Here’s What All the NAEP Coverage Missed

Articles on the release of the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) scores rang an alarm of familiar decline: “Math scores remained relatively flat in…

After 40 Years, There Is Still Time for the U.S. Department of Education to Become a Good Idea

Wherever you exist on the political spectrum, the U.S. Department of Education’s work has never been more relevant to the lives of families and students,…

Every state struggles with gaps in the outcomes it delivers for students and families, especially when they are Black, Latinx, low-income or have special needs. But it’s not just the achievement gap and the opportunity gap, there is also an information gap. According to Data Quality Campaign, 81% of parents want to know how schools are serving children like theirs. But most states are still falling short. 41 states fail to share data…

Betsy DeVos Wants Larger Paychecks For Teachers Who Deliver Results for Kids

In a recent statement to Congress, Betsy DeVos, the nation’s education chief, made the following statement: Students may be better served by being in larger…

This New Study Shows That Testing Isn’t Everything, But We Still Need It

Figuring out how students are doing in school is a lot harder than most of us realize. That’s what I’m taking away after digging into…

The Job of a School Principal Has Changed a Lot. Here’s How We Help Them Do It.

At a National Association of Secondary School Principals event, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos told the school leaders gathered in the room that she…

Chicago Isn’t Atlanta—Our Student Learning Gains Are Real and Lead the Nation

About a year ago, Stanford researcher Sean Reardon was digging deep into a 300-million-piece database he created, containing five years’ worth of state test scores…

I Became a Principal to Make School a Place Where Students Wanted to Be

As a youngster, LeViis Haney wasn’t the greatest student. In a recent blog for Education Week, he shares his struggle to stay motivated. But thanks…

It’s a Principal’s Job to Make Equity a Reality

On the first day of school each year, more than 3,300 teenagers fill the campus here at Rancho Cucamonga High School. They’re a diverse group—more…

Illinois Makes Paying For College Harder for Low-Income Students, But We Can Fix That

In 1991, I was admitted to Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. My mother worked as a telephone operator and didn’t have the money to pay…