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
Parents Fight Back Against Teachers Union Suing Nation’s Largest School Choice Program
Teachers’ unions in Florida continue to threaten the educational opportunity of thousands of the state’s most vulnerable children. But there is some good news: Last week, Leon County Circuit Court Judge George S. Reynolds III granted parents of these children the right to intervene on behalf of their children’s scholarships, which are awarded through the… -
news
This State Made It Legal to Say ‘Merry Christmas’ in Public Schools
Merry Christmas, Texas! A Texas lawmaker wants to remind students and teachers in the state’s public schools that they may wish others a “Merry Christmas” or a “Happy Hanukkah” without fear of legal ramifications. State Rep. Dwayne Bohac, R-Houston, the author of the Merry Christmas Law, held a joint press conference with state Rep. Richard… -
news
Minn. Schools Held GMO Awareness Day
MINNETRISTA, Minn. — Just when the backlash over First Lady Michelle Obama’s school lunch menu leveled off, students in a handful of Twin Cities schools got a taste of what could be another controversial food fad. The main course? Non-GMO (genetically modified organisms) meals. “Having the GMO awareness day for our district was to really… -
opinion
Eat My Shorts! Bart Simpson Takes On Teacher Unions
CULLMAN, Ala. — Teacher unions finally met a foe they couldn’t conquer in the form of the yellow, spiky-haired Bart Simpson. Those unions were skewered in a recent episode of the long-running Fox series “The Simpsons.” A new teacher at Springfield Elementary tormented Bart before being embarrassed by him at Blazing Man, a knockoff of… -
opinion
In 9 States, Legislators Consider Making High School Students Pass Citizenship Test
Should high school students have to pass the citizenship test? The Civics Education Initiative, an Arizona-based non-profit group, is pushing for legislation in Arizona, Louisiana, Missouri, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota and Utah that would require all high school students to pass the same test that immigrants applying for U.S. citizenship… -
news
Why Did This Teachers Union Ban Coca-Cola?
American Federation of Teachers, one of the largest teachers unions in the United States, passed a resolution last week to ban Coca-Cola from its facilities and events. The teachers union stated its decision was based on human rights violations, which have been detailed in three books published several years ago. But why now, and why… -
news
Teachers Union Lost 272,014 Members on His Watch, Then Gave Him a Big Raise
The recently retired president of the National Education Association received a huge pay raise this year even though the union he led lost more than 40,000 members. Dennis Van Roekel, who retired this summer, was paid $541,632 during NEA’s fiscal year ending Aug. 31, a $130,000 increase from last year, driven by a gross salary hike… -
news
School Lunches Evoke Strong Feelings: Here’s What You Had to Say
Schools across America are celebrating Thanksgiving with their annual feast of turkey and vegetables. And this year, students are giving thanks in another way—with a touch of sarcasm. First lady Michelle Obama, champion of healthy eating, was on the receiving end of the "thanks" when students shared photos of their unappetizing lunches and skimpy servings. my school lunch… -
news
Teachers’ Challenge of Political Spending by Unions Appears Headed for Supreme Court
Christian schoolteachers who object to being forced to help finance the political agendas of unions yesterday moved a step closer to having their case heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit issued an order that allows the teachers to petition the Supreme Court to consider their… -
news
Minnesota School Boards Can–and Often Do–Raise Taxes Without Voter Approval
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Minnesotans faced 39 school operating levy referendums on the ballot this fall, fewer than in any election since 1996. And they nixed one of every four proposals at the polls. Chalk one up for taxpayers? Not exactly. Many school boards already had raised school levies on their own long before Election… -
news
Study: Kids Don’t Eat Much of Healthy School Lunches
Healthier lunches have become available in schools across the nation. But students aren’t eating them. According to a new Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health study, “Nearly 6 in 10 [students] put a vegetable on their tray, but only a quarter actually eat even a single bite.” The researchers observed the eating habits of… -
news
Maryland School District Removes Religious Holidays From Its Calendar
A school board in Maryland this week voted to remove the names of Christian, Jewish and Muslim holidays from its school calendar. According to the Washington Times, the Montgomery County Public Schools “still will be closed on the holidays, but the board voted 7-1 to move the religious references from the calendar.” The newspaper reports the Montgomery County Board… -
news
Mom Questions School for Portraying Muslims as More Faithful Than Christians
Is the faith of most Muslims “stronger” than that of the typical Christian? That’s what one public high school in North Carolina apparently is teaching students. Outraged over the “correct” answers to her son’s ninth-grade assignment about Islam, a mother in Union County, N.C., turned to local news reporters to shed light on his school’s… -
news
High School Bans Students From Holding Prayer Group in Free Time
A Colorado high school banned a group of students from praying, singing Christian songs, and discussing religious topics in their free time. Citing “separation of church and state,” officials at Pine Creek High School told Chase Windebank, a senior, that he and his classmates no longer were allowed to use an unoccupied choir room for… -
news
Groups Ask School Districts to Reconsider Transgender Restroom Policies
MADISON, Wis. — Sparta Area School District Superintendent John Hendricks has had little to say about his proposal to allow transgender students to use school restrooms of the gender with which they identify. When asked why he proposed gender identity guidelines for his district, Hendricks said only that he thinks “it’s always advisable for an… -
opinion
School Choice Wins, Common Core Loses in Election 2014
Last night’s election results have seismic implications for education policy at both the state and federal levels. Voters sent a message that school choice and local control are important to them. School Choice Wins Big Charlie Crist, running as a Democrat, lost his election bid for Florida governor to incumbent Republican Rick Scott. Crist supported… -
opinion
Toronto School Board Nixes Confucius Institute
Last week, the Toronto school board became the latest in a series of North American educational institutions to eject the Chinese government from its classrooms. The board voted decisively to terminate an agreement to open a Confucius Institute in Toronto. This would have provided instruction in matters Chinese to the city’s elementary school students—all courtesy… -
news
Hawaii Taxpayers Would Spend Millions on Private Preschools if Amendment Passes
HONOLULU — Hawaii is the only state that prohibits government funding of private preschools, but that may change tomorrow. Hawaii’s voters will be asked whether the state constitution should be amended so taxpayers can subsidize private preschool education. Amendment 4, “The Hawaii State Funding for Private Early Childhood Education Programs,” asks: “Shall the appropriation of… -
news
Teachers Unions Devote Dues to Democratic Political Advertising
In the final weeks of a heated governor’s race, Pennsylvania’s teachers unions have made their candidate preferences well known. For the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, one of the most powerful public-sector unions in the country, this has gone beyond the traditional activities of its political committee, raising some questions about how the union uses money collected… -
news
‘Never Discouraged’: Pro-Democracy Newspaperman Joins Hong Kong Student Protesters
In mid-October, during the peak of the democracy protests in Hong Kong, decidedly different demonstrators congregated outside the printing plant of Next Media, publisher of the Apple Daily newspaper. These demonstrators called for the fall of Jimmy Lai, the outspoken founder of Apple Daily, a pro-democracy newspaper despised by the ruling establishment in Hong Kong and…