Today’s article from Intellectual Takeout Dale Farran spent a decade studying over 1,000 kids who went to a state-run pre-kindergarten—and a control group of kids that wanted to, but didn’t get in. She is shocked and dismayed by what she discovered: By 6th grade the pre-K kids were doing worse all around: worse reading, math and science scores; more learning disorders; and more discipline problems, including serious ones that got them suspended. “It really has required a lot of soul-searching,” Farran told Anya Kamenetz on NPR. Now she’s pondering “what were plausible reasons that may account for this.” One theory she has is that the free pre-K doesn’t look like pricey … [Read more...]
15 Failures of U.S. Public Education in 2025
This article claims there are 15 definable reasons why public education is in decline in the USA. Do you agree (we don't believe this is an accurate list but it's a place to start. Here's a link to the original article: 15 Failures of U.S. Public Education in 2025 Introduction American public education is at a crossroads. Once hailed as a global standard, the system today faces deep, structural problems that undermine its ability to deliver on its promise of equity and opportunity. From worsening academic performance to chronic underfunding, the failures of the American public education system are not isolated issues but interconnected challenges. In 2025, the stakes have never been … [Read more...]
The scary truth about how far behind American kids have fallen
From Harvard University: https://cepr.harvard.edu/news/scary-truth-about-how-far-behind-american-kids-have-fallen Students of all ages still haven’t made up the ground they lost during the pandemic. Sometimes, panics are overblown. Sometimes, older generations are just freaking out about the youngins, as they have since time immemorial. That’s not the case, unfortunately, with kids’ learning right now, more than four years after the pandemic shuttered classrooms and disrupted the lives of millions of children. The effects were seen almost immediately, as students’ performance in reading and math began to dip far below pre-pandemic norms, worrying educators and families around … [Read more...]
Fed up With Screens, Parents Are Demanding a Return To Pen and Paper in the Classroom
Not so very long ago, school districts and education leaders told us that technology in the classroom was essential to the success of our students. “An iPad on every desk” became the new “chicken in every pot” slogan, as experts tried to convince us that technology could be a panacea for the nation’s test scores. Well, they convinced us. And now some parents are working to extract their children from this technological bill of goods that we were sold. According to NBC News, parents like Julie Frumin and Emily Cherkin strongly believe that the heavy presence of technology in the classroom – particularly through Chromebooks and iPads – is harming their children, so much so that they took … [Read more...]
Private school observations
This was posted on Facebook by a teacher in private school. We are cross-posting the original. Ask these same questions in your home and see what happens. Carol silva denSosrpot4ma95ucl25 l15h5t :P7a257yMlM3751 14ua70a5i 5157mg · I teach at a $15,000/year private academy. Last Tuesday, I gave my 6th graders a simple quiz: Why is the ocean blue but water in a cup is clear? Twenty-four students. Not one of them could answer. These parents are paying for excellence. We're delivering expensive memorization. I've been in this classroom for 12 years. The parents who send their kids here are successful. They pay $15,000 a year because … [Read more...]
How Washington’s Campaign Finance Watchdog Actually Works: A Real-World Case Study (Ridgefield School District)
Today we bring you a guess investigative report. It's going ot be a 2 cup of coffee read. It's detailed. While you may not think the Public Disclosure Commission is important...you would be wrong. This is the group charged with being the watchdog for expenditures by political candidates and those spending money on promoting a ballot position. Give it a read and share with others. Note: It appears the Columbian has just written a piece about the PDC as well: In Our View: Vacancies on PDC demand attention, action - The Columbian The Agency Most Voters Have Never Heard Of Every election season in Washington State, thousands of candidates, political committees, and lobbyists … [Read more...]
The New Face of Woke Education
Sold to parents and teachers as harmless programming for “emotional intelligence,” Social Emotional Learning (SEL) became – with the use of cloud-based technology – a centralized apparatus for values transmission that threatens the autonomy of future generations. Through SEL, collectivist propaganda now pervades modern classrooms, shaping your child’s worldview, click by click. What started small has become a dangerous subversion of the educational system aimed at surveillance, indoctrination and, ultimately, compliance with a globalist Sold to parents and teachers as harmless programming for “emotional intelligence,” Social Emotional Learning (SEL) became – with the use of cloud-based … [Read more...]
Teachers in the Evergreen State are among the best paid in the country?
From the News Tribune It's a 2 cup of coffee read (maybe 3) Washington’s teacher salaries are the fourth-highest in the United States, according to the National Education Association. A News Tribune analysis also found that teacher salaries in Pierce County have increased by an average of about 82% over the last 10 years. The average salary for a teacher in Pierce County in the 2024-2025 school year is about $97,000. Some Pierce County districts that have seen the biggest increases in average teacher salaries also find themselves in financial distress, according to a News Tribune analysis. Of the five school districts that saw the highest percent change in average teacher … [Read more...]
Why Some Reading Programs Are Abandoning Phonics (And Why That’s Wrong)
When our first child started school nearly 50 years ago he was taught "sight reading". My wife and I grew up learning "phonics". My wife went to the school principal and asked that they stop sight reading and switch back to phonics. She was relentless. Finally, they agreed to consider making the switch. They looked around the school and found, in an obscure closet, covered with dust, a "phonics kit". They decided to go ahead and try it. Fast forward 1 year...the principal came back to my wife and thanked her for pushing them to switch back to phonics. Why did he say thank you? Because reading test scores improved significantly. Today's article comes from Phonics.org. Walk into … [Read more...]
Growth of staff vs students for the last 23 years
A gentleman (Jeff Myers) out of Oregon put together an interactive website for the entire USA where you can choose your state and school district. The website is: https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/jmyers/viz/HowStudentEnrollmentandStaffingHaveChangedOverTime/StudentandStaffChangesoverTime The data shows the time (1992-93 to 2024-25) and student headcount change vs. staff headcount (with options to look at teachers and/or support staff). It's enlightening and informative. For this article we're going to look at the Battle Ground School District in Washington State. Why this district? Because it has failed the last 3 enrichment levies and is in the midst of cutting $20 million from … [Read more...]