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Here are news and opinion stories educators, advocates, policy wonks and makers are talking about today:
News and Analysis
Only 21 states still plan to use shared tests designed for the common core, a continued erosion of the unity that emerged six years ago, when 45 states embraced the standards and pledged to measure student learning with common assessments. (Education Week)
The nation is spending $46 billion less each year on school construction and maintenance than is necessary to ensure safe and healthy facilities, according to estimates in a new report. (The Washington Post)
With the proliferation of big data in education in recent years, researchers have been able to guide informed policy decisions on teacher effectiveness and student outcomes at a scope that was previously unimaginable. But the breadth of information being collected about students’ lives has some parents and advocacy groups worried. (The Seventy-Four)
Many American cities are home to massive achievement gaps that divide rich and poor students. But some cities are doing a far better job than others in educating the most economically disadvantaged learners, according to a new report from Education Cities and GreatSchools. (The Huffington Post)
Debra Duardo, a former high school dropout, will become the top education official for Los Angeles County, heading an agency that provides schooling for teenage inmates as well as for thousands of disabled students—programs that have been criticized in recent years. (Los Angeles Times)
New York
They say that all good things must come to an end. Odd as it may seem, that expression has always given me hope. For if all good things must end, then certainly the reverse is true, and bad things cannot last forever as well. (The Washington Post)