The bright children left behind
We mustn’t let other countries surpass us in producing tomorrow’s inventors, entrepreneurs, artists, and scientists. Chester E. Finn, Jr. and Brandon L. Wright
We mustn’t let other countries surpass us in producing tomorrow’s inventors, entrepreneurs, artists, and scientists. Chester E. Finn, Jr. and Brandon L. Wright
TNTP’s new report, “The Mirage,” is essential reading for anyone interested in educator effectiveness. It’s smartly researched and delivers an uppercut of a conclusion: Today's professional development doesn’t work.
What works for affluent children may be failing their low-income peers. Michael J. Petrilli
All students should count every day, all year long
In the age of charter schools, Common Core, test-based teacher evaluations, and other hot-button education reform issues, Catholic schools have largely taken a backseat in our public conversations. When we do read about them in the media, it is often bad news: financial struggles, declining enrollment, closures.
The untapped potential of teacher-created curriculum materials
When trying to improve educational outcomes, it is hard not to feel the need for urgency. We want to figure out what works now and implement changes immediately—because if we wait, kids who are in schools now will miss out.
Information, options, and access needed for school choice accountability. Jeff Murray
Mixed results, at least in the short term. Amber M. Northern, Ph.D.
KIPP doubled in size and maintained its quality. Can this continue? Robert Pondiscio
More on the fate of U.S. Catholic schools. The boom in college affordability indices. And hopeful signs that the DOE is getting reasonable on teacher evaluations.
Mayor de Blasio's education initiatives: Right target, lousy aim. Robert Pondiscio
The goals of specific collaboration activities are too often fuzzy. David Griffith
Yes, there is a gender bias. And it favors boys in math. Dara Zeehandelaar, Ph.D.
Do zone-based priority admissions to charter schools affect home purchases? Amber M. Northern, Ph.D.
When school boards describe their missions, they often overlook citizenship. Robert Pondiscio and Kate Stringer
Plus: Charters take a stiff drink of reality, and reformers ask what we can learn from the "privileged poor."
The overheated debate over Common Core has overshadowed the heavy lift being asked of America's teachers. Robert Pondiscio
The first few weeks of September make up a sweet spot between seasons, with summer's last days of warmth and play mingling with the beginning a new school year. All that beauty and excitement can make it easy to forget the significance of today's date: Fourteen years have passed since the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania.
In the vast “how-to-fix-education” universe, early childhood programming seems to be the new elixir. Governors and mayors push it, as does our president, viewing it as a smart investment in the future. Many children come to school unprepared to learn, so we have to intervene earlier. Right? An instinctive response is to advocate for more early childhood education. Who can argue with that?
In Faith Ed: Teaching About Religion in an Age of Intolerance, Linda K.
One of the biggest debates raging in education policy today is whether schools of choice are serving their fair share of the hardest-to-educate students or abandoning them to traditional public schools.
An awkward name for a great idea; Dan Willingham on teacher training; and an education idea so good it needs to bust out of jail.
High-performing charters earn the approval of policy commentators and researchers alike. Kevin Mahnken
Stop reforming and start improving. Lisa Hansel
Surprisingly, parent dissatisfaction with neighborhood schools doesn’t contribute to charter school location. Amber M. Northern, Ph.D.
Policy wonks have long known that just one-third of kids are on track for college. Now parents will know too. Michael J. Petrilli and Robert Pondiscio
The Washington State Supreme Court clung to antiquated ideas at the expense of our most vulnerable kids. Robin J. Lake