In this article from MSN.com (yes that super liberal "media" they share about information from a New Jersey teachers union suggesting getting rid of standards. If this gets a foothold how long before it gets to your school district? BTW: In SW Washington State public schools are now roughly 2x the cost of private schools. Here's the story: The New Jersey Education Association (NJEA) is urging the end of the Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators test, describing it as an unnecessary barrier to addressing teacher shortages. The NJEA successfully pushed for the elimination of the Teacher Performance Assessment test last year. “When the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) … [Read more...]
Do phones belong in school?
Do cell phones help or hinder education (k-12)? Do cell phones help or hurt social skills? Do cell phones cause distraction and loss of focus? Today we bring you an article published in The Harvard Gazzette by Anna Lamb Bans may help protect classroom focus, but districts need to stay mindful of students’ sense of connection, experts say Students around the world are being separated from their phones. In 2020, the National Center for Education Statistics reported that 77 percent of U.S. schools had moved to prohibit cellphones for nonacademic purposes. In September 2018, French lawmakers outlawed cellphone use for schoolchildren under the age of 15. In China, phones were … [Read more...]
Why homeschooling is on the rise
Today we share an article written by Dr. Ben Carson as published in the Washington Examiner. Homeschooling is our country's fastest-growing form of education , according to the Washington Post. An estimated 1.9 million to 2.7 million students are homeschooled nationwide. There are quite a few reasons for the shift away from our public school system. Foremost is the shocking mismanagement of our education system during the COVID-19 pandemic. From stifling mask mandates to the shift to "remote learning," the quality of education fell precipitously on the tails of the pandemic. As a former neurosurgeon who worked on children's brains, I can tell you this for a fact: Children cannot … [Read more...]
School choice foes turn to ballot referendums as states expand voucher programs
The number of states that have added an option to allow some or all of the funds for K-12 education in public schools to follow the children appears to be causing issues with....teachers unions. In the following article from The Washington Examiner they spell out some of the efforts and tactics teachers unions are going to try and stop "choice" Voters in Nebraska are likely to weigh in on the state's school choice program after a group submitted more than 100,000 signatures last week, seeking to force a ballot referendum. The effort seeks to repeal a state law passed this year that established a $25 million tax credit program for donors who give money to a scholarship fund that … [Read more...]
Facing mounting challenges, schools embrace the 4-day week
We've run articles in the past about shortening the school week to 4 days. Today is an update from The Hill: Facing mounting challenges, schools embrace the 4-day week | The Hill 850 districts have made the move and more are considering Hundreds of U.S. school districts have sought to combat the teacher shortage and raise the quality of life for their students and faculty by making a big change: a four-day week. The trend of a four-day week has been rising among American companies and schools since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, with many finding benefits to having an extra day off. In schools, most students and teachers are getting Friday or Monday off while having … [Read more...]
US Department of Education – LGBTQI Toolkit
The US Department of Education has decided that basic education is no longer it's focus. Now it's time to help schools focus on LGBTQI. We'll pull some quotes from the document but it case you want to review it yourself here's the link: Document The document is a PDF so you should be able to download and open directly from the source. Following are actual verbatim wording from the report. Table of Contents U.S. Department of Education: Supporting LGBTQI+ Youth and Families in School U.S. Department of Education Q&A Resource on Student-Led Groups to Support LGBTQI+ Students and Allies Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Division of Adolescent and School … [Read more...]
‘Equity’ in Education: Equal Opportunity or Equal Outcome?
This article does a good job explaining why "equity" and "equality" are two completely different terms in K-12 education. The article also goes on to describe the damage focusing on equity causes. The original article can be found at: The American Spectator K-12 public education nationwide is fixated on the term “equity.” It has been added to many public school mission statements and core values, but the positive-sounding term means something more — and something more destructive — than providing equal opportunity for students. Identifying and labeling students based on their socioeconomic and ethnic or race group dominates the education conversation, with group academic … [Read more...]
FACT CHECK: Is Washington education spending in decline?
From the Washington Policy Institute. Please stop by and take their poll. In a recent presentation, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, Chris Reykdal, claimed that Washington's education spending was "on the decline." The data used to back up that claim looked at the percentage of the state economy being spent on public education funding, comparing the national average of 3.6% to Washington's 3.1%. Does that paint an accurate picture of the whole truth? Using those specific metrics it might be possible to say Washington's education spending is "on the decline," but when you start looking at the broader data, we think that claim starts to falter. For instance, not only … [Read more...]
Why 65 Percent of Fourth Graders Can’t Really Read
This is a topic and interview that you may find interesting. Do you accept their premise and conclusions? Emily Hanford reveals how America’s educators adopted a flawed system for teaching reading to kids—and, as a result, completely failed them. The article appeared in The Free Press: Why 65 Percent of Fourth Graders Can’t Really Read (thefp.com) Many parents saw America’s public education system crumble under the weight of the pandemic. Stringent policies—including school closures that went on far too long, and ineffective Zoom school for kindergarteners—had devastating effects that we are only just beginning to understand. But, as with so many problems during the pandemic, COVID … [Read more...]
House Bill 1353 – Reducing school bond approval from 60% to 50% +1: A Constitutional Amendment
Back in 2007 the legislature reduced the approval requirement for levy's to 50% +1 from the historical 50% supermajority. The change was made at the request of school districts around the state who complained levy's failed too often and needed to be easier to pass. Left in place was the requirement that capital bonds require a 60% approval to pass. Fast forward to 2023. A new House Bill #1353 attempts to reduce the 60% to 50% plus one. Why? Because school districts across the state complain it's too hard to get voter approval so they need a lower threshold to get bonds passed. Teachers unions want the newest and best facilities. Votes who support schools no matter the cost want easier … [Read more...]
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