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Cheers and Jeers: April 10, 2026

CHEERS

How to hire a school superintendent

Hiring a superintendent is the most important decision a school board makes. Superintendents are not just the district’s CEO. They are (or ought to be) the de facto chief academic officer, responsible for setting the instructional direction of the system.

The high school pathways that boost adult earnings

It’s not often that a conservative education secretary and a progressive teachers union boss see eye to eye.

A school choice zealot’s case for neighborhood schools

I’m a longtime zealot for school choice. I think students, families, schools, and communities benefit when we have a variety of education options and parents get to match their kids to learning environments.

Another deep dive into estimates of economic returns to education

Hot on the heels of a recent report that postulated a lower-than-commonly-believed economic benefit of formal schooling comes a brand new analysis that offers more proof of high marginal returns to education. Who is winning the battle of the impact estimates?

Selective high schools are a lifeline for advanced students in Chicago

2026 is a watershed moment for Chicago Public Schools (CPS).

The limits of high-quality curriculum evaluation

For the better part of a decade, Natalie Wexler has helped reshape the conversation about American education.

The case for open enrollment

The current system of residential assignment carries a lot of baggage. It also forces families into boxes where their largest investments (i.e., homes) are intrinsically tied to a single public school. This structure lacks the flexibility that should be afforded to students and their parents, especially as K–12 education is a deeply personal experience.

Close the music education gap

I still remember my elementary music teacher roaming the halls, pushing a cart overflowing with tambourines, recorders, and sheet music. This vibrant world was threatened, however, when I was in fourth grade as the district began discussing cuts to our music program.

Gen Z talks about life after high school

High school graduation is often treated as the pivotal moment when one becomes an adult. But for many young people today, adulthood unfolds unevenly over time, through a mix of work, further education, financial pressure, stalled plans, and gradual independence.

Dearest gentle reader, it is time to abandon AI in schools

The scandal of the season is not a whispered romance, a poorly executed quadrille, or even a duel at dawn. A most alarming development has captured the attention of Queen Charlotte, her ladies-in-waiting, and of schoolmasters across the Republic. Artificial intelligence, we are told, has entered the classroom.

Where is Secretary McMahon?

The Trump team’s dismantlement of the U.S. Department of Education continues apace, indeed has now reached the very top of the organization.

“Hegseth Starts” pilot program brings “warrior ethos” to pre-k

From “mogging” to “big chungus”: What Scripps’s new words tell us about 21st-century literacy

“Contestant number one, your word is chungus.” “Can you please use it in a sentence?” “Sure,” she says, holding back a laugh. “I love my big chungus life.”

Do math scores soar when you paint classrooms taupe?

Let high achievers skip a grade

Every year, schools invest immense sums of money in sports programs to cultivate the performance of students who show extraordinary athletic promise.

What we’re reading: March 27, 2026

WHAT WE’RE READING

Cheers and Jeers: March 27, 2026

CHEERS

The human stakes of AI grading

As teachers embrace and incorporate AI tools, the technology poses a number of risks. But there is also hope that forward-thinking teachers may uncover replicable, scalable strategies for deploying it to make the job more manageable and free up time to build the relationships with students that matter so much for learning.

The never-ending buzz around apprenticeships

At this year’s SXSW EDU conference, the startup Apprentos stole the show, winning the “Launch Competition” with a slick pitch promising to “de-risk” apprenticeships for employers.

Should AI be used for teacher evaluation?

For teachers, artificial intelligence can be a boon as well as a challenge.

Evidence that parents trust report cards more than tests

School leaders, teachers, and state policymakers all work to provide information to parents about the quality of education in their schools and about their own children’s academic performance. How do parents receive and—if needed—act on the information provided?

Texas can be a model for the country on teacher policy

Only a quarter of Texas eighth graders go on to earn a degree or certificate six years after high school. As a former eighth grade teacher, I can’t help but think of my former students seeing these data.

Montgomery County, MD’s smart plan to improve schools

This Thursday, the Montgomery County (Maryland) School Board is slated to vote on a proposal that would begin to address a long-festering problem in the state’s largest school district. The Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) system is, as a whole, wonderfully diverse, and yet for too long, many of its individual schools have been highly segregated.

What we’re reading: March 20, 2026

WHAT WE’RE READING

Cheers and Jeers: March 20, 2026

CHEERS

Could breaking up the Education Department actually improve federal education policy?

The Trump administration has been shifting programs from the Department of Education to other parts of the federal government. This may be driven by politics, but it raises an intriguing question. What if the real issue is not whether the Department of Education survives intact, but whether some federal education programs might actually work better outside it?