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Here are news and opinion stories educators, advocates, policy wonks and makers are talking about today:
News and Analysis
Washington officials are considering a special legislative session after the state Supreme Court issued daily fines a of $100,000 until lawmakers comply with a court order to improve the way the state pays for its basic education system. (ABC News)
As over 50 million students nationwide head back for the new academic year, it’s clear America is a-changing — and you only need to look in public schools to get a sense of how. (Southern California Public Radio)
Just blocks from Facebook’s world headquarters, many students in the Ravenswood City School District are failing to read and write at state levels, but the company’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan have vowed to change that. (San Jose Mercury News)
Will Grover’s promotion to HBO be good for kids? Elmo, Snuffy, Grover and Big Bird could soon hit the HBO after-parties alongside Tyrion Lannister and the ethically challenged cops from True Detective. (NPR)
When Hillary Rodham Clinton unveiled her plan this week to make higher education more affordable, Senator Marco Rubio of Florida promptly dismissed it as “Obamacare for college.” Jeb Bush, the former Florida governor, asserted that she would burden taxpayers by throwing more federal money at the problem. (The New York Times)
Schools in 11 Massachusetts school districts will receive $14 million in state grants to extend the time of the school day this year. (Learning Lab)
New York
A drastic increase this year in the number of students sitting out New York’s standardized exams has created another kind of test, one for state and federal education officials who must decide whether to punish school districts with low participation rates. (The New York Times)