Charters and equity

A new report from the Walton Foundation finds charter schools on average receive less public money than traditional schools, reports Joy Resmovits for The Huffington Post. Yet many feel this funding gap isn't necessarily unfair, and the report's methodology masks fundamental differences between charter- and public-school populations. The report examined charter funding in 30 states and D.C., finding the disparity between public and charter…

U.S. testing: Are the stakes actually high?

High school students in the U.S. take many standardized tests, but how do these compare with those taken by teenagers around the world? asks Cory Turner of NPR. For instance, at the age of 16, almost every child in England takes between 15 to 20 substantial examinations, all part of one test, which determine whether they finish high school. Finland has a single standardized exam at the end of high school, but it…

Almost no one benefits from high-stakes testing

High-stakes testing in the District of Columbia is especially burdensome to low-performing schools, write Josie Malone and Wagma Mommandi, a sixth-year high school English Language Arts teacher and a fifth-year high school science teacher, in The Huffington Post. The DC CAS (Comprehensive Assessment System) does not show student growth, which is needed for schools to demonstrate actual progress achieved by…

Some educators, including those enthusiastic about the Common Core, have publicly worried about the effects of the standards on students already lagging, especially those still learning English, writes Pat Wingert for The Hechinger Report. Teachers fear the achievement gap between native speakers and English learners (ELLs) will widen, particularly where teachers have too little training and too few resources. The number of…