public schools
Report: Decline in teachers with traditional education degrees linked to growth in charter schools
As charter schools proliferate across America, there has been a corresponding decline in the number of new teachers earning bachelor’s degrees in education from traditional educator preparation programs, according to a new study from the National Center for Research on Education Access and Choice (REACH). Researchers Doug Harris, the national director of REACH, and Mary Penn, a research partner at the center, found that for every 10% increase in charter school enrollment...
Legislative committee hears from national expert on building and keeping a strong, diverse teacher workforce
Lowering standards to attract people of color to the teaching profession is bad policy, a national education expert told state lawmakers on Monday. Heather Peske, president of the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ), said that relaxing standards for passing licensure exams “perpetuates the myth that racial diversity is equivalent to less skill.”
Schools and state health officials should go beyond CDC guidelines to ensure continued access to in-person learning
As students returned to school across North Carolina this week, school leaders are facing a daunting challenge: how to academically support students knocked off track by the pandemic while still navigating an ongoing COVID pandemic that puts student and staff health in jeopardy. This critical challenge is heightened by lack of strong guidance from the […]
Successful public schools: More than just providers of a sound basic education
What is the purpose of a public school system? Twenty-five years ago, in its landmark Leandro ruling, the North Carolina Supreme Court held that the purpose was, at a minimum, to provide every child in this state with the opportunity to obtain a “sound basic education.” This week, the court will hear a new round of arguments (and presumably, attempt to fashion a permanent solution) in that same, seemingly never-ending case.
Who decides on ‘sound basic’ spending? Stay tuned
Like it or not – and there are plenty of reasons to worry amid the familiar end-of-summer bursts of excitement – another school year will soon get under way. The pressures on our public schools are immense as kids’ setbacks during the pandemic come into focus, as teacher vacancies spike, and as the schools become […]
NC legislative proposal would dramatically overhaul how North Carolina governs its public schools
GOP sponsors push for an elected state school board, but Democrats warn against further politicizing public education A bill that would require State Board of Education members to be elected is a “horrible idea” that could exacerbate the state’s growing partisan divide over public schools, says June Atkinson, a former state Superintendent of Public Instruction. Atkinson’s remarks are in response to questions about House Bill 1173, Republican-backed legislation that would put the question of whether to elect state board members before voters as part of a referendum.
‘It’s not a religious service’: Are prayers after football games harmless?
The headlines blared and the news was treated as a thunderbolt, something cataclysmic. A ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court backed a Washington state high school football coach who had been fired for participating in a prayer with his team on the field at a public school. The Supreme Court’s conservative wing ruled the coach […]
New bill would provide schools with free feminine hygiene products, exempt them from state sales tax
A new bill would exempt sales tax on feminine hygiene products and make them free in public schools through a recurring grant program, Rep. Julie von Haefen, the primary bill sponsor said Tuesday. At a press conference at the General Assembly, students and legislators explained how the measure could help families afford feminine hygiene products, […]
Critics say new NC school bill is not needed, will hurt LGBTQ students
The state Senate is set to begin debating proposed legislation that would require schools to tell parents if their children want to change their pronouns or seek counseling, and would ban teaching about sexual orientation and gender identity in K-3 classrooms. The provisions are part of a larger measure that Republican sponsors say would make […]
Census Bureau: NC near the bottom nationally in per-pupil spending
Report reveals the toll that a decade of disinvestment has taken According to a new report from the U.S. Census Bureau, North Carolina continues to lag near the bottom of the pack (44th) nationally when it comes to per-pupil spending on K-12 schools. In 2020, North Carolina spent $9,958 per student on public education — […]
The last best chance for North Carolina’s public schools
A few years ago, I reserved a room at the North Carolina Association of Educators Building in Raleigh for a large public luncheon. When our team arrived a half hour before the event to get set up, however, we encountered a troubling surprise. To our alarm, we discovered that there had been a scheduling mix-up and the large room in question was occupied by a sizable assemblage of teachers who were in town for some kind of training session. Tables, chairs, and materials were scattered across the room. What to do?
The best editorial of the weekend: Polling confirms that there’s still lots of hope for our public schools
To hear denizens of the political right pontificate, you’d think that there was an overwhelming national wave of parental anger and dissatisfaction inundating America’s public education system. You’ve no doubt seen the stories of rowdy school board meetings featuring paranoid complaints about critical race theory and, God forbid, books with actual LGBTQ characters. Turns out, […]