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Oregon schools are struggling to recover academic learning losses, according to a recent study from researchers at Harvard and Stanford. Brian A Jackson/Getty Images hide caption

Why Oregon schools' pandemic recovery lags behind much of the nation

April 1, 2024 • Oregon schools are struggling more than others across the country to recover academic learning losses. Experts say one likely reason is a lack of statewide consistency in tutoring interventions.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore speaks to reporters near the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 27, 2024 in Baltimore, Md. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images hide caption

Baltimore bridge collapse has put the spotlight on Maryland's young Black governor

March 30, 2024 • Since before the political newcomer was inaugurated, there has been speculation that Maryland Gov. Wes Moore wants to run for higher office. The bridge collapse could be his first major test.

The University of Idaho Marching Band, wearing Yale T-shirts, performs at the NCAA Tournament game between Yale and San Diego State in Spokane, Wash., on Sunday. The band has been honored in Connecticut for filling in as Bulldogs. Ted S. Warren/AP hide caption

Why the University of Idaho marching band members are heroes in Connecticut

March 29, 2024 • When Yale's marching band wasn't able to make it to March Madness, the Sound of Idaho stepped in — and went viral. A week later, Connecticut's governor proclaimed a "University of Idaho Day."

Starting Your Podcast: A Guide For Students

New to podcasting? Don't panic.

Student volunteers prepare two balloons for a morning launch in Cumberland, Md., as part of a nationwide project to study the April 8 eclipse. Meredith Rizzo for NPR hide caption

On eclipse day, hundreds of students will send up balloons for science

March 25, 2024 • The NASA-backed Nationwide Eclipse Ballooning Project puts students in charge of a bold scientific endeavor to study the April 8 total solar eclipse.

Second graders practice using solar eclipse glasses outside Winchester Village Elementary School in Indianapolis. Kaiti Sullivan for NPR hide caption

How an Indianapolis teacher is using the solar eclipse to inspire her students

March 25, 2024 • Indianapolis is one of several U.S. cities in the path of totality. For many students there, it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to witness – and be inspired by – a total solar eclipse.

Ed Department error may delay student financial aid further

March 24, 2024 • Students may have to wait even longer for their financial aid award letters due to an Education Department error

Parents wait for news about the kidnapped LEA Primary and Secondary School Kuriga students in Kuriga, Kaduna, Nigeria, on March 9, 2024. Nearly 300 schoolchildren abducted from their school in northwest Nigeria's Kaduna state have been released, the state governor said Sunday, March 24, more than two weeks after the children were seized from their school. Sunday Alamba/AP hide caption

Nearly 300 abducted Nigerian schoolchildren freed after over two weeks in captivity

March 24, 2024 • Nearly 300 kidnapped Nigerian schoolchildren have been released, more than two weeks after the children were seized from their school in the northwestern state of Kaduna and marched into the forests.

Senators meet in the senate chamber at the Statehouse, Thursday, Feb. 1, 2024, in Indianapolis. Darron Cummings/AP hide caption

New Indiana law requires professors to promote 'intellectual diversity' to keep tenure

March 22, 2024 • A new Indiana law requires professors to promote "intellectual diversity" to receive tenure. Critics worry the measure will dissuade academics from staying in the state.

Activists and students protest in front of the Supreme Court during a rally for student debt cancellation in Washington, D.C., in February 2023. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Biden cancels nearly $6 billion in student debt for public service workers

March 21, 2024 • Because of past administrative failures, the some 78,000 affected public service workers such as nurses and teachers never got the relief they were entitled to under the law, Biden said.

This year it's a slow crawl to financial aid packages for students

March 21, 2024 • Colleges are just beginning to receive long-overdue FAFSA data. Meanwhile, students who've been accepted to college still face weeks before they receive aid offers.

High school students taking part in the University of Washington's annual MisInfo Day earlier this month. They are looking at pictures of faces to tell whether the images were created with generative AI tools or authentic. Kim Malcolm/KUOW hide caption

Untangling Disinformation

Ai images and conspiracy theories are driving a push for media literacy education.

March 21, 2024 • One of the nation's best-known media literacy events for high school students is expanding as demand grows for skills to identify deepfake images and online conspiracy theories.

Throughline

The great textbook war.

March 21, 2024 • What is school for? Over a hundred years ago, a man named Harold Rugg published a series of textbooks that encouraged students to confront the thorniest parts of U.S. history: to identify problems, and try and solve them. And it was just as controversial as the fights we're seeing today. In this episode: a media mogul, a textbook author, and a battle over what students should – or shouldn't – learn in school.

Alabama governor signs anti-DEI law

Troy public radio.

March 20, 2024 • Another state has moved to how race can be discussed in schools and universities. Alabama's governor signed a law that would allow school staff to be terminated if they teach "divisive concepts."

Alabama lawmakers approved a bill barring public colleges and other entities from using money to support diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Google Maps/Screenshot by NPR hide caption

Alabama governor signs ban on DEI funds that restricts 'divisive concepts' in schools

March 20, 2024 • "Nothing in this act," the legislation states, ".... May be construed to inhibit or violate the First Amendment rights of any student or employee." But its opponents say it does just that.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images hide caption

Gov. Ron DeSantis' war on 'woke' appears to be losing steam in Florida

March 15, 2024 • A federal court recently blocked most of a key DeSantis measure, the Stop WOKE Act. Courts have ruled against a number of the governor's conservative initiatives.

Cadets salute during the graduation ceremony at the U.S. Military Academy in 2021. A change to West Point's mission statement has sparked outrage among some conservatives online. Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/AP hide caption

West Point axed 'duty, honor, country' from its mission statement. Conservatives fumed

March 14, 2024 • The three iconic words remain the motto of the U.S. military academy. But an update to its mission statement, where the words had appeared for 26 years, has sparked outrage among conservatives online.

Students finish their lunch at Lowell Elementary School in Albuquerque, N.M., on Aug. 22, 2023. A legislative proposal would ban six artificial food dyes in California schools. Susan Montoya Bryan/AP hide caption

Here are the concerns with artificial food dyes, as California weighs a ban in schools

March 14, 2024 • Six artificial food dyes and titanium dioxide would be banned in schools under a proposal in the state legislature. Critics say there isn't enough evidence to prove they're a health risk.

A University of Florida football game last fall. James Gilbert/Getty Images hide caption

NAACP urges Black athletes to avoid Florida public universities over anti-DEI policies

March 12, 2024 • The storied civil rights organization accused Gov. Ron DeSantis of having "waged war on Black America" by championing legislation to dismantle diversity and inclusion efforts at public schools.

Hackers are targeting a surprising group of people: young public school students

March 12, 2024 • Districts store all kinds of sensitive student data, which means the consequences of a school cyberattack can follow pupils well into adulthood. And it's not just their credit that's at risk.

After July 1, the University of Virginia and other public institutions in the state will no longer be able to give an admissions advantage to students who are connected to alums or donors. Daxia Rojas/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Virginia has banned legacy admissions at its public colleges

March 11, 2024 • The new law, which passed unanimously in the Virginia House and Senate, will take effect July 1.

One reason school cyberattacks are on the rise? Schools are easy targets for hackers

March 11, 2024 • School systems of every size have been hit by cyberattacks. "It's not Johnny in his room trying to break in and change his grades anymore," says one superintendent.

Now that Sarah Barnes' son, Samuel, 2, is enrolled in Head Start, it's lifted an extra stress off Barnes' shoulders. "It just makes life a little bit easier having child care right on campus," she says. "I can literally walk over here between classes and check on him." Anthony Francis for NPR hide caption

The new kids on campus? Toddlers, courtesy of Head Start

March 11, 2024 • And not just toddlers — infants and preschoolers too. A new effort aims to help the 4 million college students raising kids by putting Head Start programs on community college campuses.

Charlotte the pregnant stingray swims in her aquarium in Hendersonville, N.C. Lydia Wilson hide caption

Environment

A stingray named charlotte got pregnant — exactly how remains a mystery.

March 7, 2024 • The world is waiting for a stingray to give birth in the small town of Hendersonville, N.C. That's because it's not clear how she got pregrant, as there's no other stingray in the aquarium.

Leaders of some of America's most well-known journalism schools, which include Graciela Mochkofsky (from left), David Ryfe and Jelani Cobb, weigh in on the state of the news industry and how they are making sure students are prepared to enter a turbulent business. Daniel Mordzinski, David Ryfe, Jelani Cobb hide caption

Perspective

Is journalism disappearing these top educators have a lot to say about that.

March 7, 2024 • The leaders of six journalism schools discuss the ongoing media bloodbath, the cost of a journalism degree, and how to prepare journalists for the future.

Greater Good Science Center • Magazine • In Action • In Education

Parenting & Family Articles & More

Our best education articles of 2020, readers and editors pick the most interesting and insightful articles from the past year about teaching, learning, and the keys to well-being at school..

In February of 2020, we launched the new website Greater Good in Education , a collection of free, research-based and -informed strategies and practices for the social, emotional, and ethical development of students, for the well-being of the adults who work with them, and for cultivating positive school cultures. Little did we know how much more crucial these resources would become over the course of the year during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now, as we head back to school in 2021, things are looking a lot different than in past years. Our most popular education articles of 2020 can help you manage difficult emotions and other challenges at school in the pandemic, all while supporting the social-emotional well-being of your students.

In addition to these articles, you can also find tips, tools, and recommended readings in two resource guides we created in 2020: Supporting Learning and Well-Being During the Coronavirus Crisis and Resources to Support Anti-Racist Learning , which helps educators take action to undo the racism within themselves, encourage their colleagues to do the same, and teach and support their students in forming anti-racist identities.

Here are the 10 best education articles of 2020, based on a composite ranking of pageviews and editors’ picks.

Can the Lockdown Push Schools in a Positive Direction? , by Patrick Cook-Deegan: Here are five ways that COVID-19 could change education for the better.

How Teachers Can Navigate Difficult Emotions During School Closures , by Amy L. Eva: Here are some tools for staying calm and centered amid the coronavirus crisis.

Six Online Activities to Help Students Cope With COVID-19 , by Lea Waters: These well-being practices can help students feel connected and resilient during the pandemic.

Help Students Process COVID-19 Emotions With This Lesson Plan , by Maurice Elias: Music and the arts can help students transition back to school this year.

How to Teach Online So All Students Feel Like They Belong , by Becki Cohn-Vargas and Kathe Gogolewski: Educators can foster belonging and inclusion for all students, even online.

How Teachers Can Help Students With Special Needs Navigate Distance Learning , by Rebecca Branstetter: Kids with disabilities are often shortchanged by pandemic classroom conditions. Here are three tips for educators to boost their engagement and connection.

How to Reduce the Stress of Homeschooling on Everyone , by Rebecca Branstetter: A school psychologist offers advice to parents on how to support their child during school closures.

Three Ways to Help Your Kids Succeed at Distance Learning , by Christine Carter: How can parents support their children at the start of an uncertain school year?

How Schools Are Meeting Social-Emotional Needs During the Pandemic , by Frances Messano, Jason Atwood, and Stacey Childress: A new report looks at how schools have been grappling with the challenges imposed by COVID-19.

Six Ways to Help Your Students Make Sense of a Divisive Election , by Julie Halterman: The election is over, but many young people will need help understanding what just happened.

Train Your Brain to Be Kinder (video), by Jane Park: Boost your kindness by sending kind thoughts to someone you love—and to someone you don’t get along with—with a little guidance from these students.

From Othering to Belonging (podcast): We speak with john a. powell, director of the Othering & Belonging Institute, about racial justice, well-being, and widening our circles of human connection and concern.

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The Top 20 Education Next Articles of 2021

Education Next

Our annual look back at the year’s most popular Education Next articles is itself a popular article with readers. It’s useful as an indicator of what issues are at the top of the education policy conversation.

When we crafted the introduction to this list a year ago, for the top articles of 2020 , we observed, “This year, as our list indicates, race and the Covid-19 pandemic dominated the discussion.” Since then, a new president has been inaugurated, but our list signals that the public hasn’t entirely turned the page: both the pandemic and race-related issues attracted high reader interest in 2021, just as they did the year before.

Several articles directly or indirectly related to the pandemic and its effect made the top-20 list. The no. 1 article, “ Pandemic Parent Survey Finds Perverse Pattern: Students Are More Likely to Be Attending School in Person Where Covid Is Spreading More Rapidly ,” by Michael B. Henderson, Paul E. Peterson, and Martin R. West, reported on what the article called “a troubling pattern: students are most likely to be attending school fully in person in school districts where the virus is spreading most rapidly.” The article explained “To be clear, this pattern does not constitute evidence that greater use of in-person instruction has contributed to the spread of the virus across the United States. It is equally plausible that counties where in-person schooling is most common are places where there are fewer measures and practices in the wider community designed to mitigate Covid spread.”

Other articles whose findings related to the pandemic or had implications for education amid or after the pandemic included “ A Test for the Test-Makers ,” “ The Shrinking School Week ,” “ The Covid-19 Pandemic Is a Lousy Natural Experiment for Studying the Effects of Online Learning ” “ The Politics of Closing Schools ,” “ Addressing Significant Learning Loss in Mathematics During Covid-19 and Beyond ,” and “ Move To Trash: Five pandemic-era education practices that deserve to be dumped in the dustbin .”

Articles about race-related education issues also did well with readers. “ Critical Race Theory Collides with the Law ,” “ Teaching About Slavery ,” “ Ethnic Studies in California ,” and “ Segregation and Racial Gaps in Special Education ” all dealt with those topics.

Perhaps the conflicts over pandemic policies and Critical Race Theory helped provide a push for school choice. Choice—whether in the form of vouchers, scholarships, or charter schools—was the subject of several other articles that made the top 20 list, including “ School Choice Advances in the States ,” “ School Choice and the ‘Truly Disadvantaged,’ ” “ What’s Next in New Orleans ,” and “ Betsy DeVos and the Future of Education Reform .”

Who knows what 2022 will bring? We hope for our readers the year ahead is one of good health and of continued learning. We look forward to a time when pandemic-related articles no longer dominate our list.

The full Top 20 Education Next articles of 2021 list follows:

1. Pandemic Parent Survey Finds Perverse Pattern: Students Are More Likely to Be Attending School in Person Where Covid Is Spreading More Rapidly Majority of students receiving fully remote instruction; Private-school students more likely to be in person full time By Michael B. Henderson, Paul E. Peterson, and Martin R. West

2. Critical Race Theory Collides with the Law Can a school require students to “confess their privilege” in class? By Joshua Dunn

3. Teaching about Slavery “Asking how to teach about slavery is a little like asking why we teach at all” By Danielle Allen, Daina Ramey Berry, David W. Blight, Allen C. Guelzo, Robert Maranto, Ian V. Rowe, and Adrienne Stang

4. Ethnic Studies in California An unsteady jump from college campuses to K-12 classrooms By Miriam Pawel

5. Segregation and Racial Gaps in Special Education New evidence on the debate over disproportionality By Todd E. Elder, David Figlio, Scott Imberman, and Claudia Persico

6. Making Education Research Relevant How researchers can give teachers more choices By Daniel T. Willingham and David B. Daniel

7. Proving the School-to-Prison Pipeline Stricter middle schools raise the risk of adult arrests By Andrew Bacher-Hicks, Stephen B. Billings, and David J. Deming

8. What I Learned in 23 Years Ranking America’s Most Challenging High Schools Most students are capable of much more learning than they are asked to do By Jay Mathews

9. A Test for the Test Makers College Board and ACT move to grow and diversify as the pandemic fuels test-optional admissions trend By Jon Marcus

10. Addressing Significant Learning Loss in Mathematics During Covid-19 and Beyond The pandemic has amplified existing skill gaps, but new strategies and new tech could help By Joel Rose

11. The Shrinking School Week Effects of a four-day schedule on student achievement By Paul N. Thompson

12. Computer Science for All? As a new subject spreads, debates flare about precisely what is taught, to whom, and for what purpose By Jennifer Oldham

13. The Covid-19 Pandemic Is a Lousy Natural Experiment for Studying the Effects of Online Learning Focus, instead, on measuring the overall effects of the pandemic itself By Andrew Bacher-Hicks and Joshua Goodman

14. School Choice Advances in the States Advocates describe “breakthrough year” By Alan Greenblatt

15. The Politics of Closing Schools Teachers unions and the Covid-19 pandemic in Europe By Susanne Wiborg

16. Move to Trash Five pandemic-era education practices that deserve to be dumped in the dustbin By Michael J. Petrilli

17. School Choice and “The Truly Disadvantaged” Vouchers boost college going, but not for students in greatest need By Albert Cheng and Paul E. Peterson

18. The Orchid and the Dandelion New research uncovers a link between a genetic variation and how students respond to teaching. The potential implications for schools—and society—are vast. By Laurence Holt

19. What’s Next in New Orleans The Louisiana city has the most unusual school system in America. But can the new board of a radically decentralized district handle the latest challenges? By Danielle Dreilinger

20. Betsy DeVos and the Future of Education Reform My years as assistant secretary of education gave me a firsthand look at how infighting among education reformers is hampering progress toward change. By Jim Blew

Congratulations to all of our authors!

— Education Next

P.S. You can find the Top 20 Education Next articles of 2020 here , 2019 here , 2018 here , 2017 here , 2016 here , 2015 here , 2014 here and 2013 here .

P.P.S. You can find the Top 10 Education Next blog posts of 2021 here.

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Spring 2024.

Vol. 24, No. 2

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