There have been plenty of takes since last week's #NAEP results showed 12th graders performing at the lowest reading level since the test launched in 1992. This analysis from @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social is esp. disconcerting: that cohort had achieved NAEP’s highest 4th-grade reading scores. #edusky

The cohort of students who scored at record-low levels in 12th grade reading were part of the same generation of kids who scored at record-high levels in 4th grade. So what happened? fordhaminstitute.org/national/com...

An example of remedial education done right, courtesy of the U.S. military. Once these recruits couldn't make the cut. Now they make up a quarter of Army troops. www.usatoday.com/story/news/p...

It's solo @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social on the Gadfly, but if you want some good arguments for phone bans (the scant evidence is a bit mixed, but as parent, I'm 100% that we ought to have them) listen in! fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...

ICYMI, most teachers HATE so-called "equitable grading," especially the "gifty fifty." www.the74million.org/article/a-th...

I, too, am very skeptical that through-year assessments are the right solution to concerns about accountability.

In yesterday's SCHOOLED, my take on through-year assessments in Texas, plus edu-opinions from @cedr.bsky.social @karenvaites.bsky.social @chadaldeman.bsky.social @marcportermagee.bsky.social & more: substack.com/home/post/p-...

Yet another reason for y'all on the left to hate standardized tests (especially difficult ones).

Citizenship Tests Could Be About To Get Much Harder. Here’s What You Need to Know time.com/7315217/citi...

Today's must read: A sweeping and insightful overview from @bostoncollege.bsky.social 's Shep Melnick. Trump’s Civil Rights Agenda Comes for Public Schools www.educationnext.org/trumps-civil...

The solution to the new teacher-affordable-housing crisis? Roommates! www.pew.org/en/research-... @pewresearch.org @cedr.bsky.social @palan57.bsky.social @larryferlazzo.bsky.social

LIVE #LearningTuesday sessions return on 9/2 w/ a vital discussion on the fed role in education w/ John King; Margaret Spellings; Adam Gamoran of @wtgrantfdn.bsky.social ; @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social of Fordham Institute; Ruth López Turley of Kinder Institute for Urban Research

So much to say on this! Let me begin with a rant based on an offhand remark that @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social made about emails/texts from schools: "too much is better than too little." I do not believe this to be true! fordhaminstitute.org/national/res... 1/n

Some good discussion with @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social here, including on district finances and teacher compensation. fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...

{new} Join us TOMORROW for a webinar on the education research we need for the future: eduprogress.org/building-a-n...

Plenty of schools have no-zeroes policies. And most teachers hate it, a new survey finds www.chalkbeat.org/2025/08/20/m... @chalkbeat.org @kalynbelsha.bsky.social

Does where you go to high school affect whether you vote as an adult? My working paper estimating high school effects on civic engagement is now posted on Annenberg: edworkingpapers.com/ai25-1260.

Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters wants to take us all back to Lake Wobegon fordhaminstitute.org/national/com...

As @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social says, it's a "education reform-climate change double header" on the Gadfly. I love that @matthewakraft.com is swinging for the fences on the big issues and the discussion that gets into the thorny politics of climate change. fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...

🌎Climate change is an urgent education policy issue🎓 I make the case about why teaching about climate science and investing in resilient, sustainable schools is smart education policy on Fordham's Education Gadfly podcast w/ @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...

This can't be good for learning.

Conscientiousness is collapsing.

This is great news for kids and families, and should boost student achievement over time, too.

GOOD NEWS FOR A CHANGE Divorce Is Down, Family Stability Is Up www.aei.org/articles/is-...

I agree that politics/local school boards often gets in the way of student achievement), and making the right metric (student growth) more transparent to people in elections (change off year elections) seems sensible, but not sure we should expect big gains. Vlad, we need more ideas!

Bret Stephens is right, as much as I hate to admit it: Not everything Trump does is bad. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/29/o...

Terrific convo w/ Vlad Kogan about his new book: No Adult Left Behind. I got an early look at the book and it's terrific! A few more thoughts 👇👇👇 fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...

Analysis: How do kids in top-spending states perform on the NAEP? Not as well as you'd think. @chadaldeman.bsky.social reports

Gotta be on Team Read To Your Kids. Gotta be.

"School violence is often just seen as student to student. We need to expand that definition to include student to staff,” one former principal said.

OPINION: If we are serious about improving student outcomes, we can’t treat teacher retention as an afterthought, write Linda Darling-Hammond & @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social for @hechingerreport.org. hechingerreport.org/opinion-here...

An unexpected byline, and an excellent argument!

Linda Darling Hammond and me in the @hechingerreport.org: Here’s how we hold on to experienced teachers: Give them the support they need If we are serious about improving student outcomes, we can’t treat teacher retention as an afterthought hechingerreport.org/opinion-here...

The pandemic drove chronic absenteeism rates sky high. In Massachusetts and elsewhere, kids still aren't showing up to learn. But there are solutions! The @bostonglobe.com reviews ideas for getting kids back to school. www.bostonglobe.com/2025/07/26/m...

Charter school authorizers like Fordham don't say no to proposed charters because we fear innovation. It's because some proposals are just bad. 🎧 Watch or listen now: fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...

One thing I don't understand about the politics here is that if the state has a lot of latitude over what the scholarships can be used for it seems like a savvy governor might be able to find ways to hand out scholarships that don't involve anybody leaving public schools and/or that subsidize TPSs.

Trump’s school choice initiative puts Democratic governors in a bind fordhaminstitute.org/national/com...

Hey Bay Area peeps, TUNE IN at 9 am pacific to @kqedforum.bsky.social for an episode on the dismantling of the Department of Education, with @jilltucker.bsky.social Noliwe Rooks & yours truly. www.kqed.org/forum/201010... @kqednews.kqed.org @alexanderrusso.bsky.social

@michaelpetrilli.bsky.social is flying solo again on the Gadfly in this riff on school choice & regulation. I'm a fan of these episodes that show internal (to Mike) thoughts/debates. They show that an advocate label on an issue can miss a lot of nuance. fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...

New Federal Tax Credit Boosts School Choice—but Blue States Face Big Decision Governors will now decide whether to accept private-school tuition subsidies wsj.com/us-news/educ... @mattbarnum.bsky.social

My recent article with @joshua-goodman.com on Massachusetts school enrollment shifts was discussed on the Education Gadfly Show! They also highlight @aefplivehandbook.bsky.social, a resource full of rigorous work in education policy. Highly recommend the listen! fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...

OK, I'll admit it, it was a real thrill to speak with @ailsachang.bsky.social on NPR's All Things Considered last night. Give it a listen! www.npr.org/2025/07/15/n...

11 thoughts about the massive layoffs at the U.S. Department of Education fordhaminstitute.org/national/com... (From March, but it holds up, and is of course newly relevant.)

Democrats’ School Choice Dilemma The Medicaid expansion put GOP governors in a tough spot. Republicans have flipped the script. www.wsj.com/opinion/demo...

The Predictive Power of Standardized Tests Middle-school scores preview college and career outcomes educationnext.org/predictive-p... @jenjennings.bsky.social @mpolikoff.bsky.social @cedr.bsky.social

Interested in recent changes in public school enrollment patterns but don't have time to read? Here's the podcast version, via @educationnext.bsky.social: Apple podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/e... Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/26fO... SoundCloud: soundcloud.com/education-ex...

Huge news Senate parliamentarian nixes school voucher program from tax bill www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

A type of "enrollment decline" worth celebrating! @cedr.bsky.social @jenjennings.bsky.social @larryferlazzo.bsky.social @joshua-goodman.com

America’s Incarceration Rate Is About to Fall Off a Cliff Long sentences and recidivism kept prison populations high for decades, but prisons are now starting to empty. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...

It was the "full @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social" on the Gadfly today! I enjoyed hearing Mike wrestle w/ some of concerns about choice (I too have mixed feelings) + it's good to be reminded that there was a time when the country made pretty ed good progress. 👇 fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...