Education News
Reports on education reform, school choice, and classroom policies. The Daily Signal provides conservative commentary and opinion alongside education news.
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- Opinion
My University Forced Me to Take ‘AUx1,’ ‘AUx2’—aka Leftism 101, 102
As I accepted an offer to enroll at American University in the spring of 2020, I knew what I was getting into. With American University currently ranked by Niche, a large college-information aggregator and review platform, as the single most liberal university in the country, you’d think I’d be a fool for even considering going there….Wallace White -
- Opinion
New NAEP Test Scores Are a Disaster. Blame Teachers Unions.
In a predictable, yet nonetheless shocking outcome, the latest scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress record the biggest decline in math in three decades. In mathematics, eighth grade students’ NAEP scores dropped eight points from 2019 to 2022, according to results released Monday. Just 26% of eighth graders now perform math proficiently, down…Lindsey Burke -
- Opinion
Rhode Island Priest Rebukes Public School for Pornographic Books in Library
When the public high school in Westerly, Rhode Island, made available to students two books with pornographic content, the Rev. Giacomo Capoverdi sprang into action with more than a dozen other pastors. The books—“Gender Queer” and “Fun Home”—are not appropriate for high school students, according to a letter 14 clergy wrote to The Westerly Sun…Robert B. Bluey -
- News
Fact-Checking 4 Biden Claims on His Student Loan Bailout
President Joe Biden used his home state of Delaware on Friday to promote his “forgiveness” of student loan debt, which he did through executive action in August rather than through Congress. Some of Biden’s assertions during 24 minutes of remarks at Delaware State University in Dover were factual, and some less so. Biden spoke at…Fred Lucas -
- News
America’s Schools Warm to Climate Change, Without Question
Public school districts are adopting curriculums on climate change from well-funded progressive groups casting the issue as a threat to life on the planet that students should respond to through activism. As of fall 2020, 29 states and the District of Columbia had adopted standards that require science classes to teach human-caused climate change as…Steve Miller -
- News
‘I Had No Power Over My Kids’ Education,’ Maryland Mom Says After Asking to Opt Her Second Grader Out of LGBT Lessons
An elementary school just outside the nation’s capital touted Gay Pride Month and defined words such as “transgender” in a video sent to students. A middle school in the same school system displays pride flags and “LGBTQ+ stories” in class. A local mom, who wishes to remain anonymous but whom The Daily Signal will refer…Gillian Richards -
- News
‘I Will Take This as Retaliation’: Another Vermont Father Says School District Is Punishing Him for Speaking Out Against Biological Male in Girls’ Locker Room
Another Vermont parent has told The Daily Signal that he believes the school district is punishing him for speaking out against a biological male using the girls’ locker room. John Helfant is one of the volunteer coaches of the Randolph Union High School girls’ varsity soccer team, he said in a Wednesday phone interview. He…Mary Margaret Olohan -
- Opinion
Judges Fighting Yale Law School Show They Know ‘What Time It Is’ in America
Late last month at the sixth annual Kentucky Chapters Conference of The Federalist Society, Judge James C. Ho of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit (disclosure: my former boss) issued a call to arms. Ho—who earlier this year ruffled feathers at Georgetown University Law Center by using the occasion of his own…Josh Hammer -
- News
High School Girls Explain Why They’re Uncomfortable Having a Biological Male in Their Locker Room
RANDOLPH, VERMONT—Blake Allen and her teammates spoke out when a biologically male student used their locker room. Now these young girls face heavy criticism—and maybe even punishment. Our Daily Signal team traveled up the coast this week to the town of Randolph in northeastern Vermont, just in time to catch the last few days of…Mary Margaret Olohan -
- News
Public School Fires Substitute Teacher for Raising Concerns Over Book Depicting Same-Sex Couples
Lindsey Barr was fired from her substitute teaching job after expressing concern over the content of a book in the school library. Barr is a mother of three boys. All her children attend public school in Bryan County, Georgia, about 30 miles southwest of Savannah, where she also works as a substitute teacher. In August,…Virginia Allen -
- News
Gender Ideology Is ‘Half-Baked, Incoherent,’ Filmmaker Matt Walsh Tells Full House at Catholic University
Despite efforts by a leftist group to prevent it from taking place, conservative commentator Matt Walsh, producer of a documentary film questioning the legitimacy of transgenderism, spoke Tuesday at the Catholic University of America. Nearly 750 people attended the event in Washington to hear Walsh discuss his controversial new documentary “What Is a Woman?” One leader of…Gillian Richards -
- News
Guardian of Biologically Male Trans Student: School Closed Locker Room ‘to Protect My Child’
Amid controversy over a biologically male student using the girls’ locker room at a Vermont high school, that student’s alleged guardian spoke out Monday, claiming that the school closed the girls’ locker room to “protect” her trans-identifying child from harassment. Melissa Sivvy said in a Monday afternoon phone interview with The Daily Signal that she…Mary Margaret Olohan -
- News
Vermont High School Under Fire as Girls, Parents Push Back Against Biologically Male Trans Student Using Female Locker Room
Two Vermont high school girls did what few of their peers have dared: When a biological boy who identifies as a transgender girl entered their locker room, they asked that student to leave. The Randolph, Vermont-based Randolph Union High School told the community in a Sept. 23 email that it is “launching a harassment investigation”…Mary Margaret Olohan -
- Opinion
6 States Sue to Block Biden’s Student Loan ‘Forgiveness’ Scheme
Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, and South Carolina sued the Biden administration Thursday to block the president’s plan to “forgive” student loan debt. The lawsuit by the six states follows another one filed by the Pacific Legal Foundation on behalf of an individual borrower. President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness scheme is an illegal…GianCarlo Canaparo -
- Opinion
School Choice Opponents Concede Defeat Just Days After Declaring Victory
On Friday, opponents of education choice in Arizona declared a “historic victory.” But by Monday, they were conceding defeat. They had sought to gather enough signatures to block Arizona’s newly passed massive expansion of education choice and put it on the ballot for voters to decide. But apparently, the voters weren’t interested in what opponents…Jason Bedrick -
- Opinion
Borrower Sues to Stop Biden’s Unfair, Illegal Student Loan Bailout
Probably the most common legal argument against the Biden administration’s student loan bailout plan is that the federal Department of Education simply doesn’t have the authority to accomplish it. That’s a core argument in a new lawsuit filed by the Pacific Legal Foundation on behalf of an employee whose student debt is affected by the…Adam Kissel -
- Opinion
Apparent Victory Rings Hollow for Group Opposing School Choice
The effort to block a massive expansion of education choice in Arizona appears to be running out of steam. Beth Lewis, executive director of the anti-school choice group Save Our Schools Arizona put on her best game face Friday afternoon as she announced that her group has gathered enough signatures to put the recent expansion…Jason Bedrick -
- News
Politicizing College Football, UMass Trolls Liberty University With ‘Pride Day’
College football season is back—and so is the politicization of a fall pastime that used to unite Americans across the aisle. This year’s game day rivalries on the University of Massachusetts’s home field consist of a little more than fans with opposing school spirit. With plans to host the Liberty University Flames on its territory…Marjorie Jackson -
- News
Vanderbilt University Medical Center Under Fire After Videos Expose ‘Big Moneymaker’ Allegations About Transgender Surgeries on Kids
The governor of Tennessee is calling for an investigation into Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Pediatric Transgender Clinic following viral tweets exposing alarming attitudes toward transgender surgeries and procedures for children. Daily Wire host Matt Walsh shared Tuesday afternoon that his team has been investigating the transgender clinic, claiming that “Vanderbilt drugs, chemically castrates, and performs…Mary Margaret Olohan -
- Opinion
The Left Targets Youngkin’s Transgender Education Reform Prioritizing Parental Rights
Many on the Left appear appalled at the idea that parents should have the right to know and intervene if their children “identify” as the opposite sex or seek controversial transgender medical interventions that may irreversibly harm their bodies. Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, on Friday announced a new model policy on students who…Tyler O’Neil