My Education Week “Truth About Testing Costs” commentary outlines why the rhetoric about the high budgetary costs of testing is not only overblown, but in many ways counter-productive, because it stifles investment in the very sorts of high-quality assessments that most educators deeply desire.

My inquiry found that states actually spend very little of their per-pupil spendinContinue Reading »

Spend any time listening to talk radio and you’ll hear countless stories about “billions wasted” on foreign aid. Politicians seizing on painless ways to cut the deficit reinforce this perception of massive spending, and Americans believe them: In surveys, they estimate that as much as one out of four dollars spent by the federal government goes to foreign governments.

In fact, the U.S. sContinue Reading »

This is the fifth in a series of blog posts called EduFacts: The SOS March in Context

One of the biggest concerns motivating the SOS marchers this week is money, as in how much money is available for schools and school-related services and whether it is distributed fairly.

But, rich or poor, most school districts will have less money to spend next year. And they should place part Continue Reading »

This is the first in a series of blog posts called EduFacts: The SOS March in Context.

Education Sector Intern Mary Nguyen co-wrote and did much of the research for this post.

One reason for the stubbornly high U.S. unemployment rate is a “record-breaking layoff binge” by state and local governments. IHS Global Insight, an economic forecasting firm, estimates that 110,000 non-fedeContinue Reading »

While most of the media focus has been on the federal dynamic in the House and Senate, the real impact of yesterday’s elections on education will be the changes in the Governorships, and state legislative composition. Many governorships changed hands from Dems to Reps. Before yesterday’s election, 18 of the 37 governorships were controlled by Reps, 19 by Dems. Now 23 are Reps, 10 Dems, 1 IndepeContinue Reading »

On Monday, I wrote about pending legislation in Florida that would severely curtail educational choices available through the public, state-run Florida Virtual School. The bill would eliminate enrollment in any elective courses and funding for any courses beyond a standard six periods. Students would no longer have an option to take electives, including some AP courses, beyond those offered at Continue Reading »

Leaks about the content of the House version of the stimulus package surfaced publically this morning (2009%20Stimulus%20Executive%20Summary.pdf). State and school district budgets are clearly facing difficult times, and an infusion of federal funds will be a welcomed event. Education related, the package includes $79 billion for general state fiscal relief, ($39 billion of which is for K12 schContinue Reading »