Courts Not Silent on Moments of Silence
An Illinois statute, now on temporary hold by a U.S. District Court, has given rise to the latest in a long line of constitutional cases involving required moments-of-silence in public schools.
Do State Tests Make the Grade?
It’s hard to overestimate the importance of standardized tests in public schools today, but differences in state standards and the reluctance of some states to spend money for high-quality, challenging tests have caused a great disparity from state to state.
Report: Teachers Earn Less than Peers
In 40 states, public school teachers fail to make as much as workers in comparable professions, such as reporters and insurance underwriters, according to a new report by the Education Research Center.
Much Campus Crime Goes Unreported
Schools and colleges across the country do not report violent incidents on campus consistently or accurately — in many cases because they are not required to, according to safety experts and a new report by 27 state attorneys general.
A Changing Racial and Ethnic Mix in U.S. Public Schools
A new analysis of public school enrollment data by the Pew Hispanic Center finds that in the dozen years from 1993-94 to 2005-06, white students became significantly less isolated from minority students while, at the same time, black and Hispanic students became slightly more isolated from white students.
States Work to Plug ‘Brain Drain’
States in the Midwest and Northeast are struggling unsuccessfully to keep educated young people from moving elsewhere. In response, some states have mounted tourism-like marketing campaigns while others consider giving hefty tax breaks to in-state college students who stay after they graduate.
Govs to Grads: Goodbye and Good Luck!
Like any graduating class, the crop of governors giving commencement addresses in 2007 had its own standouts.
The Darwin Debate
Twenty years after a landmark Supreme Court decision, Americans are still fighting over the teaching of creationism and other alternatives to evolution in the nation’s schools.
Mixed Grades for a Federal Education Law
As Congress prepares to debate reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act, Americans express mixed views about the nation’s signature education law. Among those who have heard about the law, 34% say it has made schools better; 26% say it has made them worse; and 32% say it has had no impact.
How Far Behind in Math and Reading are English Language Learners?
As Congress considers reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law, a new analysis by the Pew Hispanic Center of national standardized tests shows that the one-in-ten public school students designated as “English language learners” lag far behind whites in reading and math.
