Black elementary school students are half as likely as their white peers to be assigned to gifted elementary programs in math and reading—even with comparably high test scores. But the racial gap in giftedness disappears when black students have a black teacher, according to a study. Black elementary school students are half as likely as […]
Parents and educators hailed FERPA, COPPA and the Student Privacy Pledge as significant steps toward securing student data. But the Electronic Frontier Foundation believes that Google, a prominent player in edtech, is already violating those measures. In December, the foundation, a nonprofit digital rights group based in San Francisco, filed a complaint with the Federal […]
In their book, Transforming Ice Age Schools: A Practical Guide for School Leaders, Leighangela Brady and Lisbeth Johnson argue that, beyond superficial "fixes," little has changed in the underlying structure of education. The result: students unprepared for the complex challenges that await them after high school. We've all heard the saying, "The more things change, […]
In this objective look into a subject that has generated much debate, Ovid K. Wong and Chak Lau examine critical elements in preparing teachers and decision-makers for the tenure application process. Teacher Tenure: An Analysis of the Critical Elements Rowman&Littlefield In this objective look into a subject that has generated much debate, Ovid K. Wong […]
Old computers may not be trendy, but as school tech budgets shrink or stagnate, many administrators try to squeeze the most life out of their aging devices. Recycling and retrofitting, and hooking up to the cloud, allow districts to delay or even abandon established schedules for buying brand-new equipment. In 2015, 8.9 million laptops and […]
The redesigned SAT seeks to expand opportunities for all students to go to college—but its focus on reading comprehension may make the exam more difficult for English-language learners and low-income students. The SAT updates were announced two years ago, and first rolled out in March. The new test aligns with the Common Core, and asks […]
In the mountains of western North Carolina, administrators in Buncombe County Schools have seen a steady rise in the number of its 25,500 students who are homeless, food-insecure and involved in domestic violence. The need for increased mental health care has led the district to adopt social-emotional learning models designed to help students at its […]
In January, the Jackson Public Schools became the first district in Mississippi to launch an evening high school that students attend from 2:30 to 8:30 p.m. It's designed for students whose other commitments—such as jobs or caring for their own children or younger siblings—make traditional school hours difficult. A similar evening program in neighboring Alabama […]
Winfred Roberson Jr. was unanimously voted new superintendent of economically and culturally diverse Glendale USD in California, where he will oversee 33 schools and more than 25,000 students. Roberson had been superintendent of Davis Joint USD for the past six years, a district where 69 percent of the students who took the English portion of […]
Leadership is never more critical than when creating and sustaining a data-centric learning culture, as Lane Mills advises in a white paper on how districts can access and integrate data to make informed, proactive decisions. A smart "what-why-how" framework can illuminate the mission of a new culture: What is a data-driven culture? Why is there […]
