DA Staff

How one state is using education college students to plug an ongoing teacher shortage

Faced with an ongoing teacher shortage during the coronavirus pandemic, officials in Connecticut announced plans late last year to allow college students to teach in public school classrooms, offering aspiring educators hands-on experience while alleviating the staffing crunch for administrators.

A support system for principals juggling multiple crises

Free expert coaches helped school leaders figure out every-day logistics in a pandemic, and think about the future of schooling, too.

States and districts may not be ready to spend $122B in Rescue Plan funds, but the unions are

We are already seeing union campaigns to boost hiring, even though the much-predicted teacher exodus never materialized. In fact, we lost fewer school employees through resignations and retirement in 2020 than in 2019.

Sacramento high school investigating after teacher displayed Nazi flag in classroom

A full investigation is currently underway as officials seek to determine why the teacher "thought the flags were appropriate to use.”

Chicago kids are required to learn about police torture. So how’s it being taught?

"The Reparations Won curriculum tells the stories of the survivors, what they went through and how they came out of it. Students become more engaged when they hear actual real life stories of people that are in their communities and have gone through things like this."

Nevada district agrees to pursue online academy for next school year

Nevada's associate superintendent for school improvement, Kody Asmus said if a student or a family wants online learning, “they’re going to get it, they’re going to find it, whether it's homeschooling or open-enrolling to another school or district that is offering it, and we would just love to keep our kids with us."

Report: High poverty districts bear the brunt of the teacher turnover in Michigan

More than three-quarters of the students attending schools with a 30% turnover rate or more were from low-income families.

N.J. parents must send kids to in-person school this fall, governor says

“Of course, we will continue to follow the science, and should there be a localized outbreak or other emergency, we will act accordingly,” Gov. Murphy said. “Otherwise, buildings will be fully open.”

Tennessee governor signs transgender ‘bathroom bill’ for schools

It’s the first bill restricting bathroom use by transgender people signed in any state in about five years, according to Wyatt Ronan, a spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign.

The case for universal pre-K just got stronger

This new study out of Boston, which looks at a large-scale program conducted across the entire city, is another brick in the growing edifice of evidence that shows preschool is a worthy investment, not just for kids, but for society overall.

Pay for some Texas teachers will top $100,000 in bid to aid poorer schools

A new incentive program will increase pay for teachers facing some of the greatest challenges in helping students catch up from the pandemic. It relies on more than standardized test scores to measure performance.

Texas legislation would require schools to teach ‘informed American patriotism’

HB 4509 would, among other things, mandate that students study documents such as the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Federalist Papers to promote understanding of the “fundamental moral principles” of the country.

Will upgraded ventilation systems help draw Detroiters back to classrooms?

After an inspection by an outside firm this fall found that the district’s air filtration systems were out of date and in disrepair, the district installed new filters across the city and repaired dozens of air filters.

Twenty-six studies point to more play for young children

Play has the potential to reduce inequality, report finds.

Teachers want to reset. Reformers want to reinvent

Education analysts, philanthropists and advocates – many of whom spent the past year and a half working from their living rooms far removed from the classroom challenges of COVID – have laid out ambitious goals for schools that leave little room for rest or recovery.