Missouri’s Stagnant Reading Scores
The COVID-19 pandemic began over five years ago. Students in 7th grade during the initial phase of remote learning are...
Senate Bill 68: Another Education Omnibus, Part 2
In Part 1 of the post, I detail the journey Senate Bill (SB) 68 took to become another education omnibus...
Should Missouri Consider a 3rd-Grade Retention Policy?
Do you think students should get promoted to the next grade if they do not understand grade-level material? There are...
Comparing the Performance of Public Schools in the City of St. Louis
One common argument against charter schools is that some have low test scores. It’s true that some charter schools, particularly...
Is There a Comeback Story in Missouri Schools?
The 2024 Summer Olympics have come to a close, and there were so many amazing storylines such as Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone...
Missouri Needs More Market Forces in Education
In a recent Show-Me Institute paper, Why Markets Matter in Education, Dr. Michael McShane effectively summarizes the importance of free...
Are Missouri Students in School Enough?
Recently, I came across a fascinating paper from Matthew Kraft of Brown University and Sarah Novicoff of Stanford University about...
What if We Decided to Lean in to Testing?
The College Board’s Advanced Placement (AP) program teaches college-level coursework to high school students and then tests their knowledge with...
Should More Missouri Students Be Held Back?
Around the country, states are considering implementing policies that would hold back a larger number of 3rd graders who are...
20 Missouri Districts Seek Exemption from the Missouri Assessment Program (Part 2)
Twenty districts in Missouri are seeking a federal waiver in order to be exempt from the Missouri Assessment Program (MAP)....
20 Missouri Districts Seek Exemption from the Missouri Assessment Program
At the most recent state board of education meeting, 20 school districts requested a federal waiver to be exempt from...
Missouri Parents’ Bill of Rights
Introducing the Missouri Parents’ Bill of Rights Too often, local officials have resisted oversight of Missouri public schools and districts....
What the Heck Is Happening Out There?
In the midst of a pandemic, it’s hard to say exactly what’s going on. But here is a bit of...
Is This What Full Accreditation Looks Like?
On Tuesday morning, the Missouri Board of Education voted unanimously to grant full accreditation to the St. Louis Public School...
Statewide MAP Results Are Out, and They Don’t Look Great
Do you remember the feeling you’d get as a student, when the teacher was handing back exams—especially when you weren’t...
How Much Testing Is Too Much?
From a student’s point of view, standardized testing is stressful, particularly in the elementary school years. It can also be...
Does An Underfunded Formula Really Hurt Schools?
Does “underfunding” have a detrimental impact on Missouri school districts? The people at the Missouri Budget Project think so. According...
Springfield School Choice Kerfuffle
On Feb. 17, the Springfield News-Leader published an article I wrote about private school choice. In that piece, I tell...
Charter Performance I: Communication Arts
The performance of charter schools in Missouri often is the subject of much scrutiny. Ideally, we would evaluate schools not...
Successfully Competing For Students
In 2000, 48 percent of parents in the Maplewood-Richmond Heights School District chose to opt out of that public school...
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