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Ed Department launches ‘unprecedented’ parent council
Recognizing a growing movement for parent rights in education, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona on Tuesday announced the creation of a new “Parents and Families Engagement Council.” The council will include representatives from 14 organizations that advocate for giving parents a voice in their children’s education — including families involved in charters, homeschooling and private schools....
By Linda Jacobson | June 16, 2022
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‘I was the lucky one’: School shooting survivor shares story at L.A. march
Dominic Blackwell was one of the first friends Mia Tretta made when she moved to the Santa Clarita Valley, near Los Angeles, in 2018. “He had this infectious laugh,” she said. The two were walking through the quad at Saugus High School on the morning of Nov. 14, 2019 — Tretta remembers being nervous about...
By Linda Jacobson | June 15, 2022
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3 months in, LA’s Carvalho earns high marks, but tough tests lie ahead
When Los Angeles Unified announced last December that Alberto Carvalho would be its next superintendent, Ana Ponce was skeptical. The executive director of Great Public Schools Now, an advocacy organization, hoped the district would pick someone from the community, not an outsider from 2,700 miles away. But so far, the charismatic educator who led Miami-Dade for 14...
By Linda Jacobson | June 14, 2022
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Commentary: Now is the moment for a new children’s rights movement
In the last three weeks, the United States has witnessed babies starving because of a nationwide shortage of infant formula and young students murdered in their elementary school. If you believe these atrocities will spark a comprehensive moral or policy response from our elected federal leaders, you are mistaken. Even if Congress acts, a neutered...
By Andrew Buher | June 13, 2022
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Uvalde survivor: ‘I don’t want it to happen again’
Miah Cerrillo was one of the first children Dr. Roy Guerrero saw when he entered the emergency room at Uvalde Memorial Hospital on May 24. A pediatrician, he’s known the fourth grader since she was a baby and underwent the liver surgeries that saved her life. Both testified Wednesday before a House Oversight Committee addressing...
By Linda Jacobson | June 8, 2022
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Analysis: What are districts using their federal relief money for? How fast are they spending it? How much is left? New interactive database has answers
A year ago, school districts wrote plans for how they were going to use their share of the $122 billion in American Rescue Plan money. Fast forward to today, and information is starting to emerge about how schools are actually spending their windfalls. Martha’s Vineyard Public Schools in Massachusetts has already spent all of its nearly $400,000...
By Chad Aldeman | June 2, 2022
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COVID learning loss comparable to that inflicted by Hurricane Katrina, study finds; math drops outpace reading
Learning loss during the pandemic may have exceeded the damage inflicted on New Orleans students by Hurricane Katrina, according to a recently released study of standardized test scores. Setbacks in math achievement exceeded those for reading, and achievement gaps between comparatively rich and poor schools expanded dramatically. As the United States approaches the end of...
By Kevin Mahnken | June 1, 2022
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Grade inflation ‘persistent, systemic’ even prior to pandemic, ACT study finds
High school grade point averages have been on an uphill climb since 2016. But that doesn’t mean students are better prepared for college-level work. Their scores on the ACT, a college entrance exam taken annually by 1.7 million students, haven’t budged, according to a report released earlier this month. Between 2016 and 2021, the average GPA for...
By Linda Jacobson | May 26, 2022
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Amid literacy crisis, CA ed chief rejects phonics-driven approach to reading
California Superintendent Tony Thurmond issued a challenge to the state’s school districts last week to ensure third graders become strong readers by 2026. “We’re asking you to take a pledge today,” he said during the May 20 Zoom session, providing a link for participants to sign. Other elements of Thurmond’s agenda include library cards for 100,000 children,...
By Linda Jacobson | May 25, 2022
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Educator’s view: Hungry kids can’t learn. Congress must extend pandemic waivers so schools can keep giving students the nutritious food they need
When I was a school superintendent in New York City, I would often run into my students outside of class. One particular eighth grader had a daily ritual of buying food from the local corner store following a long day of lessons and after-school sports. Looking at his crumbled bag of hot-flavored chips, fruit snacks...
By Robert S. Harvey | May 25, 2022