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Joanne Jacobs
3 days ago3 min read
Getting better: How Louisiana is raising reading and math scores
How Louisiana is raising reading scores and hoping to improve math achievement.
4 comments


Joanne Jacobs
6 days ago1 min read
Catholic schools ace NAEP
Catholic school students are one to two years ahead of public students in reading and math.
6 comments


Joanne Jacobs
7 days ago1 min read
Schools need to get more brains for the bucks
School spending soared in the last 10 years as test scores fell -- except in states such as Louisiana and Mississippi.
1 comment


Joanne Jacobs
Jan 282 min read
Dumber and dumber: Americans, young and old, are slipping
Achievement is falling, and gaps are widening, for American students and adults since well before the pandemic.
13 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Dec 12, 20241 min read
If tests are optional, calculus is mandatory for aspiring students
Taking AP Calculus is almost obligatory for students applying for top colleges, even if they aren't interested in math or science majors.
1 comment


Joanne Jacobs
Dec 2, 20242 min read
Who was the Good Samaritan? Let there be Bible stories in Texas schools
Texas' board of education has narrowly approved a new K-5 curriculum that includes Bible stories , reports Shaun Rabb for Fox News....
4 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Oct 29, 20242 min read
Who will lead us out of the education depression?
"We're in the midst of an "education depression," an "era of shrinking outcomes and opportunity," writes Tim Daly. From 1990 to 2013,...
10 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Oct 15, 20242 min read
Diplomas for all: Massachusetts will vote on ending state graduation standards
A Massachusetts ballot measure ending state graduation requirements is backed by 58% of voters, says new poll.
3 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Oct 4, 20242 min read
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...
4 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Oct 3, 20242 min read
Learning is hard, and cheating is easier than ever: What can teachers do?
Teachers can't turn every student into an eager learner, but they can make it harder to cheat.
4 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Oct 2, 20242 min read
Georgetown students 'have trouble staying focused on even a sonnet'
Even elite colleges don't read very much and have trouble staying focused on books.
5 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Sep 26, 20242 min read
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.
2 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Sep 23, 20242 min read
Books are too long and boring, say English teachers
When I was in school in the '60s, we read Pride and Prejudice, Wuthering Heights , Great Expectations, Hard Times, Canterbury Tales, The...
6 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Sep 13, 20242 min read
Ignorance isn't bliss
Los Angeles Unified will let 10 schools with low-income students drop standardized tests in favor of their own assessments.
4 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Aug 28, 20242 min read
Wisconsin lowers academic aims, adopts fuzzy labels
Wisconsin is lowering expectations for students.
11 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Aug 13, 20242 min read
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.
1 comment


Joanne Jacobs
Jul 16, 20242 min read
Teachers' union takes aim at graduation exam in Massachusetts
Massachusetts could roll back reforms that made it a model of educational excellence.
8 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Jul 10, 20243 min read
Up, up and away: 'Recalibration' is raising AP exam scores
Advanced Placement scores were released this week, and they're higher than ever. But not necessarily because students are learning more....
4 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Jul 6, 20241 min read
Tests may be 'optional,' but not if you want to get in to an elite college
Yale is not “being honest about the reality of our admissions process” because the university is “denying 98 percent of the students who...
3 comments
Joanne Jacobs
Jun 28, 20242 min read
NY will graduate critical thinkers and 'global citizens' who can't pass tests
New York plans to let students earn a high school diploma without passing Regents exams.
9 comments
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