Student Life

A member of the Jim Hill High School Choir uses her cellphone to take a photograph on Jan. 3, 2023.
An increasing number of schools are putting policies in place to restrict student cellphone use on campus.
Rogelio V. Solis/AP
School Climate & Safety Some Students Welcome Cellphone Restrictions. Here's Why
To curb distractions in class, an increasing number of schools are implementing stricter cellphone policies.
Elizabeth Heubeck, September 29, 2023
3 min read
High school students in library on computer
E+ / Getty
Student Well-Being This High School Matches Freshmen With Senior Mentors. They All Get Course Credit
A New Jersey high school matched seniors with freshmen to ensure the 9th graders had the support they needed to make it through high school.
Caitlynn Peetz, August 28, 2023
7 min read
A three photo collage on dark blue paper of principal Chris LeGrande and others from school.
Photos: Courtesy of Chris LeGrande; Design: Gina Tomko/Education Week via Canva
School & District Management In Their Own Words This Principal Endured A Lot of Senior Pranks. One Stood Out
Chris LeGrande won't forget 215 keys, a jar, and a parking boot.
Denisa R. Superville, June 23, 2023
3 min read
Image of school related doodles on a sheet.
Sashatigar/iStock/Getty
Teaching Profession The Funny, Inspirational, and Weird: Educators Share Highlights From This School Year
From "mini-me" principals to potato parades, it's been a year.
Caitlyn Meisner, June 7, 2023
3 min read
A teen boy in a red graduation cap and gown wears an eagle feather on his neck. He stands outside among classmates.
Elijah Wiggins wears an eagle feather, a gift from his grandfather, at his graduation from Cedar City High School on May 25, 2022, in Cedar City, Utah. Utah is one of a growing number of states that have passed laws to allow students to wear items of cultural or religious significance during graduation ceremonies.
Rick Bowmer/AP
Equity & Diversity When Graduation Dress Codes Clash With Students' Cultural Expression
Students have sued to wear culturally significant items at graduation, and some states have also passed legislation protecting the practice.
Evie Blad, May 31, 2023
5 min read
Imran Jackson, Rayonna Ross, Stevie Mras, from left to right, made up the prom court last year at Florida’s Atlantic Coast High School prom, held on April 23, 2022.
Imran Jackson, Rayonna Ross, Stevie Mras, from left to right, made up the prom court last year at Florida’s Atlantic Coast High School prom, held on April 23, 2022.
Courtesy of Atlantic Coast High School
School Climate & Safety King, Queen, and Sovereign? Prom Courts Grow More Diverse
In some school districts, the traditional prom court is becoming more inclusive, with students driving the changes.
Elizabeth Heubeck, April 14, 2023
3 min read
Image of children in a classroom.
iStock/Getty
Teaching Opinion What Students Like (and Don't Like) About School
Students sound off on what makes a good teacher as well as the pros and cons of learning remotely.
Larry Ferlazzo, July 13, 2022
3 min read
61322 Graduation Cap Florida BS 7
Jonathon Parker, pictured on the chair, should have walked across the graduation stage with classmates from the Deer Valley High School Class of 2022 last week in Antioch, Calif. But he was shot and killed by another student more than two years ago in the school parking lot.
Courtesy of Jonathon Parker's family
School Climate & Safety The Lost Graduate: Remembering a Student Gunned Down at School
California teen Jonathon Parker and two Michigan teenagers should have graduated this year, but they were killed by gun attacks at school.
Catherine Gewertz, June 13, 2022
3 min read
Trainer Collette Yee walks with Rizzo, a medical detection dog with Early Alert Canines, as she sniffs senior Madison Schoening to detect COVID at Mills High School in Millbrae, California, on May 5, 2022. As part of a pilot COVID-testing program, some students volunteered to be screened by trained dogs before prom.
Trainer Collette Yee walks with Rizzo, a medical detection dog, as she sniffs senior Madison Schoening at Mills High School in Millbrae, Calif., in early May. As part of a pilot program, some students volunteered to be sniffed for COVID by trained dogs before attending the prom.
Ramin Rahimian for Education Week
Student Well-Being Tuxedos, Gowns, and COVID-Sniffing Dogs: A Pandemic Prom
Some schools are turning to highly trained dogs to detect COVID ahead of big events. 
Catherine Gewertz, May 9, 2022
7 min read
Kara Klever holds a sign in protest in the hall outside of the Blue Room as Governor Kevin Stitt signs a bill into law that prevents transgender girls and women from competing on female sports teams at the Capitol Wednesday, March 30, 2022 in Oklahoma City, Oka. The bill, which easily passed the Republican-led House and Senate mostly along party lines, took effect immediately with the governor's signature. It applies to female sports teams in both high school and college.
Kara Klever holds a sign in protest as Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signs a bill into law that prevents transgender girls and women from competing on female sports teams.
Doug Hoke/The Oklahoman via AP
States Beyond 'Don't Say Gay': Other States Seek to Limit LGBTQ Youth, Teaching
Legislators want to ban lessons on LGBTQ communities and require teachers to tell parents when students want their pronouns changed.
Stephen Sawchuk, April 6, 2022
9 min read
Sofia Donets at her home in Washington, D.C., on Friday, March 25, 2022. Donets is helping to organize relief efforts through The Potomac School, where she’s a sophomore.
Sofia Donets, a Russian-born sophomore at the Potomac School in McLean, Va., is helping to organize relief efforts for Ukrainians.
Stephen Voss for Education Week
Student Well-Being Students With Family Ties to Russia Are Facing Hostility
Students navigate bitter politics and conflicting news accounts to make sense of a war being waged by their heritage country.
Sasha Jones, March 29, 2022
4 min read
Sofia 3
Sofia Mendoza, a senior at Hilliard Davidson High School, in Hilliard, Ohio, has been trained to notice early signs of mental health struggles in her peers and channel them to adults who can help.
Courtesy of Sofia Mendoza
Student Well-Being In Their Own Words Peer Help for Mental Health: 'We Learn the Red Flags to Watch For'
A member of a specially trained group of students discusses finding help for peers struggling with mental health issues.
Catherine Gewertz, March 1, 2022
4 min read
Image of student managing obstacles.
Kasia Bogdańska for Education Week
Student Well-Being Students Train to Spot Peers With Mental Health Struggles and Guide Them to Help
As schools respond to COVID's toll on student mental health, peers can play a valuable role.
Catherine Gewertz, March 1, 2022
7 min read
Images shows colorful speech bubbles that say "Q," "&," and "A."
iStock/Getty
Teaching Opinion Students Share How COVID Has Changed Their Lives
Seeing friends and getting more leniency from teachers are two things students like about school this year. Waking up early is not, though.
Larry Ferlazzo, February 8, 2022
7 min read