Weekend To-Do List

8/3 - 8/4

and

Aug 03, 2024

1. Kamala’s Vision

READ/LISTEN: After Vice President Kamala Harris appeared before the American Federation of Teachers at its national convention last week and pledged her loyalty to the teachers union, Kevin Mahnken at The 74 did a deep dive into Harris’ prior stances on education issues to better understand the vision for education she could set forth as part of her presidential campaign. Mahnken also spoke with Fordham Institute President Michael Petrilli, who noted the Democratic Party’s lack of a clear roadmap on education offers Harris an opportunity to appeal to the center:

“You’ve got Republicans, who have moved away from public education reform into just talking about private school choice, and the Democrats are mostly just talking about more money,” Petrilli said. “That does leave a lot of the playing field open.”

Read more here. I also talked with New York Times opinion columnist Pamela Paul about why Harris should set forth a new vision for K-12 education on the latest episode of Lost Debate. Listen here.

2. Give AI Time

READ/LISTEN: Doug Lynch and Elizabeth Graswich took to the pages of EdSource to call on AI doomsdayers and acolytes alike to pause before making major proclamations about the impact the emerging technology could have on education. Lynch and Graswich reminded readers that artificial intelligence has existed in the classroom for years:

AI for learning is simply software that harnesses data to support or replace human activities to help people understand, experience or conceptualize the world around them. It is a learning technology. In economics, we think of technology as something that enhances the productivity of the process. A learning technology is simply anything that makes learning cheaper, better, faster or simpler to produce.

Read more here. You can also listen to my latest interview with Sal Khan on this week’s episode of Lost Debate and hear Chris and Kate debate how much AI’s impact on the workforce should influence school curricula on this week’s episode of The Citizen Stewart Show.

3. Where Did the Special Educators Go?

READ: The number of students receiving special education services from 1999-2000 to 2020-21 rose by 16%, while the number of teachers serving in special education roles rose by 59%. So why do 80% of states report a shortage of special education teachers? Chad Aldeman dug into the data in his latest piece for Education Next and found a supply-demand mismatch that he argues can only be solved by doing more to keep special educators in the classroom:

Currently, only about one in seven districts offer financial incentives to recruit or retain teachers in any hard-to-staff jobs, which means that, in many districts, special education teachers earn nearly identical compensation as other teachers. Even among large urban districts, which are more likely than other districts to offer stipends and other salary differentials, the National Council on Teacher Quality found that less than half (43 percent) offered a financial incentive for special educators.

4. The Biden-Harris Administration Does Have an Education Agenda

READ/LISTEN: Chris Stewart took to the pages of his substack to argue that the Biden-Harris administration’s Improving Student Achievement Agenda, while solid and evidence-based, lacks the vision and substance needed to effectively support students:

Maybe it’s unfair to say he’s doing nothing. The president and his administration are doing plenty. They’re pouring resources into classrooms, but there's a big hole in their plan. They focus on support around the classroom but not enough on what happens inside it. Education is about teaching and learning. Afterschool programs, tutoring, mental health services, and parent engagement are all great.
But let's get back to basics. Teaching and learning.

Read more here, and listen to Chris share more of his thoughts on the topic during this week’s episode of The Citizen Stewart Show.

5. New Title IX Rules Roll Out…Sort Of

READ: The Biden-Harris administration’s new Title IX regulations went into effect Thursday, but only in 24 states. The rest of the states are embroiled in lawsuits around the latest rules aimed at protecting transgender, gay, and lesbian students from discrimination. Title IX administrators have been scrambling as a result of the patchwork implementation:

“Our members are absolutely freaking out,” said Brett Sokolow, chair of the Association of Title IX Administrators. He said schools were ready to shift into compliance with the new rules on Thursday, including announcements to their communities, but may not know whether to move ahead. “You’re still in a position where it’s somewhat unclear.”

Read more from Laura Meckler at The Washington Post here.

6. Students Say Speech Can Be Violence

READ: A new survey from the Knight Foundation polled more than 1,600 college students and found that seven in 10 students say speech can be just as damaging as physical violence. The Foundation called the finding an emergency:

"2024 marks a crisis for free speech on college campuses as international conflicts, like the war in Gaza, and domestic strife come to a head, bringing urgent political and personal issues to center stage," the report states. "With campuses cracking down on protests, political leaders casting a questioning eye on the decisions of university administrators, and emerging technology making disinformation easier and faster to produce, the position of higher education as a forum for open discussion has never been more crucial or imperiled."

Read more from Emma Camp in Reason here.

7. Oklahoma Will Require Public Schools to Teach the Bible

READ/LISTEN: U.S. Senator Chris Murphy wants to infuse four billion dollars into summer programming over the next four years as part of ongoing efforts to address academic and social gaps kicked off by the COVID-19 pandemic. Murphy says the the Summer For All Act is critical for young people:

“Outside experiences, adventure experiences, summer experiences, where you get to improve and enhance your socialization skills, where you get to have your mind opened to new possibilities, new hobbies, new interests — it’s necessary. It’s life changing and often it’s life saving,” Murphy said. “It’s a tough time to be a kid. It’s a tough time to be a parent. So, we have to make sure that when our kids leave school for the summer, they don’t lose access to learning and socialization.”

Read more from Jessika Harkay at The 74 here, and listen to Keri, Ariel, Bernita, and Tafshier discuss the latest in all things summer on this week’s episode of The National Parents Union Podcast.