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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- News
School Choice Denied to Most Rhode Island Families, but Not These Union Teachers
A local chapter of the nation’s largest teachers union has acknowledged the importance of school choice, at least for its own members. Thanks to an agreement quietly reached between the South Kingstown, Rhode Island, chapter of the National Education Association and the South Kingstown School Department, teachers there now have access to an exclusive school…Virginia Allen -
- Opinion
How Montana’s Revamped Focus Makes for Better K-12 Civics Education
Civics education has become a flashpoint in American politics. Many schools are asking how students should learn about themselves and their country in a way that fully encompasses American history, both good and bad. Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen recently updated the state’s standards for social studies to better teach students about civics…Douglas Blair -
- News
Fact Check: Is Critical Race Theory Taught in Virginia Schools?
Throughout election night, as it became clear Republican Glenn Youngkin would win the Virginia governor’s race, numerous left-leaning media commentators insisted that critical race theory isn’t being taught in Virginia public schools. Various media personalities—some professing to be on the news side, others on the opinion side—repeated the assertion both before and after the election…Fred Lucas -
- Opinion
Virginia Election Proves That Americans Reject Critical Race Theory
Critical race theory proponents have just learned the hard way the folly of their strategy. The American people reject the politicization of the classroom, the office, the military, and the houses of worship that has exploded since the civil disturbances of 2020. But the lesson cuts both ways. Now, politicians who have discovered they can…Mike Gonzalez -
- News
Taxpayers Take School Board to Court for Trying to Silence Parents’ Criticism
Four taxpayers in Pennsylvania have decided enough is enough after footing the bill for a school board attorney who told them that the school system could limit their First Amendment rights. The taxpayers filed a free speech lawsuit in federal court that could set a precedent for invalidating policies that shield both school administrators and…Kevin Mooney -
- News
Schools Chief Complained That Sheriff Rejected Request to Monitor Parents as ‘Extraordinary’
A county schools superintendent in Virginia complained to the county sheriff’s office over its rejection of “extraordinary” security requests for school board meetings in August, documents reviewed by The Daily Caller News Foundation show. Loudoun County School Superintendent Scott Ziegler requested personnel, a K-9 sweep, and undercover presence from the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office, which…Kendall Tietz -
- Opinion
Left Thinks It Should Be in Charge of Education, Not Parents
The left has a new message for parents concerned about critical race theory and similar ideologies being foisted on their children in public schools: Sit down and shut up. The left has already pretty much abandoned the “critical race theory is not in schools” narrative. Parents just aren’t buying this absurdity. It’s clear that ideas…Jarrett Stepman -
- News
‘There Is No Rational Debate’: Loudoun County School Board Chair Trashes Parents
Brenda Sheridan, chair of the Loudoun County Public Schools board, criticized parents protesting the use of critical race theory in schools, claiming “[t]here is no rational debate” on the issue. Sheridan made the comments during an interview with Chuck Todd during the Oct. 27 episode of “Meet the Press Reports,” a weekly podcast. “I’ll echo that we…Harold Hutchison -
- News
Mom to Sue After Son Vaccinated at School Without Consent
A Louisiana mother is threatening to sue, claiming that her 16-year-old son was vaccinated for COVID-19 while at his Jefferson Parish high school without her consent. Jennifer Ravain alleged that during a visit by an Ochsner Health System mobile vaccination clinic to East Jefferson High School, her son was allowed to sign a consent form and receive…Harold Hutchison -
- Opinion
We Hear You: Public Schools, Private Beliefs, and Rising Inflation
Editor's note: The Daily Signal's audience isn't happy with how school system leaders in Loudoun County, Virginia, responded to a rape in a girls' restroom at one of its high schools, nor with the continuing rise in inflation, as evidenced by these letters from the mailbag at [email protected].—Ken McIntyre Dear Daily Signal: As a retired…Ken McIntyre -
- Opinion
The ‘Prisoners’ Dilemma’ in Biden’s Title IX Policies
In economics, there’s a thought experiment called the “prisoners’ dilemma” that describes a scenario in which two rational people fail to reach a win-win outcome by cooperating. Neither person can trust the other to cooperate, and their distrust leads them to pick an outcome that’s bad for both. The classic example features two conspirators questioned…GianCarlo Canaparo -
- Opinion
School Spending Up, Test Scores Down
Thirteen-year-old children in American public schools were not quite as good at math and reading in 2019 and 2020 as they were in 2012. This is despite the fact that American taxpayers invested more money per pupil in the nation’s public schools in each of the last two fiscal years than they did in 2012….Terence Jeffrey -
- News
Fired Teacher Sues School Board, Claims He Was Terminated for Conservative Political Activism
Fired Louisiana teacher Jonathan Koeppel is suing his former school board and superintendent on grounds of unlawful termination. Koeppel was fired in August, he says, for his conservative political activism and for refusing to wear a mask, even though he had received a medical exemption. “I was told [by school leadership] that my political commentary…Virginia Allen -
- News
Top Berkeley Scientist Resigns, Says School Excludes Scientists Based on Political Views
David Romps, director of the Berkeley Atmospheric Sciences Center, publicly resigned Monday over his concern that the school excludes scientists based on their political beliefs. “Excluding people because of their political and social views diminishes the pool of scientists with which members of BASC can interact and reduces the opportunities for learning and collaboration,” Romps…Laurel Duggan -
- News
#MeToo Groups Silent Over Boy Allegedly Raping Girl in Loudoun School Girls Bathroom
Advocacy groups that once emphatically urged the public to “believe all women” are now silent over a viral report that a skirt-wearing male student allegedly raped one of his peers in her school bathroom. “The left’s silence on the accusations of sexual assault inside Loudoun County schools is absolutely deafening,” Lauren Adams, legal director of…Mary Margaret Olohan -
- Opinion
Why We Must Protect School Choice
It takes brave men and women to stand up to the inhumanities that are occurring today. As we see many fighting for our freedoms—holding the line, risking it all—I am motivated to talk about another freedom that we depend on: school choice. Why is school choice important to protect? School choice prevents the government from…Eve Deborah -
- Opinion
Media Ignores Story About ‘Gender-Fluid’ Boy Accused of Raping Girl at School
If we sat in a boardroom and tried to decide the kind of story that the liberal media is the most hostile to covering—hostile to the point of wishing it had never existed—it may be this: Teenage boy describing himself as “gender-fluid” accused of raping a girl in a high school bathroom. This is a…Tim Graham -
- News
Seattle School Nixes Halloween Parade for Fear It ‘Marginalizes Students of Color’
A Seattle elementary school canceled its Halloween parade, citing concerns that the annual event “marginalizes students of color who do not celebrate the holiday,” according to KTTH-AM radio talk-show host Jason Rantz. Benjamin Franklin Day Elementary, part of Seattle Public Schools, also said black males do not celebrate Halloween, Rantz reported. The school administration said its…Kendall Tietz -
- Opinion
Black Professor: Blacks Who Reject Critical Race Theory Being ‘Erased’
Blacks who don’t adopt the doctrines of victimhood or critical social justice erode the narrative promoted by woke activists, Erec Smith, a professor of rhetoric at York College of Pennsylvania and co-founder of Free Black Thought, says. “The illogic that is inherent in a lot of anti-racist activism … is absurd,” Smith says. Smith doesn’t…Virginia Allen -
- Opinion
In Temporary Win, Mom Gets Dirty Books Removed From School Libraries
Northern Virginia continues to be a battleground between parents and their school boards over what should be taught in public schools. One of the latest incidents involves books in the libraries of Fairfax County Public Schools that contain graphic depictions of sex between children and adults. Stacy Langton, a Fairfax County mother, made headlines after…Douglas Blair