Issues

May 30, 2017

Education Week, Vol. 36, Issue 33
Do Our Schools Reflect the Students They Serve? Schools must adjust to changing demographics by creating diverse learning environments, writes Tammy Wawro, president of the Iowa State Education Association.
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Equity & Diversity Opinion Do Our Schools Reflect the Students They Serve?
Schools must adjust to changing demographics by creating diverse learning environments, writes Tammy Wawro, president of the Iowa State Education Association.
Tammy Wawro, May 31, 2017
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2 min read
BRIC ARCHIVE
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College & Workforce Readiness Opinion Faith-Based Schools Matter. Here’s Why
Faith-based schools play an integral role in upending the inequality at-risk students face, argues John Schoenig of the University of Notre Dame’s Alliance for Catholic Education.
John Schoenig, May 31, 2017
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2 min read
Fix School Discipline to Fix Inequity: Before tackling bigger K-12 challenges, states must address unfair suspension rates, writes Peggy Lehner, a Republican state senator from Ohio.
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School Climate & Safety Opinion Fix School Discipline to Fix Inequity
Before tackling bigger K-12 challenges, states must address unfair suspension rates, writes Peggy Lehner, a Republican state senator from Ohio.
Peggy Lehner, May 31, 2017
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2 min read
A Budget Blueprint for Equity: States should re-evaluate education spending to prioritize the students who need it most, writes Pedro A. Rivera, Pennsylvania’s secretary of education.
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States Opinion A Budget Blueprint for Equity
States should re-evaluate education spending to prioritize the students who need it most, writes Pedro A. Rivera, Pennsylvania’s secretary of education.
Pedro A. Rivera, May 31, 2017
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2 min read
To Fight Inequity, Empower the Families It Harms Most: In an effort to close opportunity gaps, let’s position families to lead the movement for change, writes Veronica Palmer of RISE Colorado.
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Families & the Community Opinion To Fight Inequity, Empower the Families It Harms Most
In an effort to close opportunity gaps, let’s position families to lead the movement for change, writes Veronica Palmer of RISE Colorado.
Veronica Palmer, May 31, 2017
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2 min read
‘Equity for All Is Everyone’s Business’: A mix of school, community, and state partnerships are necessary to treat all students fairly, argues Milwaukee school superintendent Darienne Driver.
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Equity & Diversity Opinion 'Equity for All Is Everyone's Business'
A mix of school, community, and state partnerships are necessary to treat all students fairly, argues Milwaukee school superintendent Darienne Driver.
Darienne Driver, May 31, 2017
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2 min read
A Bipartisan Approach to School Funding Boosts Equity: A broader funding base gives states more tools to improve public education, writes Steve Canavero, Nevada’s superintendent of public instruction.
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Education Funding Opinion A Bipartisan Approach to School Funding Boosts Equity
A broader funding base gives states more tools to improve public education, writes Steve Canavero, Nevada’s superintendent of public instruction.
Steve Canavero, May 31, 2017
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2 min read
BRIC ARCHIVE
Michael Gibbs for Education Week
Accountability Opinion Our Schools Have an Equity Problem. What Should We Do About It?
As the federal role in schooling recedes, state education leaders will be key to driving equity, write Aspen's Ross Wiener and Danielle Gonzales.
Danielle Gonzales & Ross Wiener, May 31, 2017
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5 min read
Daniel Willingham, a psychology professor at the University of Virginia, takes a break during an interview at the university.
Daniel Willingham, a psychology professor at the University of Virginia, takes a break during an interview at the university.
Charles Borst/Education Week
Reading & Literacy Reading and the Mind: A Talk With Dan Willingham
The cognitive psychologist's new book explains "what's happening in the mind when a skilled reader reads” so that teachers can extract lessons for their own teaching.
Liana Loewus, May 30, 2017
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6 min read
Students at Vardaman High School in Mississippi continue to complete worksheets and pay no attention to the poor internet connection during a World History class in November 2015.
Students at Vardaman High School in Mississippi continue to complete worksheets and pay no attention to the poor internet connection during a World History class in November 2015.
Photo by Swikar Patel/Education Week
IT Infrastructure & Management Questions Over New Construction Projects Raise More Worries About E-Rate's Future
More than 100 school districts have received letters questioning their plans to use federal E-rate funds to support construction of fiber-optic networks.
Benjamin Herold, May 30, 2017
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6 min read
Ana Sanchez and her 8-year-old daughter, Naiyari, lock the gates of the Dr. Isaac Gonzalez Martinez school in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The school is one of 179 closing this month amid an economic crisis in the U.S. territory. It is the second time in two years that a school that Naiyari attends will be closed.
Ana Sanchez and her 8-year-old daughter, Naiyari, lock the gates of the Dr. Isaac Gonzalez Martinez school in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The school is one of 179 closing this month amid an economic crisis in the U.S. territory. It is the second time in two years that a school that Naiyari attends will be closed.
Danica Coto/AP
School & District Management Puerto Rico Shutters Scores of Schools Amid Financial Crisis
The cost-cutting plan could hasten the departure of families and veteran teachers, bringing an already weakened public education system to its knees in the U.S. territory.
Corey Mitchell, May 30, 2017
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4 min read
Every Student Succeeds Act States' Special Education Work Offers a Jump on ESSA's Demands
The requirement that states create ambitious blueprints to improve student performance under the Every Student Succeeds Act mirrors efforts by special education officials to focus on results, not just compliance.
Christina A. Samuels, May 30, 2017
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5 min read
Eighth grader Erika Faircloth watches veterinarian Julie Boone perform an operation in Wynne, Ark. Erika’s job-shadowing experience at the veterinary clinic grew out of a push by the state to provide better career advice to students headed into the workforce as well as to college.
Eighth grader Erika Faircloth watches veterinarian Julie Boone perform an operation in Wynne, Ark. Erika’s job-shadowing experience at the veterinary clinic grew out of a push by the state to provide better career advice to students headed into the workforce as well as to college.
Andrea Morales for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness Ark. Students Get Early Start on Career Planning
The state hopes to put students on more promising pathways by dispatching college and career coaches to middle and high schools in 34 counties.
Catherine Gewertz, May 30, 2017
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10 min read
Student Well-Being Is Your Child Showing Grit? School Report Cards Rate Students' Soft Skills
As more schools size up students on nonacademic skills such as grit and responsible decisionmaking, it's a challenge to make the feedback useful—and understandable—for parents.
Evie Blad, May 30, 2017
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7 min read
Every Student Succeeds Act States Struggle to Define 'Ineffective Teachers' Under ESSA
The Every Student Succeeds Act has reignited battles over how to determine which teachers fall short and whether state or local leaders should make those decisions.
Daarel Burnette II, May 30, 2017
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6 min read
Equity & Diversity Letter to the Editor Teachers of Color Contribute to Better Student Outcomes
To the Editor:
I agree with certain points about school integration expressed by Rafiq R. Kalam Id-Din II in his recent Commentary ("Black Teachers Matter. School Integration Doesn't," May 10, 2017).
May 30, 2017
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1 min read
Federal News in Brief DeVos Declines Invitation to Address Education Journalists' Conference
U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos has declined an invitation to address the Education Writers Association at its upcoming national conference in Washington.
Mark Walsh, May 30, 2017
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1 min read
Equity & Diversity News in Brief Poor Roads on Tribal Lands Lead to Student Absenteeism
A federal report released last week casts a critical light on the conditions of roads on tribal lands, highlighting the widespread challenge of getting Native American children to school during bad weather.
The Associated Press, May 30, 2017
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1 min read
Teaching Profession News in Brief Startup Grades Student Papers for Teachers—for a Fee
A new startup called the Graide Network aims to lighten the load for teachers by grading their students' papers.
Brenda Iasevoli, May 30, 2017
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1 min read
Science News in Brief Students Get Pepper-Sprayed for Criminal-Science Class
A group of Ohio high school students voluntarily got pepper-sprayed in the face—and called the painful experience a useful lesson.
The Associated Press, May 30, 2017
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1 min read
Law & Courts News in Brief Judge Orders Pa. to Approve Thrice-Rejected Cyber Charter
A Pennsylvania court has ordered the state education department to grant a five-year charter to the Insight PA Cyber Charter School—an applicant the state had rejected three times, largely because officials said its nonprofit governing board was not sufficiently independent from K12 Inc.
Benjamin Herold, May 30, 2017
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1 min read
Education Funding News in Brief GAO Faults Education Dept. on Grant Monitoring
The U.S. Department of Education did not do a sufficient job of documenting its monitoring of key federal competitive grants, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office.
Alyson Klein, May 30, 2017
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1 min read
School Climate & Safety News in Brief Ohio Court Upholds Search of Unattended Backpack
Ohio's highest court has upheld a warrantless search of a high school student's unattended book bag, ruling that such searches are justified by schools' obligation to keep students safe in the era of the Columbine and Sandy Hook campus attacks.
Mark Walsh, May 30, 2017
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1 min read
School Choice & Charters News in Brief Colo. Districts Must Split Funds With Charters Under Passed Bill
Charter school advocates say a bill passed by the Colorado legislature that requires districts to split local tax dollars with charter schools is the first of its kind in the nation.
Arianna Prothero, May 30, 2017
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1 min read
Law & Courts News in Brief High Court Won't Hear 'Fake Burp' Appeal
The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to take up an appeal in a case in which Neil M. Gorsuch, as an appeals-court judge writing in dissent, had been sharply critical of involving the police in the matter of a student who disrupted a class with "fake burps."
Mark Walsh, May 30, 2017
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1 min read
Christina Kishimoto
Christina Kishimoto
Education News in Brief Transitions
Christina Kishimoto the superintendent of the Gilbert school district in Arizona, has been selected as Hawaii's public schools superintendent.
May 30, 2017
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1 min read
BRIC ARCHIVE
Carlos Osorio/AP
Teaching Profession News in Brief Whither to Fidget
Are fidget spinners helping antsy students sit still and concentrate on their lessons, or just driving kids (and teachers) to distraction? Depends on who you ask.
Brenda Iasevoli, May 30, 2017
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1 min read
School & District Management Report Roundup Education Statistics
Children whose parents did not graduate from high school and who are poor enter kindergarten less prepared than pupils without those risk factors, and they trail other students academically through 3rd grade, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
Sarah D. Sparks, May 30, 2017
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1 min read
College & Workforce Readiness Report Roundup Career Education
The skills needed for technical careers have changed significantly, and school and adult education programs need to do more to support evolving technical education, according to a sizeable new report on career education by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
Sarah D. Sparks, May 30, 2017
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1 min read
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