If competition is good for public education, shouldn’t it be beneficial for the U.S. Armed Forces?
Can “Charter Armies” Make the Military Successful?
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Jack Jennings
Trump, State Leaders Differ on School Reform
The 2016 elections are now behind us, but what remains is a divided country. Some people are very happy feeling that their voices finally were heard. Others are depressed believing that prejudice and divisiveness won. These strongly held opinions will not fade soon....
Overcoming a Fear of Politicians
A longtime federal education authority concocts a three-part cure for addressing a common school leader’s phobia Psychologists label them phobias. They are a fear of something such as heights, closed spaces or ever-smiling elected officials. Science and medicine...
A Loss for Kids
During the last fifteen years, the reputation of the federal government in education has gone downhill.
Reducing Student Debt: An Expert’s View
A cultural shift from “publish or perish” to “educate students well.”
An American Innovation and a Caution
Boldness needs to be matched by prudence.
A Good Idea That Will Again Fail
Unfortunately, equitable funding is not going to happen.
Fifty Years of Federal Aid to Schools: excerpts
Fifty Years of Federal Aid to Schools: Back into the Future? Jack Jennings* Excerpts from an article appearing in Volume 3 Education Law & Policy Review 2016 In 1965, the federal government began to provide major financial aid for education to states and local...
Politics from Both Sides Hampering Public Education
Public schools would be better if two major obstacles were removed. Teachers’ unions have injected too much partisanship into schooling, and conservatives have undercut the promise of a good education for all students. These two issues are interconnected. The more the...
Who’s Responsible for Student Indebtedness?
“College costs too much!” “My college loans are killing me!” The candidates for the presidency are hearing these complaints as they race around the country. Affordability of a college education is among the few education issues to attract attention in this election...
From Complaining to Helping
Higher education has a bone to pick with public schools. Too many high school graduates entering colleges and universities are not prepared for post-secondary education. That complaint is true enough, but the missing element is that lower education cannot improve...
A Strong Voice from the Classroom
John Thompson is a truth-teller. A Teacher’s Tale, his new book, honestly addresses the toughest issue in American education—how to improve urban schools impacted by concentrations of poor children. Thompson worked in higher education and then did legislative lobbying...
Will Education Flourish After NCLB’s Repeal?
No other federal law has generated more hostility from teachers and other educators than the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). That statute has been denounced for causing too much testing of school children, making teachers “teach to the test” to avoid penalties, and...
Career/Technical Education Helping Highschoolers
The U.S. has a cookie-cutter approach to secondary education: Stay in school; go to college; and we'll be happy. Those who don't go along are considered "victims." They must be helped to see the benefits of college. This is the judgement of Harold L. Sirkin, a...
Multilingualism Is a National Asset, Not a Personal Shame
The United States has a great strength: people in our country understand the languages of nearly every nation in the world. Large scale immigration--almost 30 million people during the past three decades--has brought us that advantage. The ability to speak other...
National Leaders Fail in School Reform
The American public has given its grade to national elected leaders for their attempts to improve the country’s public schools. The verdict is an “F” for failure. But, the public’s alternative to the present policies is also lacking according to the American public’s...
A Nation Adrift
Today, attention is on the Congress as it addresses changes to the No Child Left Behind Act. That action is overdue since the law expired eight years ago. But, it must be understood that congressional amendments are merely removing unpopular requirements, not creating...
Title I: Replace the “Belle of the Ball”?
Fifty years ago, President Lyndon Johnson launched a campaign to improve education, especially of children from low-income families. An unprecedented billion dollars of new aid was sent to the schools under the first part or "title" of the Elementary and Secondary...
After Cleaning up the NCLB Mess, Then What?
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...
Interviews about Jack Jennings’s new book, Presidents, Congress, and the Public Schools: The Politics of Education Reform
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...
Presentation and Signing: Jack Jennings’s new book, Presidents, Congress, and the Public Schools: The Politics of Education Reform
ESEA at 50
The Phi Delta Kappan magazine (April 2015) contains an article written by Jack Jennings on the 50th anniversary of the enactment of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the fundamental federal law in the area of education. ESEA at 50 should be available through http://pdk.sagepub.com/content/96/7.toc.
From Negative to Positive School Reform
Test-driven accountability has produced a negative atmosphere for school reform, without fulfilling its promise of general improvement. The country must move to a positive, long-term improvement strategy based on research and educators’ experiences. The following article by Jack Jennings, which appeared in Education Week the week of February 23, 2015, describes this need drawing from his book, Presidents, Congress, and the Public Schools (Harvard Education Press).
An “Informed” Consumer of Students’ Test Scores
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...
New Book by Jack Jennings Available: Presidents, Congress, and the Public Schools
In March the Harvard Education Press released a new book by Jack Jennings. Presidents, Congress, and the Public Schools analyzes a half century of national school improvement efforts, such as Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and the No Child Left...