Rick Ginsberg and Yong Zhao want educators to question the status quo and clear out ineffective practices to make room for K-12 reforms that work. Their 2023 book, Duck and Cover: Confronting Dubious Practices in Education, Ginsberg and Zhao examine kindergarten readiness, college- and career-readiness, reading proficiency by 3rd grade, social and…

The coronavirus pandemic vividly illuminates deficiencies of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). The NGSS does not mention immunization, antibodies, vaccines, or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nor do they ask students to investigate a topic outside the standards or read a science-related book or article. The stated goal…

Polish education reforms begun in 1999 have helped dramatically raise that nation's performance on international examinations. Broad goals set by Poland's education ministry included improving the overall education level of Polish citizens, equity, and implementing national standards with local autonomy. As part of the new reforms, Poland required…

Two decades ago, at a time when much of the country faced looming teacher shortages, a number of states invested in comprehensive strategies for strengthening the teaching profession. For example, and drawing upon recommendations from the National Commission on Teaching & America's Future, both California and North Carolina built statewide…

The United States should not allow itself to be sucked into a competition against developing nations such as China, says Chinese-born American scholar Yong Zhao in an interview with Kappan. Instead, the U.S. should cling to and enhance the characteristics that have made it great, encouraging creativity, flexibility, and curiosity among its…

Plans by the National Council on Teacher Quality to rate all teacher preparation programs in the country and publish the results in "U.S. News & World Report" have been met with concern and skepticism, but also gained some converts. Proponents say the effort can only help teachers' colleges improve, while detractors say the methods and research…

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act will be coming up for reauthorization amid a number of contentious issues, and debates over these issues are likely to more heated leading up to the 2012 elections. If ESEA is to be renewed, the President must make it a high priority, Republicans will need to work with Democrats, and national education…

Teacher preparation and licensing are constantly under attack from both national and state policy makers. The extraordinary reporting requirements imposed on university-based teacher preparation programs through Title II of the Higher Education Act and the promotion of "alternative routes" to teacher licensure by the federal government…

The debate over the reauthorization of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) generally overlooks--or looks past--what may be the most fundamental flaw in that legislation. As the law is now written, decisions regarding what the young should know and be able to do are removed from the hands of parents and local community leaders and turned over to officials…

Parents, educators, political leaders--all Americans need the information contained in this article. But why this poll? First, it's not just a quick snapshot of public perception. Rather, it is a serious research tool, conducted annually, that allows Phi Delta Kappa (PDK) members and other educators and policy makers to track public opinion from…

The national guidelines for school library media programs clearly establish that the goal of the school library media specialist is to provide an instructional program that helps students and faculty become efficient and effective users of information. Along with running the library at a technical level as the program administrator, the school…

The preparation of teachers in any discipline is a complex enterprise with an array of stakeholders serving as gatekeepers. In the May "Kappan", Sam Wineburg focused his analysis of the preparation of social studies teachers on the curriculum standards of the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) and on the teacher preparation…