Making sure all students are ready for college is a frequently mentioned goal for many educators and policy-makers. But what does college readiness really mean, and how do teachers actually know whether a student is ready for college? Asking such questions may be a good way to help students, teachers,...
“Before third grade, students learn to read; after third grade, they read to learn.” This adage is often repeated in literacy education circles, and research overwhelmingly supports this underlying truth. In 2010, a research report from the Annie E. Casey Foundation titled “Early Warning! Why Reading by the End of Third...
After years of programming reductions, the call to bring vocational training back to schools has recently grown louder. For example, a 2018 National Public Radio report garnered a lot of attention, thanks not only to its compelling headline—"High-Paying Trade Jobs Sit Empty While High School Grads Line Up For University"—but...
Research shows that one of the most important predictors of school success and high school graduation occurs early in a student’s life: A 2013 research update from the Annie E. Casey Foundation confirmed that reading proficiency by the end of third grade is critical to a student’s future academic success....
Kids today are “more anxious, depressed and suicidal than ever before,” according to a 2018 newspaper column by Dr. Michael Hynes. Hynes, a school district superintendent in suburban New York, cited several sources before concluding that there is an “existential mental health crisis in K-12 education and beyond.” Although the...
Should grades be used to punish, encourage, or reward students? In recent years, this enduring question has taken on fresh meaning thanks to various efforts to either implement or reject “no-zero” grading policies. With these policies, zeroes are off the table for students—instead, the minimum score a student could receive...
Many young children get their start on the road to literacy while seated on the lap of a loving adult. Whether it be a babysitter, a parent, or a grandparent, that adult often sings or reads to their young charge, thereby developing the child’s ear for language and helping...
Boosting early literacy rates is a goal for many educators, parents, and policymakers, and for good reason: Early literacy intervention and support has been proven to set young children on the path to later success. In an interview with the online outlet Neuroscience News, John Hutton—a Cincinnati-based pediatrician, children’s bookstore...
Getting all students “college- and career-ready” is the centerpiece for much of today’s education policy. Going back until at least the beginning of the Obama administration, the U.S. Department of Education has taken the lead on this by calling on all K-12 schools to measurably prepare students to succeed after...
One clear shift in thinking between the 2015 Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) and its predecessor, No Child Left Behind, is this: The ESSA prompts schools to use evidence-based interventions with students, particularly if those students qualify for Title 1 funding (intended to provide extra support to students living in...
