Max Brantley Mon, Aug 6, 2018 The Network for Public Education has published a national survey gradingstates on public education as measured by their support for privatization efforts, to the detriment of conventional public schools. Arkansas scores poorly. The group is fighting the “choice” movement promoted by, among others, the hugely wealthy Walton Family Foundation. It explains: While most will not…
Category: No Child Left Behind Act
As public education stumbles, democracy falls
By Wendy Lecker Sunday, August 5, 2018 There is a disturbing trend in American policy where a powerful few use government to benefit themselves at the expense of the many. The most recent example is Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s proposal to implement a $100 billion tax cut that would primarily benefit the 0.1 percent of…
2018’s States with the Best & Worst School Systems
Jul 30, 2018 | Adam McCann ecuring a child’s academic success begins with choosing the right schools. But how can parents decide where to enroll their kids? Because children develop and learn at different rates, the ideal answer to that question varies based on each student’s needs. Unfortunately, most parents can’t afford to place their children in exclusive, private…
Best Schools: Virginia Public Education Ranks In Top 10, DC Fails
The value placed on the teaching profession can have a big effect on the quality of public education in Virginia and Washington, DC By Deb Belt, Aug 6, 2018 WASHINGTON, DC — Students will be going back to school in a few weeks, but where they live often determines the quality of their education, according to…
Time to reinforce the building blocks of the American dream
BY MIKE TAMOR, 07/30/18 02:30 PM Successful nations, just like successful businesses, are built on three things: people, education and ideas. By opening our nation’s doors to people ready to build new lives and abide by the Constitution, the U.S. has become a stronger, more vibrant nation. By investing heavily in public education, the nation…
This effort is Utah’s chance to improve public education
Less than 50 percent of Utah students are currently proficient in key subjects. That’s not good enough to prepare the workforce of the future. Especially at risk are students who don’t have strong family support or are otherwise disadvantaged. By A. Scott Anderson July 25, 2018 I’ve long been convinced that improving public schools is the…
No, private schools aren’t better at educating kids than public schools. Why this new study matters.
By Valerie Strauss July 26, 2018 Despite evidence showing otherwise, it remains conventional wisdom in many parts of the education world that private schools do a better job of educating students, with superior standardized test scores and outcomes. It is one of the claims that some supporters of school choice make in arguing that the…
Report slams Texas’ underfunding of public schools
By John Austin Jul 29, 2018 AUSTIN — Texas’ school-age population is the nation’s fastest-growing, with about 850,000 new pupils in the past decade, but over the same period, the state cut public-education spending by $2.5 billion. The cuts are second only to Florida’s, according to a new report from the American Federation of Teachers,…
If you have a kid in public school (or know one), you need to follow this race
If you care about public education, about what Arizona students are learning and how well prepared they are to succeed in college and beyond, you should care who wins the election for superintendent of public instruction. Even if the office is largely administrative. The education superintendent alone can’t change what we pay teachers, what we teach…
Iowa’s public education advocates hope to extend the state sales tax for school facilities, classroom technology
As they call for more money for classrooms, Iowa school advocates hope legislators will extend a sales tax levy that pours millions of dollars each year into infrastructure and technology for the state’s public schools. Bipartisan negotiations over the past couple years have resulted in a plan to extend a statewide 1 cent sales…