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Here are news and opinion stories educators, advocates, policy wonks and makers are talking about today:
News and Analysis
As Newark school officials struggle to fix a long troubled system, one costly issue looms large: what to do with hundreds of teachers on the payroll who don’t have permanent assignments. (The Wall Street Journal)
Nearly two decades ago, when Ricki Sabia insisted her 5-year-old son could read, his public-school teachers didn’t believe her. He didn’t have a clear reading voice, Sabia explained, so they couldn’t understand him. “His expressive-language issues were a big barrier and caused inappropriately low expectations,” said Sabia, whose son, Steve, has Down syndrome. “It wasn’t until he started taking state assessments and far exceeding expectations that they started to take my observations about his abilities seriously and stopped trying to get him into special-ed classes.” (The Atlantic)
Here’s an election conundrum: Just who is National Education Association going to plump for in the 2016 presidential primaries? After all, the American Federation of Teachers has gone in early for Hillary Clinton (and gotten some flack from members for doing so). (Education Week)
Education is experiencing a tech revolution. Chalkboards have been replaced by smartboards and the teacher’s gradebook is published online for parents with a secure login. Tech has even infiltrated the classroom with tablets and video conferencing enhancing student engagement and creating more opportunities for remote learning. (Huffington Post)
Seven more states got the green light from the U.S Department of Education Thursday to hang onto their flexibility from the mandates of the withering No Child Left Behind Act for at least one more year. They are: Alaska, Indiana, Maryland, New Jersey, Oregon, Tennessee, and Utah. (Education Week)
One way to find the future of higher education is to track the brainstormers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who often seem to be a step ahead of the pack. So it matters when L. Rafael Reif, the MIT president, says that an idea for digital innovation is “on the table.” (The Washington Post)
In her second bid for the presidency, Hillary Rodham Clinton is discussing “systemic racism” and making the issue a hallmark of her campaign as she looks to connect with the black voters who supported rival Barack Obama in 2008. (ABC News)
Missouri educators say they won’t let language inserted in an appropriations bill prevent them from awarding A+ scholarships to qualified students. (The Kansas City Star)