Reason Foundation

Recent Research and Commentary

Lower Standards in Schools: Preschool Edition

October 30, 2009, 3:23pm

Lisa Snell

States have wildly different proficiency requirements and 15 states have lowered proficiency standards to meet the No Child Left Behind requirements since 2005. Two of states with the lowest expectations for k-12 students are spending millions on universal preschool.

Obama Takes the Easy Out: Leaves Thousands of DC Children Behind

May 7, 2009, 1:29pm

Lisa Snell

Obama's budget will fund the current DC voucher recipients but will close the program to any new students.

NCLB is NOT Closing Achievement Gap

April 29, 2009, 12:57pm

Lisa Snell

The National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) 2008 Long -Term Trends also demonstrates that billions in federal funding for the No Child Left Behind Act has not led to smaller achievement gaps between whites and other sub-groups of more disadvantaged children.

Seventeen Year Olds Show No Improvement on Nation's Report Card

April 29, 2009, 12:02pm

Lisa Snell

The National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) 2008 Long-Term Trends reports that seventeen year olds have not made progress on national tests in reading and math since the early 1970s.

Schoolhouse Crock Part II: Education Stimulus Cash in Exchange for Data

April 2, 2009, 12:53pm

Lisa Snell

Education Secretary Arne Duncan's call for states to report more data in exchange for stimulus cash is similar to calls for data reporting under NO Child Left Behind. Little will change unless states actually have to change student performance in exchange for cash.

Differences Between Obama's Education Speech And His Adminstration's Actions

March 18, 2009, 6:30pm

Lisa Snell

The president endorsed the expansion of innovative charter schools, performance pay for teachers, and the elimination of ineffective teachers. Good stuff. But there doesn't seem to be any real action on any of those items.

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