General Education, Opinion May 20th, 2022
Op-Ed: Genius move? NYC’s Black mayor bucks Progressives on the racial chessboard of ‘gifted’ education
(The Center Square) – Mayor Eric Adams’ plan to save accelerated education in New York City from progressive critics begins with students like Cassy Thime’s daughter: a Black second-grader who would thrive in a gifted classroom that today includes few kids of color. “She’s a top student and a gifted program will give her a more…
General Education, Public Education May 20th, 2022
NCTQ: Teacher training in Kansas lacks math commitment
(The Sentinel) – A nationwide study of 1,100 elementary teacher training programs, including 16 in Kansas, shows more than 20% fail to provide adequate instruction in math. The numbers are worse in The Sunflower State, where 9 of the 16 programs were judged substandard. The National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) survey, two years in the…
Current Events, General Education May 20th, 2022
LGBTQ event at church features a drag show for youth as young as 12
Free meals and “a drag show from some of our local drag queens” is on offer at a church in Naples, Florida this weekend – for 12 to 18 year olds. The all-day event, called The Youth Pride Conference, is hosted at Naples United Church of Christ and put on by the Gay, Lesbian & Straight…
General Education, School Choice May 19th, 2022
Policy group wants Ohio to use ARPA money to fund students first
(The Center Square) – An Ohio policy group believes the state should use federal funds to expand private school options for students and parents and increase money used for after-school programs to help offset learning losses associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. In a policy memo, The Buckeye Institute urged state lawmakers to take a students first approach…
General Education, School Choice May 19th, 2022
Tennessee Supreme Court rules in favor of education savings account program
(The Center Square) – Tennessee’s Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that an education savings account program passed by the General Assembly in 2019 was constitutional. The program, which would have started in Nashville and Shelby County, had been challenged based upon the state’s Home Rule Amendment. The court did state, however, that the two areas do…
General Education, School Choice May 18th, 2022
A parent’s story: How education savings accounts are changing lives in our family
(reimaginED) – When our son Thomas was about to move to first grade, his teacher told us he should repeat kindergarten. Being a teacher myself, and trusting the education system, I agreed without asking any questions. But three weeks into Thomas’ second year of kindergarten, I told my husband that beyond Thomas’ speech difficulties, for which…
Current Events, General Education May 18th, 2022
New research unpacks Michigan’s proposed education savings account program
(reimaginED) – Michigan’s tax-credit-funded education savings account program could save state and local governments as much as $386 million a year, according to new research from the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. The paper, “Michigan Student Opportunity Scholarships, Overview and Fiscal Analysis,” by Ben DeGrow and Marty Lueken, provides several estimates relating to the program’s cost…
General Education, Public Education May 18th, 2022
Pritzker signs ‘Too Young to Test’ bill into law
(The Center Square) – Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has signed a measure that prohibits the Illinois State Board of Education from requiring students in pre-kindergarten through second grade to take standardized tests. The bill was filed in January by state Rep. Christine Pacione-Zayaz. Senate Bill 3986 creates the “Too Young to Test Act.” Under the legislation,…
General Education, School Choice May 17th, 2022
Missouri legislative session ends with progress on education
New funding for charter schools, expanding access to virtual school, improving childhood literacy and increasing teacher pay are among a handful of education initiatives that the Missouri legislature moved across the finish line at the end of the 2022 session last week. The two major education bills heading to Missouri Gov. Mike Parson’s desk are HB…
Current Events, General Education May 17th, 2022
Policy analysts: Claims of impending Michigan teacher shortage overstated
(The Center Square) – Amid calls from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to remedy a perceived teacher shortage in Michigan, some of the leading policy analysts in the state claim the governor’s “one-size-fits-all approach” is based on faulty premises. Those premises are echoed in a Monday report in the education journal Chalkbeat Detroit. Although he agrees with the…