Coronavirus

Nation’s Report Card: Latest results are showing troubling gaps

Higher-achievers have recovered in math and reading but lower-performers classmates are lagging, Nation's Report Card shows.

Reasons high school graduation rates are where they are

The majority of states had lower graduation rates in 2022 than they did before the pandemic. Here's why.

State of the American student: Here are 2 perspectives

There is some good news but more not-so-good news in a pair of wide-ranging reports on how students across the U.S. are faring academically and civically this fall.

Making the most of tutoring: 4 strategies for success

Some early proponents of tutoring as a post-pandemic silver bullet have recently tempered their expectations, in part because of implementation challenges at a large scale.

State of the American student: Here are 2 big perspectives

There is some good news but more not-so-good news in a pair of wide-ranging reports on how students across the U.S. are faring academically and civically this fall.

5 reasons your tutoring program may fail this school year

At schools that provided tutoring sessions multiple times a week with the same tutor over the course of several months, students saw their academic achievements skyrocket.

End of ESSER: How to extend student-support past the deadline

Researchers share how leaders in several states are spending on student well-being—and why these initiatives should continue.

Learning loss: How big are the achievement gaps heading into 2024-25?

Test scores from approximately 7.7 million students in grades 3 through 8 show "academic recovery remains elusive" based on pre-pandemic trends, according to the latest analysis of the 2023-24 school year by the assessment firm, NWEA.

High-impact tutoring: 3 ways novices can improve their skills

Building positive relationships, choosing appropriate tasks and using strategic questioning are the top three high-leverage strategies tutor should deploy.

Reversing pandemic slides: How does your state compare?

Learn where your state ranks in areas like math and reading proficiency, as well as five recommendations to get students get back on track.

5 reasons homeschooling might be more appealing to parents

Bullying topped parents' list of concerns when it comes to their child's education. What else is on their mind?

Your paraprofessionals can offer high-quality—and fun—tutoring

Denver Public Schools launched Acceleration Academies that pair students who are significantly below grade level with paraprofessionals who are receiving coaching and professional development.

We know tutoring works. Here’s how to make it work better

Most K12 leaders would agree that high-dosage tutoring is now a key part of instruction. Most would also note difficulties with finding adequate space and funding, hiring high-quality tutors and encouraging students to attend. 

Accelerating Literacy: Using Digital Tools to Elevate Student Choice and Voice

Date & Time: Tuesday, May 7th at 2 pm ET

In this 20-minute DA Ed Talk, the District Instructional Librarian for St. Vrain Valley Schools will share some actionable strategies for incorporating digital books and audiobooks into curriculum, elevating student choice, agency and voice, and quickly accelerating literacy across a school or district.  

‘Talking out of School’ podcast: Addressing a complexity of needs

Transforming K12 into a more fully student-centered system is the wicked problem facing public schools, says Robin Lake, director of the Center on Reinventing Public Education.

School boards are now spending more time on these 5 topics

Is your school board focused on the same topics that are of growing concern at their counterparts' meetings in other districts and states?

The pandemic’s impact still worries K12 parents. Here’s why

"The way school went with COVID got my twins so far behind," one parent said in a new report. Which interventions can help reverse its effects?

4 ways to close learning gaps before the ESSER deadline

School districts such as Alabama's Birmingham City Schools are taking innovative steps to ensure a sustained academic rebound, a new report finds. Here's how.

A look at states’ ‘inexcusable’ funding cuts during the pandemic

States like New York and Vermont were recorded to have the highest cost-adjusted per-pupil funding in 2021, whereas states like Arizona and Idaho ranked the lowest at around $5,500 below the national average.

U.S. math scores take a hit in global assessment. But there’s good news

Some countries suffered the equivalent of one year of learning loss in math in 2022, a new global report suggests. How did our students fare?

How schools can request an extension for ARP spending as deadline looms

On Monday, the U.S. Department of Education issued a letter to state grantees acknowledging that state education agencies are eligible for a 14-month extension to spend their American Rescue Plan funds upon request.

“We are failing older students.” Are high schoolers running out of time?

The 2023 “State of the American Student" contains reports from district and other experts on new approaches that "center instruction and support on what students need most."

Masks are back at some schools. How bad will COVID politics get?

A Maryland elementary school's mask mandate for a single class is setting off alarm bells—but not so much about the spread of infection.

This superintendent wonders when educators stopped being viewed as heroes

How the public went so quickly from calling educators the heroes of the pandemic to "villains" and "groomers" bothers Papillion La Vista Community Schools Superintendent Andrew Rikli.

As COVID cases rise, leaders respond by shutting down schools—for now

Just nine days into the new school year, attendance at one Kentucky school district dropped to 81% as COVID and other illnesses are beginning to sweep the nation.

How to know if your district is at risk of the looming fiscal cliff

"Time is running out," reads a new report from The Education Trust. Districts have millions of ESSER dollars left to spend. Some have managed these funds poorly. Here's how to ensure you're prepared once these resources are eliminated.

Are English learners catching up with the big lift offered by ESSER?

How districts in five states are using relief funds to expand tutoring, family outreach and develop more multilingual teachers.

Chronic absenteeism doubled in these 9 states during the pandemic

And levels grew in every other state as families took matters into their own hands to ensure their child's needs were met, whether academically or emotionally. "Districts now have more staff than ever and fewer students," said Marguerite Roza, director of Georgetown University's Edunomics Lab, in June. "So what happens next?"

Here are the 3 big impacts political polarization is having in the classroom

Political polarization has made their job "intolerable," teachers say in a new survey. Here's how teachers says administrators, parents and colleagues can solve the problem.

Classroom quality: Why teaching recovery is key to getting students back on track

A "crisis in the quality of classroom teaching" is the biggest barrier to providing students with the support they need to overcome unfinished learning, according to a poll of district leaders that was conducted by the Center on Reinventing Public Education.

Recovery on hold? How academic growth sputtered in 2022-23

The road to recovery remains rocky as the academic growth that most students made in the 2022-23 school year failed to match pre-pandemic norms, according to data on grades 3-8 released Tuesday.

7 defining studies that shed light on K12’s current partisan divide

Since the height of the pandemic, the education sphere has only gotten more politicized as families gained a front row seat to their child's education during remote instruction. These seven surveys from the Pew Research Center offer a timeline of how this partisan divide transpired.

Safety first: Schools must vet their edtech tools for privacy and protection

Given the recent surge of edtech tools in K12 schools, it's important that leaders understand these technologies are still in their infancy, so proceed with caution.

Why this CIO plans to incorporate AI into his edtech wheelhouse

"If you choose to respond in a powerful, informed, instructive and positive way, then it can be a huge benefit for us," says Jon Ostendorf, CIO at the Princeton Day School. "It's exciting because it's a challenge and we have to respond to it right away. Every day, you see more potential."

Math scores for this one group of students show historic, long-term decline

There are no "green shoots’" of academic recovery emerging, with the Nation's Report Card showing the largest-ever drop in math scores by 13-year-old students and decreases in reading.