What’s the best way to make sure nobody sees the results of a scientifically rigorous evaluation? Release your findings on the Friday afternoon before Christmas. Today the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will release the findings of its long overdue (four years overdue to be exact) third-grade follow-up …
Education reform is critical for all Americans, but it has a particular importance and potent potential impact on America’s fastest growing demographic. Nearly 50 percent of Hispanic students fail to graduate with their class, which shows the vulnerability of many Latino youth trapped in poorly performing schools. But one state, Indiana, …
Legislation to provide $60 billion to areas affected by Hurricane Sandy includes $100 million for the federal Head Start day care program. According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, funding for the FY 2013 Disaster Assistance Supplemental bill will be used to repair 265 Head Start centers. Specifically, funds appropriated to …
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), proposed a “bar exam” for public-school teachers in a Wall Street Journal op-ed last week. Modeled after the bar exam for aspiring lawyers, the new test would be intended to produce highly effective teachers. But it would do nothing of …
No more King Arthur stories, kids—you’re going to start reading some information-packed government documents instead! Adding to a number of problems with the Obama Administration-backed Common Core education standards, beginning with the fact that the federal government should not be involved in the business of curriculum standards, is the questionable …
Lost in the fiscal cliff discussion has been any hint of whether Coverdell Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) will be permitted to continue in their current form. As it stands, beginning January 1, parents will no longer be able to use these accounts for expenses for kindergarten through high school without …
Freetoteach.org, a new website created by the Pennsylvania-based Commonwealth Foundation, helps Pennsylvania teachers understand education unions and their rights when it comes to joining a union. It also provides a forum for teachers to share their experiences and opinions. Although Freetoteach.org is geared toward Pennsylvania teachers, it provides valuable information …
Friday was a sad day for Louisiana students. In response to a suit brought by education unions, a district court ruled that the Louisiana school choice program’s funding mechanism is unconstitutional. The program allows low-income children from underperforming Louisiana public schools to attend private schools of their choice. Sadly, now …
Last Tuesday, Oklahoma’s special-needs students received a pre-Thanksgiving win. The state’s Supreme Court ruled that two school districts that had challenged the legality of the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarship Program—a voucher program for special-needs students—were out of line in bringing the lawsuit. The school districts had challenged the scholarship program …
The D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program (DCOSP) has helped hundreds of D.C. schoolchildren leave underperforming public schools to attend schools of their parents’ choice. As The Washington Post reported Sunday about the school voucher program: In the District, it’s clear that vouchers have provided many children with an education at well-established …
