story Archives

What happens after the U.S. Department of Education is dissolved?

December 31, 2025 by Dr. Yuvraj Verma, Bessemer City Middle School and William Howard Taft University

Advocates for dismantling the Department of Education argue for local control and efficiency, while critics highlight risks to equity, access.

In light of Donald Trump assuming a second presidential term in 2025, conversations concerning dismantling the United States Department of Education have resurfaced.

DEIA (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Access)

DEI in education: Pros and cons

December 24, 2025 by Dr. Yuvraj Verma, Bessemer City Middle School and William Howard Taft University

Positive DEI efforts in education include thoughtful and inclusive implementation strategies that promote equity and inclusion for all.

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives have become integral to educational institutions across the United States. DEI aims to foster environments where all students can thrive regardless of…

Edtech Trends

Edtech teaching strategies that support sustainability

December 23, 2025 by Sam Bowman, Contributing Writer

Integrating edtech learning strategies into classrooms brings sustainability and enhanced learning experiences to the forefront.

Educational technology, or edtech, has reshaped how educators teach, offering opportunities to create more sustainable and impactful learning environments.

AI in Education

Grading student work with AI: What we lose when AI replaces teachers

December 22, 2025 by Dennis Magliozzi & Kristina Peterson, University of New Hampshire's Writers Academy

Our students don’t write to impress a rubric--they write to be heard, and using AI to grade student writing misses the mark.

A colleague of ours recently attended an AI training where the opening slide featured a list of all the ways AI can revolutionize our classrooms. Grading was listed…

District Management

Chronic absenteeism could derail K-12 education

December 19, 2025 by Joe Philleo, Edia

When communities unite to battle chronic absenteeism and make school attendance a priority, students receive the support they need to succeed

The biggest problem in education is that kids aren’t showing up to school. Last year, 26 percent of students missed a month of class or more, leading to…

AI in Education

An educator’s top tips to integrate AI into the classroom

December 18, 2025 by Hanna Kemble-Mick, Indian Hills Elementary

If used wisely, AI can extend educators’ reach, personalize impact, and unlock students’ potential for future success.

In the last year, we’ve seen an extraordinary push toward integrating artificial intelligence in classrooms. Among educators, that trend has evoked responses from optimism to opposition.

Teaching Trends

Plenty of schools have no-zeroes policies. And most teachers hate it, a new survey finds

October 17, 2025 by Kalyn Belsha, Chalkbeat

Many schools are rethinking what students should have to do to get a high school diploma, and how well no-zero policies work.

About one in four teachers say their schools don’t give students zeroes. And nearly all of them hate it.

District Management

I asked students why they go to school–this answer changed how I design campuses

November 7, 2025September 30, 2025 by Enrico Giori, Chalkbeat

Students should be included in shaping the school environments they spend most days in--after all, they're a critical piece.

In February of 2023, I was leading a visioning workshop with a group of middle schoolers in Southern California. Their energy was vibrant, their curiosity sharp. We began…

Curriculum & Assessment

NAEP scores for class of 2024 show major declines, with fewer students college ready

September 26, 2025 by Erica Meltzer, Chalkbeat

Students who took the NAEP were in eighth grade in March of 2020 and experienced a highly disrupted freshman year because of the pandemic.

Students from the class of 2024 had historically low scores on a major national test administered just months before they graduated.

AI in Education

In training educators to use AI, we must not outsource the foundational work of teaching

August 26, 2025 by Timothy Cook, Chalkbeat

The problem is not AI or technology; it’s that educators and systems continue prioritizing finished products over messy learning processes.

I was conferencing with a group of students when I heard the excitement building across my third grade classroom. A boy at the back table had been working…

AI in Education

AI teacher tools display racial bias when generating student behavior plans, study finds

August 7, 2025 by Norah Rami, Chalkbeat

When asked to provide behavior intervention plans, AI teacher assistant tools generated more-punitive recommendations for students with Black-coded names

Asked to generate intervention plans for struggling students, AI teacher assistants recommended more-punitive measures for hypothetical students with Black-coded names and more supportive approaches for students the platforms…

District Management

The move from principal to district leader was fraught–here’s what I missed the most

November 7, 2025July 30, 2025 by Meagan Booth, Chalkbeat

How can educators stay connected to how the work is actually experienced and carried out in schools if they move to a district role?

I knew taking a central office role meant trading the school building for a district badge. I knew the days would be filled with policy, meetings, and personnel…

AI in Education

National AI training hub for educators to open, funded by OpenAI and Microsoft

July 25, 2025 by Norah Rami, Chalkbeat

More than 400,000 K-12 educators across the country will get free training in AI through a $23 million partnership between a major teachers union and leading tech companies.

District Management

How our district turned a sea of data into a compass for change

July 7, 2025 by Dr. Adrienne Usher, Bullitt County Public Schools

Consolidating data in a single system helped a district more effectively meet the varied needs of its 13,000 students.

Before Bullitt County Public Schools implemented a comprehensive data system, we often found ourselves looking at multiple different data sources for each individual child.

AI in Education

Building an educator’s AI toolbox

July 2, 2025July 2, 2025 by Laura Ascione

Enhance engagement, personalize instruction, and streamline tasks with AI tools that support smarter, more efficient classroom learning.

It seems like everywhere you look, AI is there--and classrooms are no exception. During an ISTELive 25 session, Eric Curts, a technology integration specialist with the Stark Portage…

Education Policy & Funding

Why the Trump administration grounded these middle schoolers’ drones–and other STEM research

June 30, 2025 by Kalyn Belsha, Chalkbeat

Give a girl a drone, and she might see her future as a scientist. But if her teacher doesn’t have the training or resources to turn cool tech…

Education Policy & Funding

Trump moved fast and broke things in education–but what he’s creating isn’t clear

June 24, 2025 by Erica Meltzer, Chalkbeat

Critics and allies alike say they’ve been stunned by the speed at which Trump has moved to enact his education agenda .

The Grandview school district’s headquarters is nearly 1,000 miles away from the White House. Yet President Donald Trump keeps taking up Kenny Rodrequez’s brain power.

STEM & STEAM Trends

Many students decide they’re not a ‘math person’ by the end of elementary school, new study shows

June 20, 2025 by Norah Rami, Chalkbeat

$Nationwide student math achievement has yet to return to pre-pandemic levels, gaps between the highest and lowest students continue to grow.$

Roughly half of middle and high schoolers report losing interest in math class at least half the time, and 1 in 10 lack interest nearly all the time…

AI in Education

My high school Spanish teacher taught me about the original AI–Authentic Interaction

June 16, 2025 by Becca Katz, Chalkbeat

When a teacher builds a face-to-face relationship with students , it is, as it turns out, just as impactful as many edtech tools and resources

As AI dominates the education zeitgeist, I think it’s time to highlight an effective teaching tool as tried and true as a Ticonderoga No. 2 pencil: high-quality IRL…

Education Policy & Funding

Federal judge blocks Trump’s Education Dept. shutdown, orders reinstatement of laid off staff

May 26, 2025 by Amy Zimmer, Chalkbeat

AFT President Randi Weingarten heralded the judge’s ruling to block the dismantling of the Department of Education.

A federal judge on May 22 issued a preliminary injunction blocking President Donald Trump’s executive order to shut down the U.S. Department of Education and said the agency…

AI in Education

Students learn the basics of AI as they weigh its use in their future careers

May 23, 2025 by Jessie Gómez, Chalkbeat

On a recent Thursday morning, Michael Taubman asked his class of seniors at North Star Academy’s Washington Park High School: “What do you think AI’s role should be…

District Management

At a grim time for math test scores, these districts buck the trend

November 7, 2025May 15, 2025 by Steven Yoder, The Hechinger Report, Chalkbeat

$Higher achievement in 8th grade math is associated with higher income and more education, and in Tennessee, math test scores are encouraging.$

In early February, seventh grade math teacher Jamie Gallimore tried something new: She watched herself teach class. The idea had come from Ed Baker, district math coach at…

College and Career Readiness

A new kind of high school diploma trades chemistry for carpentry

May 1, 2025 by Ariel Gilreath, The Hechinger Report, Chalkbeat

Attitudes toward high school CTE courses--once thought of as classes for students who struggled--have improved significantly over the years.

In a corner of Huffman High School, the sounds of popping nail guns and whirring table saws fill the architecture and construction classroom.

Classroom Management

Here’s what birdwatching taught me about classroom management

April 24, 2025 by Ronak Shah, Chalkbeat

Anyone entering the classroom deserves the support and experience they need for classroom management to thrive despite challenging headwinds.

Teachers often seem to have eyes in the back of their heads. They respond to a murmured question in a class full of conversation. They can tell if…

AI in Education

Philly teacher embraces AI but treads carefully amid data privacy and bias concerns

April 21, 2025 by Carly Sitrin, Chalkbeat

Educators say they want students to learn how to use AI and machines as a tool to help them locate their humanity within their own writing.

When Adrienne Staten’s fellow teachers first started talking about using artificial intelligence tools in their classrooms, Staten was not on board.

Education Policy & Funding

Programs like tutoring in jeopardy after Linda McMahon terminates COVID aid spending extensions

April 18, 2025 by Erica Meltzer, Chalkbeat

The federal department did not answer questions about how much COVID aid is being withheld or how many school districts are affected.

HVAC projects to improve indoor air quality. Tutoring programs for struggling students. Tuition support for young people who want to become teachers in their home communities.

DEIA (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Access)

States must promise their schools don’t use DEI or lose federal money, Trump administration says

April 8, 2025 by Erica Meltzer, Chalkbeat

The threat over DEI comes as many school districts are preparing their budgets for the next school year amid significant economic uncertainty.

The U.S. Department of Education is giving state education agencies 10 days to certify that their schools do not engage in any practices that the administration believes illegally…

COVID in Schools

10 ways COVID changed American schools

April 7, 2025 by Erica Meltzer, Chalkbeat

Five years on, the impact of COVID-era closures reverberate through schools and in the lives of students, parents, and teachers.

COVID had already killed thousands of people in other countries and was spreading in the United States when a top federal health official said schools should prepare to…

Education Policy & Funding

Halting education research in the name of ‘government efficiency’ is incredibly inefficient

March 31, 2025 by Jenn Finders, Chalkbeat

Cutting education research funding threatens science and innovation, and undermines researchers's work to make a difference in people's lives

This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Sign up for their newsletters at ckbe.at/newsletters. In recent weeks, we’ve seen federal ... Read more

COVID in Schools

COVID still casts a shadow over American school boards

March 28, 2025 by Erika Cohen, Chalkbeat

Schools and school board debates can only be productive when people practice civility, which didn't always happen during COVID.

During the seven years I served on the Derry School Board in New Hampshire, the board often came first. During those last two years during COVID, when I…

Education Policy & Funding

Trump signs executive order that aims to close U.S. Department of Education

March 21, 2025March 21, 2025 by Erica Meltzer, Chalkbeat

The Education Department administers billions of dollars in federal assistance through programs such as Title I and IDEA

President Donald Trump has signed a much anticipated executive order that he said is designed to close the U.S. Department of Education.

AI in Education

A new era for teachers as AI disrupts instruction

March 14, 2025 by Heather Staker, The Christensen Institute

The rise of AI and AI-powered, online apps for instruction is allowing for mass learning at unprecedented speed and scale.

Picture your favorite teacher from your childhood. He or she may have been great at explaining things, energetic, affirming, funny, or had other wonderful attributes. I remember Mrs.…

Education Policy & Funding

U.S. Department of Education slashes staff

March 13, 2025 by Erica Meltzer, Chalkbeat

Trump is expected to sign an executive order to start the process of eliminating the department of education, but has not yet done so.

The U.S. Department of Education announced March 11 that it’s cutting its workforce nearly in half--a move that Education Secretary Linda McMahon said is a first step toward…

School Management

Being a principal just got harder–here’s why

March 10, 2025 by Chris DeRemer, Chalkbeat

A principal should create an environment so safe and accepting that students and staff never feel like they must look over their shoulder.

There is a squeaky old merry-go-round in my neighborhood that my own children play on from time to time. Years of kids riding on it have loosened its…

Education Policy & Funding

Linda McMahon is confirmed as education secretary–DOGE and a department overhaul await her

March 12, 2025March 5, 2025 by Erica Meltzer, Chalkbeat

Linda McMahon described a final mission for the Department of Education that would profoundly impact staff, budgets, and agency operations.

Linda McMahon was confirmed March 3 as education secretary to lead a department that President Donald Trump has said he wants to dismantle.

Teaching Trends

Explicit instruction: Students need more of it

February 21, 2025 by Jeremy Kaplan, Chalkbeat

Explicit instruction is a deliberate progression of modeling, guided practice, and independent practice of a skill or a concept.

As a progressive educator in New York City for 30 years, I thought I had all the answers. The best teaching had to do with inquiry, with “higher-level…

AI in Education

Revolutionizing storytelling with AI: Empowering ELLs

January 14, 2026February 7, 2025 by Nesreen El-Baz, ESL Educator

Integrating AI tools responsibly with storytelling empowers ELLs to find their voice and share their unique stories with confidence.

As educators, we constantly seek ways to help students overcome these barriers. Enter artificial intelligence (AI)--a powerful tool that transforms storytelling into an accessible and engaging experience for…

Education Policy & Funding

Immigration arrests at schools loom after Trump changes longstanding policy

February 7, 2025 by Kalyn Belsha, Chalkbeat

The end of treating schools as sensitive locations is just one of many executive actions on immigration from the new Trump administration.

The Trump administration has cleared the way for immigration arrests at or near schools, ending a decades-old approach.

District Management

NAEP scores show disheartening trends for the lowest-performing students

November 7, 2025February 6, 2025 by Kalyn Belsha and Erica Meltzer, Chalkbeat

The pandemic had a lasting impact on students, but the gap between high- and low-NAEP performers appears to have started about a decade ago.

Most American students are still performing below their pre-pandemic counterparts in reading and math, while the yawning gap between high-achieving and low-performing students got even wider, data from…

Education Policy & Funding

What teachers want Donald Trump to know about their schools and their jobs

January 31, 2025 by Erica Meltzer, Chalkbeat

Teachers want Trump to know they care deeply about their students, want to prepare them for success, and that education is a priority.

Donald Trump will become the 47th president with his inauguration on Monday. What do America’s educators want from him?

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