Congress is finally grappling with which parts of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) ought to be repealed or retained. Various officials, and the president who must sign the final agreement, have different lists. After the squabbling, a shadow of a national school improvement policy will remain with nothing
In the last six months, there have been four radio and webinar interviews with Jack Jennings about Presidents, Congress, and the Public Schools. This list of the interviews contains the working web connections as of May 23, 2015. At times, those web addresses change or the material is removed from
When shopping for a car, dishwasher, or cell phone, a prospective buyer will often go to the Consumer Reports to learn about important aspects of the possible purchase. How does the product’s performance compare to that of its competitors–and why? What are an item’s best and worse features? What should
By 2014, every child should be proficient in reading/English language arts and mathematics. In so many words, this noble purpose was established in 2002 by the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) as the Nation’s guiding principle for improving public education. But, within a few days, 2014, the year for
It’s late August, and thoughts are turning toward getting the kids ready for school. It seems hardly a few weeks ago that school was over for the summer, and here it is time for them to go back. Kids will be in a higher grade than last year, and they
A blizzard of education reports and studies appears every year. This swirl of information, analysis, and commentary — some of which is contradictory — makes it difficult to understand the condition of America’s public schools. In short, are the schools getting better or worse? In December of 2013, two major
“To prepare all citizens to become responsible members of a democratic society” “To develop socialization and citizenship skills in children” “Preparing students for responsible, productive citizenship and imbuing them with values common to one democratic society” These similar phrases were developed by diverse groups of citizens in three communities
Educators in the Nation’s largest state are breathing a deep sigh of relief that public schooling has been freed from the political and economic morass in which it has been mired for over a decade. Bottles of champagne are not yet being popped because educators want to be sure that
American tourists are often amused when traveling on the London “tube” to hear the announcement at each station to “mind the gap.” This attention-getting advice is meant to warn passengers exiting the subway car to step over the space between the car and the platform. American education has its own
