Q&A

These Q&As feature some of the field's most prominent education scholars, leaders, and practitioners talking about important education issues
Superintendent Mike Ginestre works in his office. Beyond bus routes, he says he built his own AI tool to sort the evidence he gathers during teacher observations.
Superintendent Mike Ginestre works in his office in the Sweet Home central school system on Oct. 28, 2026, in Amherst, NY. The superintendent is encouraging his district to experiment with AI tools to streamline administrative functions.
Grace Jiang/Education Week
Artificial Intelligence Q&A Can AI Take on the Grunt Work So Educators Can Focus on Student Learning?
A New York superintendent says the tech will help his district cut through red tape in transportation and other areas.
Grace Jiang, November 3, 2026
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5 min read
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Vanessa Solis/Education Week + Getty
Teaching Profession Q&A Why Young Students Make New Teachers Sick, and How to Protect Yourself
An infectious disease expert explains the risk of common viruses and best practices for prevention.
Elizabeth Heubeck, October 29, 2026
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6 min read
Cass Career Center
Assistant Director, Nicole Tews, walks a student through the administration office at the Cass Career Center in Harrisonville, Mo., on September 29, 2026. The center has a math and an English teacher who are integrated into students' industry-specific career programs.
Melissa Lukenbaugh for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness Q&A Reading, Writing, and Math Skills Are Top Priorities in This CTE Program
How these teachers are connecting the dots between academic and technical skills.
Lauraine Langreo, October 26, 2026
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4 min read
Macomb Community College's South Campus in Warren, Mich. off of 12 Mile Road on Oct. 15, 2026.
Macomb Community College's South Campus in Warren, Mich., is shown on Oct. 15, 2026. In Michigan, 16 percent of community college students are high schoolers. Nationwide, dual enrollment now tops 3 million students.
Miles Oates/mlive.com via TNS
College & Workforce Readiness Q&A Dual Enrollment Is Surging. Here's How High Schools Can Get it Right
More than 3 million high school students took a college course last year.
Grace Jiang, October 23, 2026
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3 min read
Students sit during a TK class at First Street Elementary School in Los Angeles, on Wednesday, April 22, 2026.
Students sit during a transitional kindergarten class at First Street Elementary School in Los Angeles, on April 22, 2026. A new longitudinal study found that social-emotional learning in preschool is associated with better measures of well-being in young adulthood.
Ethan Swope/AP
Student Well-Being & Movement Q&A Teaching Feelings at Age 4 Pays Off at 21, 20-Year Study Shows
Social-emotional learning in preschool is associated with better measures of well-being in young adulthood.
Jennifer Vilcarino, October 22, 2026
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5 min read
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Carol D. Birks, the superintendent of the Allentown, Pa., school district, watches over a 1st grade class at Central Elementary school on May 18, 2026. Birks is a big believer in "listening tours" to fully understand the needs of her school district.
Scott Lewis for Education Week
School & District Management Q&A 'Top-Down Decisions' Are Out. See What This School District Leader Does
This superintendent is convinced that solving complex problems requires effective listening skills.
Kevin Bushweller, October 22, 2026
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4 min read
Collage of a Black female reading a book with her young daughter on her lap. Other pieces of the collage show an open book with non-legible text, speech bubbles, the letter "A" and a butterfly.
Collage by Gina Tomko/Education Week + Canva
Reading & Literacy Q&A Why This Under-the-Radar Piece of Literacy Reform Is One of the Most Important
Parent notification is a central piece of reading reform, this advocate says.
Elizabeth Heubeck, October 22, 2026
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5 min read
Federal tax dollars flow into a public school. Federal school choice funding.
Vanessa Solis/Education Week + Getty
School Choice & Charters Q&A How Much Will Federal School Choice Benefit Public Schools?
"The money is there," says a researcher trying to project how much is there for public school students.
Arianna Prothero, October 15, 2026
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5 min read
Elaine Wilson, left, and Lois Curtis are shown in this April 10, 1999 file photo. States may have to place people with mental disabilities in homelike settings if they can fare just as well there as in state hospitals, the Supreme Court said Tuesday, June 22, 1999. The decision did not provide the final word in the legal battle of the two Georgia women who sued Georgia to get out of a state mental hospital in Atlanta. Elaine Wilson and Lois Curtis had been approved for community-based care but faced long waiting lists. Now in group homes, both women attended the Supreme Court arguments for their case in April.
Plaintiffs Elaine Wilson and Lois Curtis, shown here on April 10, 1999, during their Supreme Court battle, were the two Georgia women whose lawsuit established the landmark <i>Olmstead</i> decision requiring community-based care for adults with disabilities. The U.S. Department of Justice in July issued new guidance that said it will no longer rely upon the <i>Olmstead</i> decision in its enforcement of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
John Bazemore/AP
Special Education Q&A How New Federal Guidance on Disability Could Impact K-12 Special Education
New federal DOJ guidance deemphasizing independent living skills could affect special education transition plans.
Caitlynn Peetz Stephens, October 14, 2026
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4 min read
Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., speaks during a prayer vigil held by the Chesapeake Coalition of Black Pastors at The Mount (Mount Lebanon Baptist Church) in Chesapeake, Va., Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022, for the six people killed at a Walmart in Chesapeake, Va., when a manager opened fire with a handgun before an employee meeting Tuesday night.
Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., speaks during a prayer vigil in Chesapeake, Va., on Nov. 27, 2022. Scott is the ranking Democrat on the U.S. House of Representatives' education committee and will seek the panel's chairmanship if Democrats win a House majority in next month's elections.
Carolyn Kaster/AP
Federal Q&A A Top Democrat Breaks Down His Party's Plans for K-12 in a House Majority
If Democrats retake the House, Rep. Bobby Scott may be in a position to set his chamber’s K-12 agenda.
Alyson Klein, October 9, 2026
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5 min read
Man in suit, collaged with thorny branches in front and behind him.
Collage by Laura Baker/Education Week + Canva
School & District Management Q&A Principals Are Stressed Out. Here's What's Plaguing Them—and What Can Help
Principal mental health is suffering from ‘work spillage,' a new study finds.
Olina Banerji, October 8, 2026
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5 min read
The definition of teacher sits on teacher Leon Smith's desk at Haverford High School, in Haverford, PA on March 20, 2024.
A definition of the word teacher sits on Leon Smith's desk at Haverford High School, in Haverford, PA on March 20, 2024. New data suggest a long-term trend of higher vacancies and more underprepared teachers.
Alejandro A Alvarez/The Philadelphia Inquirer via TNS
Teaching Profession Q&A What Teacher Shortages Really Say About the Profession
In the new book, Ending Teacher Shortages, researcher Tuan Nguyen highlights need to move from magic bullets to a more stable workforce.
Sarah D. Sparks, October 8, 2026
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4 min read
Creative Minds students find their partners during daily family time in Wichita Kansas.
Students find their partners during daily family time on Sept. 15, 2026, at Creative Minds, a microschool run by the public school district in Wichita, Kan. Interest in microschools has surged in recent years, and some school districts are starting their own. One example is in Indiana, where Superintendent George Philhower of the Eastern Hancock district has started the Indiana Microschool Collaborative.
Melissa Lukenbaugh for Education Week
School Choice & Charters Q&A To Compete With School Choice, This Superintendent Turned to Microschools
More school districts have started microschools. George Philhower has started a network of them.
Arianna Prothero, October 8, 2026
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4 min read
Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, speaks remotely during a Security Council meeting on artificial intelligence at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly at United Nations headquarters, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026.
Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, speaks remotely during a Security Council meeting on artificial intelligence at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters on Sept. 23, 2026. Another meeting that took place at the General Assembly focused on AI safety for children. Erin Mote, a former school leader, participated and discussed the importance of tackling the challenge globally.
Yuki Iwamura/AP
Artificial Intelligence Q&A An Educator Banned Social Media in Her School Years Ago. What About Banning AI?
An AI safety expert and former educator spoke at a UN meeting about AI safety. This is what she said.
Alyson Klein, September 25, 2026
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5 min read