Critical Theory and Pedagogy

Source: Brookings Institute

Date: 5/23/25

Teaching in the way human brains learn: First results from Active Playful Learning

Education, especially in public or state schools, transforms societies. It promotes innovation and supports social mobility (e.g., Chetty et al. 2011; Hyman 2017, 268-270; Jackson and Mackevicius 2024, 422-427; Winthrop et al. 2013, 5, 13). Our current model of education helped move the United States (U.S.) and other countries into the Industrial Age (Darling-Hammond 2022, 54; Winthrop et al. 2017, 14). However, it is less effective at developing the skills needed for individuals to thrive in this Information Age and beyond.

One way to adapt education for our time is through what we call Active Playful Learning (APL), a pedagogical framework that is evidence-based, practical, and uniquely co-designed with scientists and educators. It simultaneously maintains the focus on traditional content, like math and reading, while also supporting a broader suite of skills. The approach brings more agency to both teachers and students, and promotes more joyful and deeper learning (Blinkoff et al. 2023, 16; Hirsh-Pasek et al. 2022; Nesbitt et al. 2023, 2-5). This paper is the first report of a large-scale, multi-site U.S.-based study that examines APL in classrooms with teachers. The participating teachers engaged in instructional coaching on APL, and measures evaluated the intervention's effects on teachers' instruction, as well as their students' classroom experiences. Here we describe APL, the study, and preliminary results from the pilot year.

School Finance and Funding

Source: EdTrust

Date: 5/20/25

Policy Positions on School Funding

State leaders can and should do more to more adequately and fairly fund public schools. Too few state funding systems are investing enough funding to cover actual education costs and ensure that districts can provide enriching learning environments for all students. Additionally, while many states provide additional funding to support the needs of students that have been historically underserved, most states fall short of providing additional funding at the levels needed to effectively boost student outcomes and close opportunity gaps.

This series of briefs, EdTrust's Policy Positions on School Funding, outlines five core policy positions that shape our beliefs about what state leaders should do to more adequately and fairly fund schools to meet the diverse needs of all students, fostering environments where every student can thrive.

School Finance and Funding

Source: Bellwether

Date: 5/21/25

Beyond the Bottom Line: A New Framework for K-12 Fiscal Accountability

The Trump administration's push to scale back the federal role in education could mean more autonomy for states. But this increased decision-making power will also make state K-12 accountability more important than ever. States must ensure education funding is used effectively, especially for those students furthest from opportunity.

While some states have comprehensive and clear fiscal accountability systems in place, most do not. State leaders need stronger tools and clearer guidance on how to craft and implement accountability policies and practices.

Beyond the Bottom Line: A New Framework for K-12 Fiscal Accountability identifies a framework for promoting K-12 accountability at the state level.

Review of The Enrollment Decline Windfall

Source: EdChoice

Reviewed by: David E. DeMatthews and Jinseok Shin of the University of Texas at Austin

Most U.S. states continue to heavily rely on per-pupil funding models. Accordingly, projections of declining school-aged populations through 2030-combined with the rapid expansion of private school voucher policies-have raised serious concerns about the future adequacy of public school funding. A recent EdChoice report downplays these concerns.

However, in their review of The Enrollment Decline Windfall,David E. DeMatthews and Jinseok Shin of the University of Texas at Austin explain that the report's analysis is fundamentally flawed due to its overly simplistic treatment of a complex issue.

Explaining ECCA

By: NPE Action

This is a great Vimeo from our friends at NPE Acion: "The House Budget slashes Medicaid and food assistance by billions to pay for the tuition of private school students, whose families in some states can make up to half a million dollars a year. When they could not get enough votes to pass the Educational Choice for Children Act (ECCA), a federal voucher bill, they shoved it into budget reconciliation. Let your member of Congress know you oppose ECCA."

Judge orders Trump administration to reinstate Education Department employees

By: Annie Nova, CNBC

"In the injunction on Thursday, the judge pointed out that the staff cuts led to the closure of seven out of 12 offices tasked with the enforcement of civil rights, including protecting students from discrimination on the basis of race and disability. The entire team that supervises the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, was also eliminated, the judge said."

Rapidly expanding school voucher programs pinch state budgets

By: Kevin Hardy, Stateline

"Opponents have long warned about vouchers draining resources from public education as students move from public schools to private ones. But research into several programs has shown many voucher recipients already were enrolled in private schools. That means universal vouchers could drive up costs by creating two parallel education systems - both funded by taxpayers."

3 things to know from Linda McMahon's FY 2026 testimony

By: Kara Arundel, K-12Dive

"It is the mission to shut down the bureaucracy of the Department of Education,” said McMahon, who added several times during the 2 1/2 hour hearing that she would work with Congress to close the agency.

A school district singled out by Trump says it teaches 'whole truth history'

By: Steven Yoder, The Hechinger Report

"The class is part of a curriculum that Virginia's Albemarle County school district developed after a deadly white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, the county seat. That August 2017 tragedy helped spur district educators to consider new ways of teaching social studies that require students to think critically and understand key events from a range of perspectives, including those whose voices are often omitted from standard accounts."

GreatLakesCenter.org