Think Twice Weekly Report

JUNE 22, 2024 - JULY 11, 2024

The Think Twice Weekly Report compiles public education-related policy reports, research and articles of interest to policymakers, educators and stakeholders. This list is not exhaustive but is meant to highlight recent reports that may be used to support or undermine the work of our subscribers in supporting public schools. We encourage you to take a moment to scan these reports and determine if they may be used by policy makers to assist or erode your mission.



Policy Reports


Assessment

Source: Bellwether
Date:6/25/2024
Multiple Choices: Weighing Updates to State Summative Assessments

"State summative assessments play an important role in measuring student learning and guiding educational improvement efforts, despite their limitations. But there is growing momentum in individual states and nationally to rethink these assessments with an eye toward reducing time spent on testing and increasing the tests' instructional relevance.

Multiple Choices: Weighing Updates to State Summative Assessments helps policymakers and advocates understand what they may gain and what they may lose when considering potential shifts in assessments. The report examines several of the most common proposed changes - including reducing test length, matrix sampling, student sampling, grade-band testing, performance assessment, and through-year assessment - and summarizes the potential gains, losses, and unknowns of each.

The report also offers recommendations for state policymakers, federal policymakers, and advocates working to ensure that summative assessments better address the needs of educators, families, and students."

Charter Schools

Source: Heritage Foundation
Date: 6/24/2024
The Woke Capture of Charter Schools

School choice should empower parents to obtain an education for their own children that is consistent with their values. This is occurring well with private school choice, but with charter school choice it is falling short. Regulatory and philanthropic constraints need to be minimized for charter schools so they can better align with the value preferences of parents. Ultimately, states should adopt universal private school choice to avoid a binary option for families of charter schools that may not be aligned with their values or district public schools that are frequently unaligned and unsafe and academically ineffective.

Economics

Source: Brookings
Date: 6/27/2024
Twelve facts about the economics of education

This paper examines the economics of education in the United States, highlighting twelve key facts that illustrate the pivotal role of education in empowering individuals and driving economic progress. It underscores the persistent racial and economic disparities in educational achievement and attainment, particularly exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis reveals significant gaps in high school graduation rates and college completion among different racial groups, while also noting the rising trend in online higher education. The paper discusses the role of charter schools and the variability in their performance, emphasizing the need for evidence-based innovation in public education. It also addresses the fluctuating investments in education technology and research. Finally, it advocates for sustained funding to drive long-term improvements in educational outcomes.

Economics / School Choice

Source: Commonwealth Foundation
Date: 6/28/2024
The High Cost of Pa. K-12 Education Failures

Pennsylvania's future is in the hands of the next generation. Parents and students-not activist agendas-should drive the Commonwealth's education policy. While policymakers have been entrusted with ensuring the next generation receives a quality education, parents should be empowered to choose the quality education that meets their unique child's needs. Charter schools and tax credit scholarships are integral pieces of school choice, but more reforms are needed to make school choice a reality for all Pennsylvania students.

School Choice

Source: Cato Institute
Date: 6/25/2024
Helping Families Navigate the Changing Education Landscape

"ESAs are helping more families take advantage of individualized educational options. While the opportunities that come with ESAs are tremendous, so can be the difficulties in navigating them. That is why there is a growing movement to include "choice navigators" as an eligible expense in ESA programs. Choice navigators can inform parents what educational opportunities are available and help tailor an education program for their children. Having navigation support can be very helpful for parents, but it is crucial that states include utmost flexibility when incorporating a navigation option.

This paper examines several key elements, including determining the types of navigation services that parents need in the changing education landscape; identifying best practices that states can adopt to simplify ESA navigation; tapping into the experiences of current ESA users and traditional homeschoolers; and deciding whether there are policies that can encourage an adequate supply of navigators without creating counterproductive rules."

School Choice

Source: EdChoice
Date: 6/25/2024
The 123s of School Choice

"Researchers from across the country have published nearly 190 empirical studies on the effectiveness of private school choice programs. And for most, that may seem an overwhelming amount of literature to tackle. That's why we are excited to bring you the sixth edition of The 123s of School Choice, an in-depth review of the available research on private school choice programs in America."

School Finance and Funding

Source: Reason Foundation
Date: 6/27/2024
The cost of state hold harmless policies in K-12 education

"With widespread public school enrollment losses in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the financial costs of some hold harmless policies have increased exponentially....This study shines light on the issue by assessing declining enrollment provisions across three states: California, Missouri, and Oklahoma. It also analyzes separate funding protections in California and Missouri. Because it is sometimes claimed hold harmless policies benefit low-income students, particular attention is given to trends related to school district poverty levels."

K-12 Education

Source: EdChoice
Date: 7/10/2024
2024 Polling Primer An overview of American public opinion on K -12 education

To provide a concise and easy-to-access overview of major findings from both our annual Schooling in America Survey and monthly Public Opinion Tracker reports, we have added a new publication to the Bundle this year: the EdChoice Polling Primer: An overview of American public opinion on K -12 education.

Legal Issues / School Choice

Source: EdChoice
Date: 7/10/2024
2024 Legal Basics: A guide to landmark litigation and the foundation for school choice constitutionality

For those who wonder if school choice is legal, the EdChoice Legal Basics: A guide to landmark litigation and the foundation for school choice constitutionality is where every reformer should start. School choice programs are legal when designed to respect both state and federal constitutions.

Reading Instruction

Source: Fordham Institute
Date: 7/10/2024
Off and Running: Ohio's early implementation of its Science of Reading reforms

"Ohio is making bold moves to center its early literacy instruction fully on the Science of Reading. Our latest report examines one of the key implementation steps in the effort: Creating a state-approved list of high-quality literacy curricula and instructional materials."

School Choice

Source: EdChoice
Date: 7/10/2024
2024 EdChoice 101: An introduction to the basics of school choice

We believe access should be universal and that all families should be able to find what works for their students-regardless of where they live or how much money they make. This guide will introduce you to the fundamentals of school choice and answer some basic questions about why and how these programs work.

School Choice

Source: EdChoice
Date: 7/10/2024
2024 EdChoice Study Guide: A review of the research on private school choice

"Researchers from across the country have published nearly 190 empirical studies on the effectiveness of private school choice programs. For most, that's an overwhelming amount of literature to tackle. That's why we are excited to bring you the EdChoice Study Guide, an annually updated guide to the available research on private school choice programs in America. In this guide, you'll learn what the body of rigorous research says about school choice's effect on participant test scores, participant attainment parent satisfaction and more."

School Reform and Restructuring

Source: CRPE
Date: 7/10/2024
When challenges never let up: School district leaders steer through hazards in Baltimore and Chicago

"In the face of financial, political, and capacity constraints, leaders within the Baltimore City Public School System and Chicago Public Schools are making progress toward closing post-pandemic gaps in student learning. They've had to choose among imperfect strategies and navigate significant, growing challenges. At times, this has meant taking risks, following strategies they might not be able to sustain, and wading deeper into politics than they'd prefer. They've hit the limits of their own systems-and may need to search for new options and forge new collaborations with external partners to move forward."

School Finance and Funding / Ed Policy

Source: Empire Center
Date: 7/3/2024
Better Results with Lower Spending: Public Education in Massachusetts and New York

"New York's most-costly-in-the-nation public school system spends 36 percent more per student than neighboring Massachusetts ($29,873 versus $21,906, as of school year 2021-22). Yet the Bay State far outperforms New York in national assessments, most recently posting the highest combined score in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), while New York came in below the national average. What accounts for this surprising result? The two states face many of the same challenges: among other things, they have large urban districts, extensive pockets of poverty and strong teachers' unions. Both states have numerous relatively small school districts whose finances are subject to a property tax cap. Yet Massachusetts has been a "stunning exception to the nationwide pattern of stagnation and decline."[i] This report identifies key differences between the two public education systems, beginning with how policy is made and implemented."

Reports Reviewed


GLC seeks to ensure that policy briefs impacting education reform are based on sound, credible academic research. Below are reviews conducted with GLC support.



Review of 'So Hard, but So Rewarding:' How School System Leaders are Scaling up Strategic School Staffing Models

Source: Center on Reinventing Public Education
Reviewed by: Elizabeth Stringer Keefe, Stonehill College

Following the pandemic, pervasive challenges have plagued the teaching profession, including teacher shortages, burnout, job dissatisfaction, and attrition. A new report from the Center on Reinventing Public Education proposes what it calls "strategic school staffing models" as a solution, though its evidence for this conclusion is lacking.

In her review of "So Hard, But So Rewarding:" How School System Leaders Are Scaling Up Strategic School Staffing Models, Stonehill College professor and Dean of Graduate and Professional Studies Elizabeth Stringer Keefe finds that its sweeping recommendations are disproportionate to the study's quite limited research evidence.



What We're Reading


Research and articles that we want to highlight for subscribers as potential resources:



Supreme Confusion in Oklahoma

By: Joshua Dunn, CNN

The Oklahoma Supreme Court on June 25 delivered its eagerly anticipated decision on whether the state could authorize an explicitly religious charter school. The court said no, resolving for now the issue in Oklahoma. But its inscrutable reasoning on the First Amendment's establishment and free exercise clauses indicate that the U.S. Supreme Court will have to take up the issue-in either this case or one that will inevitably arise in another state.


Texas kids lose up to 4 months of learning with new uncertified teachers, study finds

By: Talia Richman, The Dallas Morning News

A study by Texas Tech University's Jacob Kirksey examined the ramifications stemming from an explosion of uncertified teachers across the state.


Teaching Teachers to Bust Unions

By: Juliana Broad, The Center for Media and Democracy

The Teacher Freedom Summit, held in Denver, is the second annual gathering designed to provide public school teachers with "intensive leadership training" and workshops on how to undercut their unions.


How the Chevron ruling could affect K-12 policies

By: Naaz Modan, K-12 Dive

"In one fell swoop, the majority today gives itself exclusive power over every open issue - no matter how expertise-driven or policy-laden - involving the meaning of regulatory law," wrote Associate Justice Elena Kagan in her dissenting opinion.


Project 2025 would fundamentally change public education, experts say

By: Lexi Lonas, The Hill

The Department of Education would be eliminated, student loans would be privatized and federal legislation on parental rights would be pushed under Project 2025, the conservative wish list of policies put together for the next Republican president that has sparked widespread controversy.