Everyone and their mothers are talking about the so-called “fiscal cliff”—the automatic budget cuts and tax increases that will affect all federal discretionary spending programs, cut you off in traffic, steal an old lady’s handbag, and wreak general havoc if lawmakers don’t come to a deal on the national debt soon. Will it destroy Head Start and special education? Will it disproportionately harm poor schools? But as Dara Zeehandelaar reminds us, federal contributions to education are peanuts compared to the amount the feds contribute to Medicare, Medicaid, transportation, and the like—cuts to which will leave big holes for states to patch, perhaps by raiding K–12 funding. And it’s these possible indirect cuts to education that will hurt on the way down.
After channeling Jeb Bush during his job interview, Ed Reform Idol Tony Bennett was chosen to be Florida’s new state superintendent. We extend hearty congratulations. Florida’s teacher unions are none too happy with his appointment; but they’re not exactly winning the war in Florida, so Bennett may not need to sweat it.
Mexico’s new president, Enrique Peña Nieto, says he intends to overhaul that country’s flagging school system. First stop? Take down the juggernaut teacher union—led by Elba Esther Gordillo, referred to as La Maestra for her political prowess and shady dealings. We’ll be watching.
The Hoover Institution’s Koret Task Force on K–12 Education has identified the five education issues that were most covered by the media during 2012 (“hits”) and the five most important stories that were underreported (“misses”). (If there are any journalists out there looking to make up for lost time and compensate for previous oversights, we have fantastic publications on topics from both lists.)
The National Association for Gifted Children takes a special look at low-income, high-ability learners in its new report, “Unlocking Emergent Talent.” Authors Paula Olszewski-Kubilius and Jane Clarenbach identify, among other things, a number of strategies that will identify gifted students—and programs that will work for them.
