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Here are news and opinion stories educators, advocates, policy wonks and makers are talking about today:
News and Analysis
The Department of Education cut off federal loans and grants Monday to dozens of beauty schools and three technical trade schools for falsifying a wide range of records. (The Washington Post)
The White House wants every child in the United States to learn computer science. The president’s plan to reach that goal? Ask Congress to fund a new $4 billion program for states and another $100 million for districts to train teachers and purchase the tools “so that our elementary, middle, and high schools can provide opportunities to learn computer science for all students,” Obama said in his weekly address on January 30. (The Atlantic)
Trump’s new ad uses familiar talking points: knocking Common Core for being federally imposed on local government, the low school performance of American students and high per-pupil spending in the United States. The Washington Post’s education team found his ad devoid of context and flimsy with the facts, so we also decided to take our own look at his claims. (The Washington Post)
The Chicago Teachers Union — citing a lack of trust and concerns about long-term school funding — unanimously voted Monday to reject a four-year contract offer. In the days ahead of the vote, the teachers union had called the Chicago Public Schools proposal a “serious” one, leading some to believe a tentative agreement was likely. (Chicago Sun-Times)
Maryland
When challenged on money for schools, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) is quick to retort that he’s funding education at record levels. With $6.3 billion, his 2017 budget proposal indeed contains the most money ever set aside for education. Just like in 2016. And 2015. And so on. (The Washington Post)
Rhode Island
During his recent state of the city address describing the climate of education, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh observed: “Instead of unity, too often we’ve seen schools pitted against one another — by adults.” He could have been describing the situation in many states, cities and towns across the country — and definitely what we’re seeing in Rhode Island. (Providence Journal)