There was once a time when America’s lowest-performing students were improving just as much as the country’s top students. Despite their low scores, these students at the bottom made slow but steady gains on national tests for much of the 2000s. It was one sign that the U.S. education system was working, perhaps not spectacularly,…
The Trump administration has been resolute in its bid to axe the Department of Education since taking office. At times labeling it a “con job” and at others holding it accountable for the dwindling academic standards—even in innovation hubs like Silicon Valley—Trump has repeatedly signaled his intent to dismantle the department. With the recent decision…
FILE – An American flag hangs in a classroom as students work on laptops in Newlon Elementary School, in Denver, Aug. 25, 2020. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File) The Trump administration has already garnered fame for raising eyebrows with its far-reaching policy alterations. The abrupt halt of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Long-Term Trend…
Linda McMahon, a sports entertainment mogul and longtime booster of President Trump, will face lawmakers on Thursday for the beginning of confirmation hearings as she seeks to lead the Department of Education. A former executive of World Wrestling Entertainment, Ms. McMahon has been tapped to run an agency in the middle of intense upheaval, whose…
In the latest release of federal test scores, educators had hoped to see widespread recovery from the learning loss incurred during the Covid-19 pandemic. Instead, the results, from last year’s National Assessment of Educational Progress, tell a grim tale, especially in reading: The slide in achievement has only continued. The percentage of eighth graders who…