General

Remote Learning: What’s a Parent to Do?

By Claire Cronin /

In this blog we hear from some our team members and partners who are parents with school-aged children about their experiences supporting remote learning. Only 65% of states provide specific guidance on how to support parents during remote learning. We see from these examples that by working together families are resilient.

Read More

Local and National Advocates Helped Drive the Computer Science Movement

By Mark Johnson /

Today we released a preliminary report on how local and national policy entrepreneurs created an environment that was favorable to the landmark decision by the Chicago Public Schools to enact a computer science graduation requirement.

Read More

Freedom College – Update on A Program to Address Chronically Low-Performing Schools

By Steven McGee /

Two years ago this month, I published a proposal to develop a college that would offer a degree completion program for inner-city community college graduates to get certified to teach in their neighborhood schools. I have spent the last two-years developing a business plan, talking to many potential funders, and examining the regulatory hurdles. It…

Read More

Crumbs From Your Table

By Steven McGee /

Today I received an email from a wonderful colleague and teacher at Hancock High School in Chicago. I have worked with the science faculty at Hancock for the last six years on a variety of projects to improve student learning in science. During that time, the school has seen significant growth in student outcomes. Last…

Read More

Pressing for Reform: What Ecology Can Teach Us About School Reform

By Steven McGee /

On September 21, 1998, Hurricane George struck the island of Puerto Rico as a Category 3 hurricane. It caused $2 billion in property damage. It also caused immense devastation to the El Yunque rainforest, which is one Puerto Rico’s most popular attractions and has been designated as a United Nations Biosphere Reserve. The picture on…

Read More

Faith and Reason in Educational Reform

By Steven McGee /

This month, I attended the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA). It is a gathering of around 15,000 educational researchers, who present and discuss the latest research findings from all areas of education. The theme of the conference this year was “The Power of Education Research for Innovation in Practice and Policy.”…

Read More