EdWeek's Must Read Articles

Bringing you the must-read articles in K-12 education on some of the hottest topics, so you can improve your subject matter expertise quickly.

You can also browse these topics pages: student achievement, opportunity/achievement gap, and the digital divide.

High-Performing & Dedicated Team

Fourth graders, from left, Makayla Maynard, Elliette Willey, and Arnav Singh place their lunch waste in the correct bins with the help of Kathleen Osborne, lead custodian at Green Valley Elementary School, on March 16, 2022, in Frederick, Md.
Fourth graders, from left, Makayla Maynard, Elliette Willey, and Arnav Singh place their lunch waste in the correct bins with the help of Kathleen Osborne, lead custodian at Green Valley Elementary School, on March 16, 2022, in Frederick, Md. Custodian retention is a challenge in education, learn how one Ohio district leader is tackling it.
Bill Green/The Frederick News-Post via AP

You can also browse these topics pages: teacher quality/effectiveness, retention, and recruitment & hiring.

Efficient Operations/Budget & Finance

An image representing disputes over property taxes.
DigitalVision Vectors
Budget & Finance How Do Schools Solve a Problem Like Property Taxes?
Mark Lieberman, February 12, 2026
11 min read
Teachers utilize a team teaching model, known as the Next Education Workforce Model, at Stevenson Elementary School in Mesa, Ariz., on Jan 30, 2025.
Teachers utilize a team-teaching model that spreads out teacher expertise and facilitates collaboration at Stevenson Elementary School in Mesa, Ariz., on Jan 30, 2025. Some of those models depend on having coaches and interventionists—positions that risk getting cut during lean budget times.
Adriana Zehbrauskas for Education Week
business and investment planning. Magnifying glass with business report on financial advisor desk. Concept of data analysis, accounting, audit, business research.
iStock/Getty

You can also browse these topics pages: budget & finance and school funding.

Parent & Community Engagement

Valley View Elementary School principal Jason Kuhlman delivers food donations to families from the school Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026, in Columbia Heights, Minn.
Valley View Elementary School Principal Jason Kuhlman delivers food donations to school families on Feb. 3, 2026, in Columbia Heights, Minn. School leaders in the Twin Cities have been trying to assuage the fears of over immigration enforcement.
Liam James Doyle/AP
California Attorney General Rob Bonta speaks to reporters as Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, left, and Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield, right, listen outside the Supreme Court on Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
California Attorney General Rob Bonta speaks to reporters outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington on Nov. 5, 2025, with Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes and Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield behind him. Bonta this week sued the U.S. Department of Education, asking a court to block the agency's finding that the state is violating FERPA by <ins data-user-label="Matt Stone" data-time="02/13/2026 4:22:45 PM" data-user-id="00000185-c5a3-d6ff-a38d-d7a32f6d0001" data-target-id="">not requiring schools to disclose</ins> students’ gender transitions <ins data-user-label="Matt Stone" data-time="02/13/2026 4:22:45 PM" data-user-id="00000185-c5a3-d6ff-a38d-d7a32f6d0001" data-target-id="">to</ins> parents.
Mark Schiefelbein/AP
Law & Courts California Sues Ed. Dept. in Clash Over Gender Disclosures to Parents
Mark Walsh, February 13, 2026
4 min read
Superintendent Mary Catherine Reljac walks around the exhibition hall of the National Conference on Education in Nashville, on Feb. 12, 2026. Reljac is the superintendent for Fox Chapel Area School District in Pennsylvania.
Mary Catherine Reljac walks around the exhibition hall of the National Conference on Education in Nashville on Feb. 12, 2026. Reljac, the superintendent for Fox Chapel Area school district in Pennsylvania, is working to combat chronic absenteeism through data analysis and tailored student support.
Kaylee Domzalski/Education Week

You can also browse these topics pages: families & the community and parent engagement.

State-of-the-Art Facilities/Maintenance

20260122 AMX US NEWS CPS CANCELS CLASS FRIDAY DUE 1 TB
A crossing guard assists students as they arrive for classes at Chalmers STEAM Elementary school on Jan. 22, 2026, in Chicago. Extreme cold hitting much of the United States in the coming days could test schools' aging infrastructure and force school closures. Chicago Public Schools called off classes for Friday, Jan. 23.
Antonio Perez/ Chicago Tribune

You can also browse this topics page: school facilities & design.

Prepare Students for Career & College in a Global Environment

Chase Christensen, superintendent of Sheridan County School District #3 in Wyoming, teamed up with other district leaders in the state to get rid of a barrier to work-based learning. Students can now meet an English course requirement while completing an internship. He presented on the strategy at a conference hosted by AASA, the School Superintendents Association, on Feb. 12, 2026.
Chase Christensen, superintendent of Sheridan County School District #3, presents a panel at the National Conference of Education in Nashville, on Feb. 12, 2026.
Kaylee Domzalski/Education Week
Adaora Umeh and daughter Weluchu Umeh, a sophomore, learn about a digitized cadaver used by dental students including, Makaylen Martinez, center left, and Katie Pham, right, during an open house at Garland ISD s Gilbreath-Reed Career and Technical Center on Monday, Feb. 9, 2026 , in Garland.
Adaora Umeh and daughter Weluchu Umeh, a sophomore, learn about a digitized cadaver used by dental students Makaylen Martinez, center left, and Katie Pham, right, during an open house at a Garland ISD career and technical education center on Feb. 9, 2026, in Garland, Texas. Districts around the country are partnering with colleges and local employers to offer students more learning opportunities connected to future careers.
Angela Piazza/Dallas Morning News via TNS
Career and Technical Education (CTE) students immersed themselves in realistic disaster situations at Van Buren Tech on Tuesday, May 13, 2025 . The students, ranging from law enforcement, emergency medical technicians, fire and more prepped all year for this day of training.
Strong career and technical education programs offer students experiences to tackle and solve real world problems, experts say. Students participate in disaster simulations at Van Buren Tech in Lawrence, Mich., on May 13, 2025.
Devin Anderson-Torrez/mlive.com via TNS

You can also browse these topics pages: college readiness, college access, career readiness, and graduation requirements.

Diversity

The U.S. Department of Justice is suing Minneapolis Public Schools for discrimination in its efforts to shield teachers of color from layoffs and reassignments.
The U.S. Department of Justice is suing Minneapolis Public Schools for discrimination in its efforts to shield teachers of color from layoffs and reassignments.
Carlos Gonzalez/The Minnesota Star Tribune via TNS
Equity & Diversity Trump Admin. Accuses Minneapolis Schools of Racism in Protecting Minority Teachers
Anthony Lonetree, Star Tribune, December 11, 2025
2 min read

You can also browse these topics pages: diversity and teacher diversity.

School Safety

Sign indicating school zone.
iStock/Getty
School Climate & Safety Tracker School Shootings This Year: How Many and Where
January 1, 2026
3 min read
A mother holds her children at the memorial outside Annunciation Catholic Church after Wednesday's shooting, Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in Minneapolis.
A mother holds her children at a memorial outside Annunciation Catholic Church following the Aug. 27 shooting at the Minneapolis Catholic school. The shooting, in which two children died and 21 people were injured, was the largest school shooting of 2025, a year during which there were fewer school shootings than in any year since 2020.
Ellen Schmidt/AP
Photo of stone columns.
E+

You can also browse these topics pages: school safety and school shootings.