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Mississippi rising: Look South for progress in reading achievement
Mississippi should be a role model for the nation in how to teach reading, along with Louisiana, Tennessee and Alabama, but old stereotypes persist.

Joanne Jacobs
May 132 min read
1 comment


Merit pay is coming to Houston under Mike Miles' go-big-or-go-home plan
Merit pay raised students' scores in Dallas. Now Superintendent Mike Miles is bringing it to Houston.

Joanne Jacobs
May 62 min read
4 comments


More math, more learning in Tennessee
Tennessee districts that analyze student data and reteach topics students didn't understand are boosting middle-school math scores.

Joanne Jacobs
Apr 302 min read
2 comments


'Free college' isn't enough to raise success rates for low-income students
"Free" tuition has boosted two-year graduation rates in Tennessee, but low-income students need more help to complete a degree.

Joanne Jacobs
Oct 19, 20242 min read
2 comments


Tennessee board: Don't wait till 3rd grade to retain poor readers
Help struggling readers starting in kindergarten, says Tennessee's school board in a resolution. If they need more time to...

Joanne Jacobs
Mar 6, 20242 min read
8 comments


Only 1.2% to repeat 3rd grade due to Tennessee 'reading gate'
Sixty percent of Tennessee third graders faced the prospect of repeating the grade, but only 1.2 percent failed to get past the "reading...

Joanne Jacobs
Nov 20, 20232 min read
2 comments


Start college in 9th grade, says community college chancellor
All California high school students should be enrolled in community college courses, by default, starting in ninth grade, says Sonya...

Joanne Jacobs
Aug 15, 20232 min read
6 comments


Good news in Tennessee
Tennessee's focus on tutoring and summer school is paying off, report Marta W. Aldrich and Kae Petrin on Chalkbeat. Scores are up for the...

Joanne Jacobs
Jul 3, 20231 min read
1 comment


Summer school is open, but will students who need it most show up?
This will be the last year of Covid-funded summer school before the pandemic relief money runs out, writes Jo Napolitano on The 74. Some...

Joanne Jacobs
Jun 24, 20232 min read
0 comments


No sex shows for kids in Texas: Why is this controversial?
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is expected to sign a bill that would ban staging "sexually explicit shows in front of children," reports William...

Joanne Jacobs
Jun 6, 20231 min read
10 comments


It's summer school or else for would-be fourth graders in Tennessee
Thousands of Tennessee children will be going to summer school -- or repeating third grade, reports Chalkbeat's Marta W. Aldrich. Sixty...

Joanne Jacobs
May 30, 20232 min read
2 comments


More young people are skipping college: Is that a crisis?
A good student at a good high school, Grayson Hart "believed college was the only route to a good job, stability and a happy life," until...

Joanne Jacobs
Mar 13, 20232 min read
0 comments


Teaching reading in high school
Memphis high schools are teaching reading skills to teenagers who didn't learn to read well in the early grades, reports Sarah Mervosh in...

Joanne Jacobs
Jan 3, 20232 min read
2 comments
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