OTHER STORIES

Few Books Are Tailored for Older Struggling Readers: ‘It’s an Absolute Wasteland’

EdWeek

More Than Half of Teens Use Chatbots for Schoolwork, Survey Finds

NYTimes

FAQs: Checking in on the Department of Education

Brookings

Universal Pre-K Is a Hot Policy Idea. But What About Kindergarten?

EdSurge

Should Schools Teach This Life Path Some Say Avoids Poverty?

WPost

Redesigning IES

A long-awaited report says that the U.S. Department of Education’s research arm needs to be overhauled with a focus on making its products leaner, more relevant, and timelier. The report calls for the agency to take a more coherent approach to its work focused on key priorities—ending the way IES’ four internal “centers,” or divisions, work, which has traditionally been in a fairly independent, balkanized fashion. The report also contends NCES is slow to release results and that many of its collections are outdated, and it criticizes the Regional Educational Laboratories. It is unclear whether a drastically-reduced Ed. Dept. staff can carry out the report’s suggestions. EdWeek, Chalkbeat

STEM Workforce

The STEM teacher workforce is facing strong headwinds as the pipeline of new teachers has been struggling to meet demand. Yet, STEM teacher qualifications and turnover rates in high-need settings have remained surprisingly stable over three decades, despite these increasing staffing pressures. Targeted interventions, including the Noyce program, have helped shore up the STEM workforce in high-need settings. However, there remains a gap between the qualifications of STEM teachers in high-need schools and those in low-need schools. And many teachers have degrees that are not in the STEM subject they actually teach. This suggests that more substantial financial incentives are needed to ensure a good distribution of teaching talent. Brookings

Microschools

In recent years, public “microschools” have begun popping up. At a microschool in Indiana called Nature’s Gift, there are just 64 kids in grades kindergarten through 12th. They are taught by three licensed teachers and several class guides who provide extra support. Students often engage in online schoolwork, supported by guides, as well as group instruction time with a teacher. This model has been used by charter groups to provide a local education option in rural areas. But public school districts are looking to adopt the microschool model to address decreasing enrollment and a desire among parents for flexibility. Hechinger