Commentary
Commentary
Accountability & Testing
Ohio leaders need to stand firm on early literacy
If you’ve been paying attention to education headlines this fall, you’ve likely noticed a spate of think pieces and analyses
Commentary
Commentary
Accountability & Testing
Do the math: How to maximize the benefits of ability grouping
The grouping of students into smaller, more homogeneous cohorts is a widespread instructional strategy utilized in elementary classrooms across the country. It is intended to boost the academic outcomes of all students through instruction targeted at an appropriate level, be that remedial or advanced or somewhere in between.
Commentary
Charter Schools
Residential mobility and school choice in Michigan
When and why families stop using school choice programs might be just as important to understand as why they opt into them in the first place. While supporters and researchers typically focus on issues of school quality, educational fit, and student needs, new data from Michigan suggest there is much more at play.
Commentary
Commentary
Accountability & Testing
Ohio’s dismal NAEP results demand an assertive policy response
Every two years, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) checks the pulse of students’ math and reading achievement across the United States. After a one-year hiatus, the U.S. Department of Education released its latest data from tests given to a representative sample of students in early 2022.
Commentary
Accountability & Testing
National assessment data show impact of pandemic on Ohio students; policymakers need to redouble academic recovery efforts
Today, the United States Department of Education released data from the 2022 round of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), known as the “Nation’s Report Card.” These assessments are given to a representative sample of students from every state and provides one of the most comprehensive looks at student achievement across the nation.
Commentary
Commentary
Charter Schools
Do high-performing charter schools improve student health outcomes?
Is it possible that attending a high-performing school may help young people live healthier lives? An intriguing new paper from the American Medical Association’s JAMA Network open access journal says yes, though with some important caveats. A research team lead by Dr.
Commentary
Commentary
Accountability & Testing
Will Ohio’s suburban schools slip into academic mediocrity?
Last month, we looked at the recently released state assessment data from the 2021–22 school year. The results are sobering: Student achievement remains depressed in the wake of the pandemic, and gaps between disadvantaged pupils and their peers have widened.
Commentary
Accountability & Testing
Examining report card results for districts that were under academic distress
In the summer of 2021, Ohio lawmakers caved to political pressure and created an off-ramp for the three districts under an Academic Distress Com
Commentary
Accountability & Testing
“Social promotion” returns without a state reading requirement
For the better part of the past decade, Ohio has required schools to hold back third graders who do not meet state reading standards.
Commentary
Commentary
Accountability & Testing
A closer look at early literacy results on state report cards
A few weeks ago, Ohio released state report cards for the 2021–22 school year.
Commentary
Commentary
Accountability & Testing
Assessing the academic wreckage of the pandemic in Ohio
The past two school years have been anything but normal due to pandemic disruptions, with student achievement showing the strain.
Commentary
Commentary
Accountability & Testing
Annual Ohio exams paint mixed picture of post-pandemic academic recovery
Editor’s Note: The Thomas B. Fordham Institute occasionally publishes guest commentaries on its blogs. The views expressed by guest authors do not necessarily reflect those of Fordham.
Commentary
Commentary
Accountability & Testing
Fordham Institute media statement on Ohio report card release
Today, the Ohio Department of Education released its annual report cards for the 2021-22 school year. For two decades, report cards have shined a light on pupil achievement and provided parents and communities with an important check on student progress.
Commentary
Commentary
Report
Accountability & Testing
Turning around troubled schools: How Ohio can create a stronger, clearer school improvement program
As Governor Mike DeWine asserted, the state of Ohio has “a moral obligation” on behalf of students to step in when schools are falling short of academic performance standards. Under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), federal lawmakers have given states the ability to chart their own course when it comes to fixing under-performing schools.
Commentary
Commentary
Accountability & Testing
Adding up the impact: A meta-analysis of summer math interventions
While some evidence indicates a return
Commentary
Report
Charter Schools
Creating great school options for all Ohio students: Recommendations to strengthen educational choice in the Buckeye State
Ohio has a long history of empowering parents with educational options for their children. Today, more than 250,000 of the state’s 1.6 million students attend public charter schools, enroll in private schools with the support of state-funded scholarships, or participate in interdistrict open enrollment.
Commentary
