a fundamental and challenging question: “How can schools best address students’ mental health needs coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic without shortchanging academic instruction?”
Partnering with culturally-specific community organizations to provide consistent, expansive, and adaptive mental health services
Christine Pitts, Elizabeth GilkeyEditor’s note: This essay is an entry in Fordham’s 2021 Wonkathon, which asked contributors to address a fundamental and challenging question: “How can schools best address students’ mental health needs coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic without shortchanging academic instruction?”
SEL for all begins with SEL for educators
Sulina Mohanty, Genesis KellerEditor’s note: This essay is an entry in Fordham’s 2021 Wonkathon, which asked contributors to address a fundamental and challenging question: “How can schools best address students’ mental health needs coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic without shortchanging academic instruction?”
The common ground on race and education that’s hiding in plain sight
Michael J. PetrilliIn the latest skirmishes in education’s never-ending culture wars—the tussles over critical race theory, “anti-racist” education, and diversity, equity, and inclusion in the classroom—common ground is there to be found. Here, for example, are five promising and praiseworthy practices that most of us could get behind, regardless of our politics or our views on other issues, while doing a lot of good for millions of kids.
To address mental health, think systemically about social, emotional, and academic learning
Justina SchlundEditor’s note: This was the third-place submission, out of twenty-five, in Fordham’s 2021 Wonkathon, in which we asked participants to answer the question, “How can sc
A new look at the question of the effectiveness of school turnarounds
Amber M. Northern, Ph.D.Turnaround efforts for low performing schools have been the subject of research interest since their advent in the No Child Left Behind era.
How remote instruction affected learning at the college level
Jeff MurrayStories of successful remote teaching and learning experiences during the pandemic are heartening. But more and better data around those successes are required.
Choosing “all of the above” serves all
Dr. Alex Casillas, Dr. Bonnie A. HainHow can schools best address students’ mental health needs coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic without shortchanging academic instruction? Question #1: Schools can best address the needs of whole learners coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic by:
Relationships are where learning happens
Jennifer L. SteeleEditor’s note: This essay is an entry in Fordham’s 2021 Wonkathon, which asked contributors to address a fundamental and challenging question: “How can schools best address students’ mental health needs coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic without shortchanging academic instruction?”
Lessons learned from 10 years of pioneering blended learning
Jeff Kerscher, Emily GilbrideIn 1908, the Ford Motor Company unveiled the Model T and introduced a reliable, affordable automobile for the middle class. While revolutionary, the Model T also took twelve hours and 7,882 tasks to assemble 1,481 parts, and increased production time meant increased costs. In 1913, Ford introduced an assembly line and cut production to ninety-three minutes.
As schools commence plans to address unfinished learning, here’s how to sequence implementation
CAO CentralHelping students recover from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the other crises of the past year is likely the greatest challenge that most of today’s educators will ever face. It will take extensive time, skill, and collaboration between leaders, teachers, staff, and families. And it will look different from community to community—and even from school to school.
The primacy of trust: How to create an environment that promotes social emotional learning and academic success
Brooke Mabry, Elliot Ransom, Nina Ryan, Lauren WellsEditor’s note: This essay is an entry in Fordham’s 2021 Wonkathon, which asked contributors to address a fundamental and challenging question: “How can schools best address students’ mental health needs coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic without shortchanging academic instruction?”
Addressing students' mental health: Early is good, earlier is better
Laura Weeldreye, Margo Candelaria, Ph.D., Douglas LentEditor’s note: This essay is an entry in Fordham’s 2021 Wonkathon, which asked contributors to address a fundamental and challenging question: “How can schools best address students’ mental health needs coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic without shortchanging academic instruction?”
Four ways schools can expand mental-health supports for students and staff post-pandemic
CAO CentralEditor’s note: This essay is an entry in Fordham’s 2021 Wonkathon, which asked contributors to address a fundamental and challenging question: “How can schools best address students’ mental health needs coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic without shortchanging academic instruction?”
Preschool support, sure. Biden’s plan, no.
Chester E. Finn, Jr.The overriding problem with President Biden’s education scheme, as presented in his grandiose “American Families” package, is its focus on more schooling rather than more learning.
Six ways schools can serve gifted students after the pandemic
CAO CentralNow more than ever, high-ability students from low-income families will need specialized attention and guidance from their parents and teachers. Many less-resourced families have experienced illness or personal and financial instability, and low-income students’ schooling may have experienced long interruptions due to a lack of resources at home.
Some things I’ve learned
Robert PondiscioTwo decades into what was supposed to be a two-year public service stint in education, I’ve learned a few lessons as a teacher, a writer, and an ed reformer. They include the following: teaching has to be a job that ordinary people can do well; innovation is an overrated virtue; and there’s no such thing in education as a magic bullet—but there might be magic buckshot. Read more.
Improving assessments and accountability in the post-Covid era
Chester E. Finn, Jr.As U.S. schools reopen in the fall, a year and a half after nearly all of them closed due to the pandemic panic, what should be different? What needs to change if kids are actually to catch up? What’s important to retrieve from pre-Covid days? And what other changes, changes that should have been made pre-Covid, is there now a rare opportunity to initiate?
How school district consolidation affects student outcomes and economic efficiency
Amber M. Northern, Ph.D.Between 1940 and 2018, the number of public school districts in the U.S. declined from 117,108 to 13,551 due to consolidation, whereby smaller districts merged with each other or with a larger neighbor to boost economies of scale in the resource-intensive business of running schools.
First, do no harm: The initial impact of the Common Core on student learning
Victoria McDougaldEver since their creation and adoption over a decade ago, the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) have been hotly debated and intensely villainized. The backlash to the CCSS initially took many advocates and supporters by surprise, as state education standards have existed in the U.S.
Supporting English learners when students return to classrooms
CAO CentralMeeting the needs of the diverse and growing number of English learners (ELs) is a pressing challenge for many schools, districts, and charter management organizations. Although many general education programs and curricula do not provide all of the specific supports ELs need, pull-out programs for most students generally do more harm than good.
The culture wars come for the Nation’s Report Card
Chester E. Finn, Jr.Trouble continues at the National Assessment Governing Board (NAGB), the policy body for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).
Supporting students with disabilities as we emerge from the pandemic
CAO CentralEditor’s note: The Thomas B. Fordham Institute recently launched “The Acceleration Imperative,” a crowd-sourced, evidence-based resource designed to aid instructional leaders’ efforts to address the enormous challenges faced by their students, families, teachers, and staff over the past year.
Evidence-based ways to assess student progress
CAO CentralEditor’s note: The Thomas B. Fordham Institute recently launched “The Acceleration Imperative,” a crowd-sourced, evidence-based resource designed to aid instructional leaders’ efforts to address the enormous challenges faced by their students, families, teachers, and staff over the past year.