EDUCATION REFORM

Jan 21 2025EDUCATION

Linda McMahon's Education Vision: Empowering Parents, Transforming Schools

Imagine Linda McMahon stepping into the education ring, ready to shake things up. She's no stranger to change, having transformed World Wrestling Entertainment and helped small businesses as the Small Business Administrator. Her secret weapon? School choice. McMahon wants to put power back in parents' hands, giving every child access to a tailored education. She beli...

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Jan 16 2025EDUCATION

New Chicago School Board Takes Charge Amid Union Contract Talks

A new era has begun for Chicago Public Schools with the swearing-in of a hybrid school board. This board, made up of elected and mayoral-appointed members, faces immediate financial challenges and tense negotiations with the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) for a new contract. The power struggle has been ongoing for months, with the previous board voting to fire the dist...

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Jan 11 2025EDUCATION

Rhode Island: Let's Boost Education for All Kids!

Rhode Island's education system isn't working for many kids, especially those from low-income families and communities of color. For example, in 2024, only about 24% of low-income third graders met reading expectations, compared to nearly 50% of their wealthier peers. Math scores show a similar gap. Educators are doing their best with limited resources. But schools ...

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Jan 03 2025OPINION

Rebuilding American Workforce: Beyond Tech Visas

The debate surrounding the H-1B visa program has spurred questions about what it means to put "America First. " Some, like Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, support expanding this visa program to fill tech talent gaps. Others see it as a betrayal of American workers, shifting focus to cheaper foreign labor instead of investing in domestic talent. The real issue lies in ...

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Dec 30 2024EDUCATION

More Charter Schools Needed?

Joseph Belluck, the chairman of the State University of New York committee that reviews and licenses charter schools, has a message for Governor Kathy Hochul and the legislature. He wants them to lift the cap on the number of city charters next year. Why? Because there are currently no more licenses for new charters in New York City. There are 282 charter schools in...

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Dec 19 2024EDUCATION

New York's Top Schools: A Battle Over 'Equity' and Testing

Imagine this: some folks in New York City are trying to change how kids get into the best public high schools. They say it's about being fair, or "equity, " but it's causing a lot of worry for families. The city's Panel for Education Policy is voting on whether to keep using a special test to get into schools like Bronx Science and Brooklyn Tech. If they vote no, it ...

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Dec 09 2024EDUCATION

Higher Education: A Bipartisan Fix?

The incoming Trump administration is facing a big challenge with higher education. The root problems, like the value and cost of college, need immediate attention. While the plans aren't clear yet, early signs show the administration might focus on controversial issues like stopping debt cancellation and changing Title IX protections for students. This could be a mis...

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Dec 06 2024EDUCATION

Streamlining Biochemistry Exams: A New Way in India

Oral exams are like a game of chance—they can be fair or unfair, depending on who's asking the questions. In India, a team aimed to fix this by structuring oral exams for first-year med students. They made sure all questions were equal in number, time, and difficulty. Afterward, they asked students and faculty what they thought, hoping to make exams more reliable. ...

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Dec 02 2024EDUCATION

Newton's Mixed Classrooms: A Lesson in Inequity

Newton Public Schools tried something new in autumn 2021. They mixed students of different levels into the same classroom, hoping it would help them learn better. This was a big change during a tough time, right after COVID-19 shut down schools. But teachers and students are now saying it's not working. The idea was to make it easier for students to move up levels a...

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Nov 27 2024EDUCATION

Why Cutting PhD Programs Might Not Be the Best Idea

PHD programs at Boston University are getting the axe. That's right, the school is chopping some doctoral programs in the humanities. This has people talking, and not just about the job market. The question on everyone's mind is: what kind of society are we building if we don't value critical thinking and reasoning? Boston University is making some big changes. They...

reading time about 1 minute