Joanne Jacobs
SF brings back 8th-grade algebra, admits 'equity math' failed
Algebra will return to San Francisco middle schools, reports Jill Tucker in the San Francisco Chronicle. The school board's vote Tuesday...
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Joanne Jacobs
Feb 142 min read
'Tis better to have tried AP and earned a low grade than never to have tried at all
Taking an Advanced Placement class, struggling with college-level material and earning a low grade on the exam is a learning experience,...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 131 min read
Rewarding good behavior works -- but what about the love of learning?
Awarding "points" for good classroom behavior improves behavior -- without destroying intrinsic motivation, writes Emily Oster on her...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 132 min read
No extra credit for Kleenex: 'Equitable grading' is honest -- not easy, says advocate
"Equitable grading" isn't a strategy to inflate grades and lower expectations, argues Joe Feldman, author of Grading for Equity and CEO...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 122 min read
A reform too far: Sorry, your kid's only 67% of a 'whole child'
Liam sat through a semester of geometry and got a C for turning in homework, earning a 75 percent average on tests and bringing in...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 112 min read
Smart jocks: Students will show up for sports
High school students are back on the field, the court, the track and the pool, with participation in sports nearing pre-pandemic levels,...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 102 min read
It takes a stable family
"Luxury beliefs" -- the idea that monogamy is outdated, drugs are harmless and success comes from luck rather than hard work -- are fine...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 92 min read
In defense of remedial math classes
Students who are almost ready for college math do best by taking college-level classes with support in basic skills, researchers agree....
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 81 min read
8th-grade algebra for some
Most middle schools offer eighth-grade algebra to high achievers, according to a new RAND survey, reports Kalyn Belsha on Chalkbeat. Only...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 82 min read
Leveling up: How to get 'diverse' kids to advanced math
"Equity" doesn't mean lowering standards in Union district near Tulsa, reports Hechinger's Neal Morton. Most students in accelerated math...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 72 min read
Teaching Ta-Nehisi Coates
Mary Wood is teaching Ta-Nehisi Coates' memoir, Between the World and Me, in her AP English Language and Composition class in Chapin,...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 62 min read
Ivy crazy
Getting Aidan or Abigail into a bumper-sticker-worthy college doesn't come cheaply. In addition to $800,000 or so for 13 years at a top...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 62 min read
Dartmouth will require SAT/ACT scores to help low-income students
Dartmouth will require applicants to submit standardized test scores such as the SAT or ACT, ending a long "pandemic pause," reports...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 52 min read
$250K for 'woke' training: Reading, math scores fall even lower
Training teachers to "disrupt whiteness" isn't helping children learn at a Bay Area school, reports Jill Tucker in the San Francisco...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 41 min read
Prof suspended for 'anti-trans' chocolates will be back in class
A California history professor will return to teaching, nine months after he was suspended for bringing "transphobic" chocolates to a...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 42 min read
College is now a 'what to think' place, not 'how to think' for yourself
"Professors here teach how to think, not "what to think," college tour guides claim. Don't believe them, writes Caitlin Flanagan in The...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 33 min read
Transitioning kids: 'I expected it to change everything, but I was just me with a deeper voice'
Silencing critics of transitioning children is a mistake, writes Pamela Paul in a New York Times commentary based on interviews with...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 22 min read
Reading revolution: It's a lot more than 'back to basics'
States are jumping on the "science of reading" bandwagon, writes Sarah Schwartz for Education Week. New York, Massachusetts, Indiana,...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 11 min read
Young students are better in phonics, worse in math
"Covid toddlers" -- kids who were two years old in March 2020 -- were more likely to be unprepared for kindergarten in fall 2023 reports...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 12 min read
Students are catching up in math, reading -- but gaps are wider
Reading and math scores are on their way up, reports the Education Recovery Scorecard. On average, students in grades three through eight...
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