In 2022, 8% of all 4th grade black or African American students in Wisconsin scored proficient or advanced in reading on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP, 2023). As disparities in achievement are perpetuated across the state of Wisconsin as well as the nation, it is becoming increasingly important for elementary principals to…

Career and technical educators have a critical role to play in addressing occupational segregation. The gender equity provisions that are an important part of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 (Perkins V) can help open doors for more women and girls to pursue more equitable pathways to the good jobs generated by…

Anti-scientific attitudes can impose substantial costs on societies. Can schools be an important agent in mitigating the propagation of such attitudes? This paper investigates the effect of the content of science education on anti-scientific attitudes, knowledge, and choices. The analysis exploits staggered reforms that reduce or expand the…

Also known as The Nation's Report Card, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is the largest nationally representative and continuing assessment of student achievement and their learning experiences in various subjects for the nation, states, and 27 urban districts. The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is currently…

COVID-19 gave the country a crash course in public health data. It underscored the value of data that can support well-informed, timely action in a crisis. Good data are just as important for education systems in crisis. Schools and districts have been struggling to reach and educate students safely. Students who were disproportionately…

After the pandemic, many students returned to the classroom behind on reading, as shown by data in the National Assessment for Educational Progress (NAEP). Those students are now adolescents and approaching a critical turning point in their education: They are expected to read with greater independence. For students who are still struggling to…

The middle grades mathematics classroom is full of transitions that students must overcome to become successful long-term learners of mathematics. This transition can be exorbitantly more tumultuous for Black girls who must overcome gender and racial mathematics achievement stereotypes. Mathematics identities and achievement socialization trends…

School choice programs such as vouchers and charter schools expand lower cost schooling options for families. We examine how these expansions affect the prevalence of homeschooling. School choice programs may reduce homeschooling if parents that otherwise would have homeschooled their children instead use a school choice program. Homeschooling may…

Ambitious federal goals for preparing students for careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields require coordinated efforts and supports for the country's science instructors. Increased attention to the needs of science instructors and the provision of supports to address those needs are particularly important in…

Despite the consistent policy focus on diversifying the teacher workforce, this workforce still fails to reflect the diversity of the student body in U.S. public schools. Dan Goldhaber, Roddy Theobald, and Christopher Tien examine the theoretical arguments and empirical evidence supporting the importance of teacher workforce diversity. They…

New York State's system of public elementary and secondary schools is in steep decline, but it is salvageable. The roots of its problems pre-date the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, but the system's response to that challenge accelerated discontent with the schools and harmed students. The damage of those years will not be undone if…

This essay articulates the benefits of teacher diversity by illustrating six themes: a) leading for social justice through local and global civic engagement; b) developing an inclusive school culture; c) culturally relevant pedagogy; d) cultural translators and transformers; e) role models; and (f) benefits accrued by White students. The authors…

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is an integral measure of academic progress over time. It is the largest nationally representative and continuing assessment of what our nation's students know and can do in various subjects such as civics, mathematics, reading, science, technology and engineering literacy, U.S. history, and…

The vast majority of American students are neither prepared nor sufficiently engaged to become science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)-literate citizens or innovative STEM professionals (National Research Council, 2007; Carnegie Corporation and the Institute for Advanced Study, 2009; National Science Board [NSB], 2010; President's…

Giving parents and students the ability to choose their school is promoted by supporters as the key to improving American education overall. On the surface, the idea has great appeal. Who, after all, opposes having choices? Indeed, both Democratic and Republican policymakers, including President Trump, have embraced school choice as a reform…