This week, at the Education Nation Summit, the Center for Education Reform (CER) released a nationwide poll demonstrating that Americans increasingly support more accountability for students and schools, and more power for parents.

Today, the College Board, a New York organization responsible for administering the SAT, released the average data for the 1.6 million student test-takers. In addition to a drop of about 4,400 students, the SAT revealed little to no improvements from the class of 2012, with a mere 43% of students proving they are college-ready.

As the new school year creeps closer, so does the timeline for implementation of the Common Core-aligned state assessments.  In fact, in New York state, they’ve already been implemented.

Our great nation is known for the constant pursuit of equality and for “offering every citizen “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” In education, while there is an increasing focus on minority achievement, especially for African American and Hispanic students, few people are acknowledging the growing disparity in gender achievement in the United States.

Washington, D.C. Councilmember David Catania recently became head of the Committee on Education in the District. He plans to use his new position to implement "Reform 2.0," a roadmap that includes money for low income students, specific attention to those at risk of dropping out, and a revamp of vocational programs. Schools in our Nation's Capital are often considered some of the poorest performing in the country. Mr. Catania designed his initiatives to combat issues facing all urban school districts.

The Texas House of Representatives recently approved HB5, which would restructure the state's high school graduation requirements, reducing the number of end-of-course exams from fifteen to five and eliminating the requirement that these tests comprise 15% of students' overall grade.

According to state statistics compiled by the New York Times, new teacher evaluation systems are yielding mixed results. Educators in states including Michigan, Florida, and Tennessee have seen effectiveness rates at 97% or higher. While the numbers are exciting, the figures also warrant further investigation into whether these evaluation systems are providing teachers with meaningful feedback.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, racial minorities are expected to be the majority by 2050. This historic shift is already being felt in our nation's schools as close to half of all children under age 5 are classified as racial or ethnic minorities. Despite these changing demographics, a recent study by American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, found that 82% of teachers receiving education degrees in the last two years were white.   Continue Reading...

Digital Learning Now! (DLN) recently released the 2012 Digital Learning Report Card, a measurement of effective digital learning practices in all 50 states. The report highlights both recent advancements in digital learning and calls for states to modernize public education for the next generation of learners.

Welcome to the Association of American Educators' online biweekly publication, Reform Matters. This education reform-focused publication features both original AAE content and a compilation of the latest news from the growing education reform community.

According to a new study by the Center on Education Policy and Workforce Competitiveness at the University of Virginia, researchers can pinpoint teacher effectiveness based on data from the early stages of their careers. The data raises serious questions about a teacher's ability to improve after a few years in the classroom. 

As experts explore the idea of extending the number of hours in a school year, the idea of starting classes later may seem counterintuitive. However, recent studies suggest that starting high school later is actually more conducive to learning for students. 

Yesterday, AAE staff had the pleasure of attending a forum on President Obama's universal pre-school plan. The discussion was lead by Sara Mead, associate partner at Education Partners and former director of the Early Education Initiative at the New American Foundation, and Grover J "Russ" Whitehurst, director of the Brown Center on Education Policy and the Brookings Institution and former director of the Institute for Education Sciences. 

With sequestration, or automatic federal budget cuts, beginning to take effect, legislators and education advocates are struggling to come to terms with new financial realities.

There is no doubt that the shift to Common Core will bring about a change in not only how instruction is delivered, but also in the way schools operate. In order to meet some of the goals of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), schools will have to shift some of their practices. Individual schools will approach the challenges differently, but there are some universal changes that good schools should implement.

We are thrilled to unveil the new AAE Professional Development Calendar! Housed on the AAE website, the Professional Development Calendar aims to be a comprehensive listing of high-quality professional development opportunities that our members can participate in.

Many people view cursive writing as analogous to a spare tire, it's not completely necessary but it's definitely a good tool to have in your repertoire. However, the Idaho State Board of Education highly values cursive, enough, in fact, to make it a requirement for Idaho schools. The measure passed with a recent vote in the Senate. 

Welcome to the Association of American Educators' online biweekly publication, Reform Matters. This education reform-focused publication features both original AAE content and a compilation of the latest news from the growing education reform community.

Teachers in the classroom today all remember being issued their textbooks in grade school year after year. Immediately outdated content accompanied by the occasional pencil drawing have been standard issue for generations. With the dawn of new technologies, textbook publishers are rushing to meet the needs of a new generation of students.