Joanne Jacobs
An 'F' for grading: Can expectations go any lower?
Grading may be stressful, writes George Leef on the Martin Center for Academic Renewal. It may deliver unwelcome news to students or...
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Joanne Jacobs
7 days ago2 min
How schools can help poor kids beat the odds: Consistency, collaboration, priorities
Schools that help disadvantaged students achieve focus on consistently good teaching, a strong, shared curriculum and lots of collaboration.
Joanne Jacobs
Sep 301 min
Urban charters raise achievement -- or they close
Urban charter schools improve learning for disadvantaged minority students, and competition often improves nearby district schools.
Joanne Jacobs
Sep 302 min
Reform can work: Closing bad schools and opening new ones improved learning in Denver
Denver Public Schools improved -- a lot -- in part by closing bad schools and opening new ones.
Joanne Jacobs
Sep 262 min
The honesty gap: 'How are parents supposed to understand this?'
States are hiding pandemic learning loss by lowering the bar for "proficiency" on state tests.
Joanne Jacobs
Sep 142 min
A new choice in New Orleans: District opens a non-charter school
New Orleans is no longer an all-charter district.
Joanne Jacobs
Sep 132 min
Ignorance isn't bliss
Los Angeles Unified will let 10 schools with low-income students drop standardized tests in favor of their own assessments.
Joanne Jacobs
Sep 92 min
200-day school year boosts reading scores -- and attendance
Adding 20 days to the school year improved reading scores at two Richmond elementary schools.
Joanne Jacobs
Sep 61 min
How good is my kid's school? Good luck figuring out state report cards
State report cards do a poor job of informing parents. IDEA charters want Texas parents to see their ratings.
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 282 min
Wisconsin lowers academic aims, adopts fuzzy labels
Wisconsin is lowering expectations for students.
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 212 min
Racial achievement gaps: Poverty, parents explain some (not all) of differences
Socioeconomic status explains some of the Black/White achievement gap and most of the Hispanic/White achievement gap.
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 162 min
Parents want choices: 84% support education savings accounts
Americans -- including Democrats -- strongly favor school choice, especially education savings accounts.
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 151 min
Phone-free schools: Can it be done?
California is getting on the no-phones-in-class bandwagon , reports AP. Gov. Gavin Newsom wants school districts to restrict students’...
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 132 min
Most grades don't match test scores: Is that a problem?
Most grades don't match students' test scores, according to the Equitable Grading Project.
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 82 min
Biden's education grade: 'D' for 'doesn't care about achievement'
President Biden's education agenda deserves a D.
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 61 min
'Credit recovery' relies on easy tests, lots of cheating
"Credit recovery" boosts graduation rates by letting students who've failed a traditional course pass very easy tests on which it is very...
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 52 min
Summer school helps, if students show up
Urban charter students made significant gains in reading and math in a summer program that combined instruction and enrichment, reports...
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 12 min
Only the education-rich can afford laissez-faire schools
Monogamy is "outdated," Troubled author Rob Henderson's Yale classmate told him. She's been raised in a stable, two-parent family and...
Joanne Jacobs
Jul 242 min
'Covid kids' aren't catching up: 8th graders are 1 year behind pre-pandemic levels
This year's eighth graders were in fourth grade when their schools shut down. As they head to high school, the average student is nine...
Joanne Jacobs
Jul 232 min
Scream 2025: Satan's wonks call for parents' bill of rights, block grants
Project 2025's education section is a standard conservative wish list featuring parents' rights and block-granting federal funds.
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