Policy & Politics

Education news, analysis, and opinion about the legislation, guidance, policies and people involved in federal and state government
Accountability School Accountability Is Restarting After a Two-Year Pause. Here's What That Means
For a moment, the COVID-19 pandemic succeeded in doing what periodic protests about school accountability couldn't: Halting it.
Stephen Sawchuk
•
10 min read
Education Funding What America Spends on K-12: The Latest Federal Snapshot
About 93 percent of K-12 spending came from state and local sources in 2019-20—but more-recent year totals will reflect federal relief aid.
Mark Lieberman
•
2 min read
Law & Courts Leaked Abortion Draft Has Supreme Court Education Cases in Political Cross-Hairs
Conservatives have taken aim at decisions on educating immigrants, race in admissions, and religion. Liberals have some cases in mind, too.
Mark Walsh
•
8 min read
Education Funding Schools Can Seek More Time to Spend ESSER Funds on Outside Contracts
Waivers are available for contract spending in key areas like construction, tutoring, and mental health.
Mark Lieberman
•
4 min read
Image of blueprints for construction projects.
GeorgiMironi/iStock/Getty
States Opinion Searching for Common Ground: The Parental-Rights Bill, aka the 'Don’t Say Gay’ Bill
Rick and USC dean Pedro Noguera discuss Florida's law curbing gender and sexuality talk and its impact on students, teachers, and parents.
Rick Hess
•
6 min read
Image shows a multi-tailed arrow hitting the bullseye of a target.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
Law & Courts Conservatives’ Checklist: U.S. Supreme Court Education Decisions to Overrule
Here are five education issues that could be targets for reconsideration if Roe v. Wade falls.
Mark Walsh
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3 min read
The Supreme Court in Washington, Dec. 3, 2021. The Supreme Court has turned away a plea from parents to block a new admissions policy at a prestigious high school in northern Virginia that a lower court had found discriminates against Asian American students.
The U.S. Supreme Court in Washington on Dec. 3, 2021.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Accountability Timeline: How Federal School Accountability Has Waxed and Waned
From its origins in the 1990s to the most-recent tack, see how the federal approach to accountability has shifted.
Stephen Sawchuk
•
4 min read
President George W. Bush, left, participates in the swearing-in ceremony for the Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings, center, at the U.S. Dept. of Education on Jan. 31, 2005 in Washington. On the far right holding a bible is her husband Robert Spellings.
President George W. Bush, left, participates in the swearing-in ceremony for the Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings, center, at the U.S. Dept. of Education on Jan. 31, 2005 in Washington. On the far right holding a bible is her husband Robert Spellings.
AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais

From Politics K-12 Blog

Federal Lawmakers, Education Secretary Clash Over Charter School Rules
Miguel Cardona says the administration wants to ensure charters show wide community interest before securing federal funding.
Mark Lieberman
•
5 min read
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona speaks during the 2022 National and State Teachers of the Year event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, April 27, 2022.
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, is seen during a White House event on April 27. The following day, he defended the Biden administration's budget proposal on Capitol Hill.
Susan Walsh/AP
Federal 7 Takeaways for Educators From Biden's State of the Union
What did President Joe Biden say about education in his first State of the Union address to Congress? Here's a point-by-point summary.
Evie Blad
•
3 min read
President Joe Biden delivers his first State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress at the Capitol, Tuesday, March 1, 2022, in Washington as Vice President Kamala Harris applauds and House speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., looks on.
President Joe Biden delivers his first State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress, with Vice President Kamala Harris and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in attendance.
Sarahbeth Maney/The New York Times via AP
Federal Biden Sounds Alarm on Youth Mental Health, Urges Americans to Aid Schools' COVID Recovery
The president's State of the Union speech called on Americans to volunteer in schools and proposed new funding for mental health efforts.
Evie Blad
•
5 min read
President Joe Biden delivers his first State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress at the Capitol, Tuesday, March 1, 2022, in Washington, as Vice President Kamala Harris and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi of Calif., look on.
President Joe Biden delivers his first State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress Tuesday, with Vice President Kamala Harris and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi of Calif., behind him.
Sarahbeth Maney/The New York Times via AP
Families & the Community How Politics Are Straining Parent-School Relationships
The push for more parental involvement in schools has become entangled with national disputes over curriculum and other contentious issues.
Andrew Ujifusa
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12 min read
History teacher Wendy Leighton holds a copy of "They Called us Enemy," about the internment of Japanese Americans, while speaking about marginalized with her students at Monte del Sol Charter School, Friday, Dec. 3, 2021, in Santa Fe, N.M. Leighton is one of dozens of educators who helped draft state's proposed changes to the social studies curriculum, including adding the Sept. 11 attacks and the history of LGBTQ rights. It would increase the focus on ethnic studies in a state where 49 percent of the population is Hispanic, and 11 percent is Indigenous.
History teacher Wendy Leighton holds a copy of <i>They Called Us Enemy, </i>about the internment of Japanese Americans, while speaking about marginalized groups with her students at Monte del Sol Charter School in Santa Fe, N.M.
Cedar Attanasio/AP
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EdWeek Market Brief

Marketplace K-12 Virtual and Augmented Reality Company zSpace Going Public Through SPAC
zSpace will merge with EdtechX Holdings Acquisition Corp. II, an education- and workforce-focused special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC.
Emma Kate Fittes
•
2 min read
Purchasing Alert Mississippi District Seeks SEL PD Services; New Jersey System to Buy Assessment Tool
A district in Mississippi wants SEL professional development services while a system in New Jersey seeks a math and reading online diagnostic assessment tool.
Jolie Radunich
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2 min read
Marketplace K-12 K-12 Dealmaking: International Private School Provider Receives $1 Billion
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Emma Kate Fittes
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2 min read
Analyst's View Using Surveys to Gauge Students’ Social-Emotional Learning: An Inside Look
A company that seeks to assess school climate and students' social-emotional learning breaks down the process.
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