Opinion
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Saving Rural Schools
Opinion -Rural schools often are pressured to be consolidated with another school or district. What options are available to parents who want to maintain the presence of a local school in a rural community? -
The Importance of the Work Ethic and the Study Ethic: an exclusive interview with Robert E. Rector
Opinion -In September, the U.S. Census Bureau’s annual poverty and income survey indicated that families headed by a single female were faring much better than anticipated in the current economic downturn. -
A Rough Week for Public Schools and Teacher Unions in the Nation’s Capital
Opinion -After getting through Hurricane Isabel relatively unscathed, the nation’s capital did not fare well at the beginning of October, at least as far as its schools were concerned. On October 1, Senate leaders withdrew President George W. -
$5,000 Voucher Would Open Most School Doors
Opinion -A new Cato Institute survey of private schools in six large- and mid-sized American cities reveals a large majority of private elementary schools charge $5,000 or less per student per year. -
Students Benefit When Schools Compete
Opinion -Florida In a recent study of Florida’s A+ Program, Manhattan Institute scholars Jay P. Greene and Marcus A. Winters found that the greater the competitive pressure public schools faced from vouchers, the more the schools improved student achievement. -
Internet Reshapes Outlook for Rural Schools
Opinion -“The influence of geographic factors diminishes as technology grows,” wrote Will and Ariel Durant in their 1968 book, The Lessons of History. -
11/2003 Friedman Report: School Choice Roundup
Opinion -Arizona * Colorado * District of Columbia * Florida Montana * New Jersey * Utah * Wisconsin ARIZONA U.S. Supreme Court to Review Tax Credit Case In an unexpected move, the U.S. Supreme Court has granted review in the Arizona tax credit case. -
Competition among Schools Benefits All Students
Opinion -Growing evidence shows introducing market forces into the education arena benefits all students by raising achievement across the board. -
More Teacher Union Scandals
Opinion -On the heels of a scandal involving the misappropriation of more than $5 million by officials of the Washington, DC Teachers Union (WTU), another scandal has been uncovered involving the fraudulent conversion of almost $3. -
Pittsburgh’s Schools Need Drastic Reform, Says Commission
Opinion -Pittsburgh will not have a high-performance school district without fundamental structural change in the way its public schools are governed, a citizen commission concluded in September after a nine-month investigation of student performance, finances, -
Congress Practices One Thing, Preaches Another on School Choice
Opinion -Over the past three years Congress has had several opportunities to approve legislation that would give low-income families the opportunity to choose where their children attend school. -
Poll: Most Americans Would Choose Private Schools
Opinion -A new Gallup poll conducted for Phi Delta Kappa International, whose education surveys command high respect in the teaching profession, reveals a compelling motivation for the fierce opposition teacher union leaders and most public school officials show -
MATCH School Shows Poverty Isn’t Destiny
Opinion -It is the most urgent problem in U.S. public education today, but few people have the stomach to take on its challenge. -
Business Group Gives Chicago Schools an F
Opinion -Neither increased funding nor administrative changes will produce the significant gains in student performance that are necessary for the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) to come even close to meeting the requirements of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, -
Charter Schools Fuel School Management Growth
Opinion -While large-scale privatization efforts like the Philadelphia experiment may be politically difficult, nationwide the growth of charter schools continues to fuel the growth of both for-profit and nonprofit education service providers. -
Title I Tutoring Vouchers?
Opinion -Work-study programs are not the only way to engage college students in tutoring programs. -
Race and Education: An Exclusive Interview with Abigail Thernstrom
Opinion -The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent 5-4 ruling in Grutter v. -
Principal Hiring ‘Idiocy’
Opinion -The recent experience of a Georgia publisher “helping” to hire a new school principal for the Atlanta Public Schools indicates it’s not only the teacher hiring process that leaves much to be desired. -
Valedictorian Flunks Graduation Test
Opinion -School officials in Beaufort County, South Carolina, have institutionalized grade inflation by guaranteeing their high school students a minimum first-semester grade of at least 62 out of 100, so students who start the year badly aren’t prevented from -
Just the Facts: Student Achievement
Opinion -Just The Facts: Student Achievement National Assessment of Eduational Progress Tests ACT Scores SAT Scores Percent of public school students scoring at or above proficient ACT Average Composite (2003) % of HS Grads Tested % of HS Grads -
Philadelphia’s Privatization Experiment Produces Gains
Opinion -One year after the nation’s largest school privatization experiment began in Philadelphia, the competition between restructured city schools, privately managed schools, and charter schools has led to significant gains in student achievement for -
NCLB Puts Spotlight on Public School Performance
Opinion -This summer, state departments of education identified which public schools “need improvement” after failing to make “adequate yearly progress” for two years in a row under the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act. -
10/2003 Friedman Report School Choice Roundup
Opinion -Colorado * District of Columbia * Florida * Illinois Louisiana * Michigan * New Jersey COLORADO New Charter Tries Same-Sex Classes Colorado’s James Irwin Charter Middle School will be trying same-sex classrooms this Fall. -
When Schools Compete, Good Things Happen
Opinion -Numerous studies in recent years have shown student achievement and parental satisfaction improve when families use vouchers to choose private schooling.
