Education Blog

Education and the Media

Mark Walsh is a contributing writer to Education Week. He has covered education issues for more than two decades and in this blog looked at how schools are covered in the general news media and in the popular culture. This blog is no longer being updated.

Education 'POV' Looks at a Student Who Escapes Syria's Strife for Los Angeles
The public TV documentary series opens its 30th season with "Dalya's Other Country," about the girl's U.S. assimilation on her own terms.
Mark Walsh, June 26, 2017
2 min read
Education Documentary Looks at Life in an Irish Boarding School
"School Life" gives a taste of a last-of-its-kind educational institution that seems to be right out of the movies.
Mark Walsh, June 23, 2017
3 min read
Education Documentary 'For Ahkeem' Is a Look at Student's Last Chance for Diploma
Filmmakers follow a girl's life in a tough St. Louis neighborhood just as a nationwide debate over race and justice unfold in nearby Ferguson, Mo.
Mark Walsh, June 22, 2017
1 min read
Education NPR's Scott Montgomery Chosen as New Top Editor for Education Week
The digital news veteran takes on a newly defined position as editor-in-chief and chief content officer of the education journalism organization.
Mark Walsh, June 13, 2017
2 min read
Education 'Night School' Documentary Looks at Adults Seeking an Elusive H.S. Diploma
The film follows three Indianapolis adults as they seek to overcome obstacles on the path to earning an educational credential that they missed earlier.
Mark Walsh, June 9, 2017
2 min read
Education Race and Education Pieces Take Several Education Writers Association Awards
A range of journalism projects win awards for examining race in education as EWA convenes with U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos absent from the speakers' list.
Mark Walsh, June 1, 2017
4 min read
Education 'They Call Us Monsters' Documentary Offers Another Story of Juvenile Justice
The "Independent Lens" film looks at three juvenile offenders facing lengthy prison sentences and their role in a screenwriting class behind bars.
Mark Walsh, May 22, 2017
3 min read
Education A&E Cable Channel Plans High School Documentary Series
The as-yet unnamed and unscheduled series will follow seven twentysomethings who attend a semester at Highland Park High School in Topeka, Kan.
Mark Walsh, May 18, 2017
2 min read
Education DeVos Declines Invitation to Speak to Education Writers Association
The U.S. secretary of education won't address the education journalists' group at its national seminar in Washington. Every previous secretary of education has addressed the group at least once.
Mark Walsh, May 12, 2017
2 min read
Education The 74 Debuts TopSheet, a New Education News Aggregator
The online site and daily newsletter is led by Andrew J. Rotherham and Emmeline Zhao, who were lured from the online news site Real Clear Education.
Mark Walsh, May 9, 2017
2 min read
Education Netflix Renews Controversial Teen Suicide Drama '13 Reasons Why'
The show about a student's suicide, which has drawn controversy as well as huge viewership among young people, will get a second season.
Mark Walsh, May 8, 2017
3 min read
Education AP's Reporting on Student Sexual Assaults the Result of a Yearlong Commitment
The Associated Press committed several of its journalists to a yearlong project examining student-on-student sex assaults in K-12 schools nationally.
Mark Walsh, May 5, 2017
3 min read
Education Netflix Series '13 Reasons Why' Sparks Debate About Depiction of Teen Suicide
The drama about a high school girl who leaves tapes identifying those who mistreated her before she takes her own life generates many reactions.
Mark Walsh, April 25, 2017
7 min read
Education 'Nightline' Focuses On a Lingering Problem: Teacher Sexual Predators
The ABC News show's special edition examines the continuing problem of some school districts allowing accused or known predators to move on to other jobs.
Mark Walsh, April 14, 2017
1 min read