I discussed pandemic schooling with some fantastic Texas principals in this webinar hosted by the Bush Center.
This push, in many places but perhaps most high profile in NYC, to put a lid on remote learning for the fall seems ill-conceived. The fall will be unpredictable, there could be disruptions, there will be hesitancy and trust issues, and parents want more options anyway. This latter point seems big? If the goal is broadening and deepening public support for public education then offering more options, especially now after the pandemic experience, seems like a good strategy?
For reformers, this seems like a good political fight to pick. Picking smart targets is a key part of any movement and the totalizing let’s stamp out derivation approach seems like an unforced error and a place to have a debate about responding to the pandemic specifically and a more inclusive approach to public education more generally. It’s a good place to force a choice because it’s not theater, it matters to how people live their lives.
From the Aspen Institute’s Project Play – some cause for concern around gender and sports, and as always personal finance and access to sports.
And also from Project Play’s Reimagining School Sports Initiative* a new deep dive look at large rural high schools and sports. Earlier report on charter schools and more to come this year.
Just as free college isn’t really free, forgiving student loan debt wouldn’t be free, either. It would benefit many college graduates whose degrees already enable them to pursue higher-earning careers and pay off their loans. And it would come at a cost to taxpayers, including those who haven’t earned a college credential.
The irony of the debate over student loan debt cancellation is that the degree itself puts most college graduates in a pretty good position to pay off their loans. For most adults with a bachelor’s degree, the student debt burden is relatively low…
…Canceling some amount of student loan debt across the board would promote racial, gender, and economic equity among college graduates and aid adults who were unable to finish their degrees or earn enough to make loan payments. It would disproportionately help the groups that are likely to hold student debt and to hold it in greater amounts. However, under a broad student loan cancellation program, more of the funds would go to higher-income college graduates who are already in a good financial situation to pay off their loans.
Targeted student loan cancellation would be more complex, but it would have the potential to focus relief on the students who need it most…
*I’m on the advisory board.