Opinion
-
Three States Rush to Tie Common Core Testing to Graduation
Opinion -Three states are rushing ahead to integrate Common Core testing into their education systems. New Jersey, Maryland, and Washington state will tie graduation to Common Core tests. -
More Victims of Obamacare
Opinion -It's hard to keep track of all the you-passed-it-so-we-could-see-what's-in-it-and-now-we-see-it-sucks moments that Americans have had since Obamacare passed, but here's another one to add to the list, courtesy of Kaiser Health News:Obamacare 'Glitch' -
Testing May Discourage Parent Involvement, Study Finds
Opinion -Saying there was little research about how extensive testing in education impacted parental attitudes toward education, Jesse Rhodes studied the issue in early 2012. -
Hayek’s Warning: The Social Engineer’s Pretense of Knowledge
Opinion -Forty years ago, on December 11, 1974, Austrian economist, Friedrich A. Hayek, formally received that year’s Nobel Prize in Economics at the official ceremonies in Stockholm, Sweden. -
Low-Income D.C. Students Denied Scholarships Despite Law Giving Them Preference
Opinion -Some Washington, DC children are being denied participation in the Opportunity Scholarship Program, which gives students from low-income families scholarships to attend private schools, despite a law giving preference to these students with siblings in -
Maine, Michigan Voters Go Opposite Directions on Wildlife Management
Opinion -For the second time in ten years, voters in Maine rejected a ban on baiting, trapping, or hounding bears for hunting purposes. -
Teachers Unions Fume in Philly
Opinion -The teachers unions are spitting venom at the Philadelphia School Reform Commission. The PSRC—an appointed body—was established in 2001 as a response to overall school district ineptitude. It didn’t help much. -
HHS: Medicare Buys Drugs for Dead People
Opinion -A report from the Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General recently found Medicare has reimbursed the cost of drugs for beneficiaries who were already dead, pointing to fraudulent diversion of expensive medicines into the black market. -
Jindal Joins Another Lawsuit Against Common Core
Opinion -In a continued push to overturn the implementation of Common Core standards and testing in schools, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal joined forces with lawmakers in a lawsuit against Louisiana state education officials. -
The Coming Battle Over Obamacare Replacement
Opinion -consumer-power-report -Consumer Power Report #447[Subscribe] Now that Republicans have taken both houses of Congress, it is likely they will in the spring pass an Obamacare replacement that will land on President Barack Obama’s desk to be vetoed. -
How Dangerous is Swedish Snus? Don’t Ask The New York Times
Opinion -The New York Times has published (here) a reasonably accurate portrayal of the Swedish snus experience that I have chronicled for over a decade (here, here, and here). -
The Only Legitimate FCC Hybrid Net Neutrality Approach
Opinion -Any legitimacy the FCC has comes from the authority of law written by a duly-elected Congress under the U.S. Constitution.Twice the FCC has tried to mandate new net neutrality regulations on its own and twice the U.S. -
Politico Gets the Lede Way Wrong – and The Hill Buries It
Opinion -As we’ve often discussed, the Tech World Media is just as hopelessly Leftist and lost as the broader Jurassic Press. They so often get it so very wrong - often because their absurd political perspective warps their alleged “reporting. -
L.A. Superintendent Deasy’s Exit Facilitated by Teachers Unions
Opinion -John Deasy has stepped down after three-and-a-half years as Los Angeles Schools Superintendent and is facing mixed reviews. Like many reform-minded superintendents, Deasy had a lot of enemies, namely the teachers unions. -
Florida Teachers Union Re-Files Slightly Altered Lawsuit
Opinion -The Florida Education Association, the state’s main teachers union, is reviving its failed lawsuit against expansion of the state’s tax credit scholarship program aiding special needs students. -
Congress, White House in Keystone Showdown
Opinion -The much-delayed Keystone XL pipeline has taken center stage in Washington, DC in the wake of the 2014 midterm elections.Trying to boost the reelection chances of Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Senate Democrats agreed to a vote on the pipeline. -
Charters Fly, Fail, and Outperform in 2014
Opinion -Access to charter schools is driving increases in student achievement in some of the nation’s toughest locales for education. -
The Wildly Contentious History of Public School Teaching
Opinion -Review of The Teacher Wars: A History of America’s Most Embattled Profession, by Dana Goldstein, Doubleday, 368 pages, $17. -
Jindal’s Controversial Teacher Tenure Law Upheld
Opinion -A two-year battle in Louisiana over procedures for removing ineffective school teachers ended Oct. 15 when the state’s Supreme Court upheld the state’s effort to change the tenure laws. -
California Parent Empowerment Efforts Showing Signs of Success
Opinion -Nearly five years after California passed the nation’s first-ever “Parent Trigger” legislation, parents at only a handful of failing schools have taken advantage of the law’s potent remedies in the face of ferocious opposition. -
Internet Sales Tax Fails in Lame Duck Session
Opinion -Despite protests from trade groups and some state governors, U.S. House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner has remained resolute in his refusal to allow the Marketplace Fairness Act to receive a hearing on the House floor. -
More Mythbusting from the Incidental Economist
Opinion -I've mentioned before that I'm a fan of the blog The Incidental Economist, run by Dr. Aaron Carroll and economist Austin Frakt, which focuses on health care policy. As I tell people, they're frequently wrong but always insightful. -
Preschool Creates No Lasting Achievement Gains, Study Finds
Opinion -A new study has found the current state of research on the effectiveness of universal preschool does not justify government intervention to establish such programs. In “The Evidence on Universal Preschool: Are Benefits Worth the Cost?” Dr. David J. -
Teachers Unions Spent Big Money on This Year’s Elections
Opinion -Teachers unions spent big money during this election season: an estimated $40 million by the NEA (National Education Association) and $20 million by the AFT (American Federation of Teachers). The NEA’s super-PAC spent $12.