Ednext Podcast

The political debate over charter schools often turns on their impact on students in traditional district schools. Marty West talks with Sarah Cordes about her new research on this topic: “Charters and the Common Good: The spillover effects of charter schools in New York City” Read the full article here: http://educationnext.org/charters-and-common-good-spillover-effects-charter-schools-new-york-city/

Charter schools have long fought to get their fair share of per pupil funding. Parker Baxter joins Marty West to discuss how two states have passed breakthrough laws mandating that charters have equitable access to local funds. Parker Baxter, scholar in residence at the University of Colorado Denver School of Public Affairs, is co-author, with Todd Ely and Paul Teske, of "A Bigger Slice of the Money Pie," on how charter schools in Colorado and Florida have gained a larger share of local tax dollars. Read the article here: http://educationnext.org/bigger-slice-of-the-money-pie-charters-colorado-florida-win-share-local-tax-dollars/

James Spillane joins EdNext editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss how school administrators can use classroom assignments to promote teacher interaction, which is the subject of his new article, "The Schoolhouse Network." Read the full article here: http://educationnext.org/schoolhouse-network-how-school-buildings-affect-teacher-collaboration/

EdNext editor in chief Marty West and senior editor Paul E. Peterson discuss the top Education Next articles of 2017. Read the Top 20 Education Next Articles of 2017 here: http://educationnext.org/top-20-education-next-articles-2017/

In many school districts, parents are fighting for later high school start times so that their teenagers can get the sleep they need. Earlier this month, the Boston School Committee announced that it would start high schools later and elementary schools earlier, but not all parents are happy about the change. In this episode, we revisit an interview with Finley Edwards, the author of “Do Schools Begin Too Early?” about his findings that later school start times increase student achievement in math and reading and have many other benefits. Read Edwards' original piece here: http://educationnext.org/do-schools-begin-too-early/

Lenora Chu, an American journalist, decided to send her son to a local public school when she and her family relocated to Shanghai. In this episode of the podcast, she talks with Marty West about what she learned about the Chinese education system, which is also the topic of her new book, Little Soldiers: An American Boy, A Chinese School, and the Global Race to Achieve. You can read a print interview of Lenora Chu conducted by Michelle Rhee for Education Next here: http://educationnext.org/american-perspective-on-chinese-schooling-lenora-chu-little-soldiers-michelle-rhee

The expectations teachers have for how far students will go with their education have an impact on how much education those students actually complete. And white teachers have lower expectations for black students than for similarly situated white students. To better understand these dynamics, Marty West talks with Seth Gershenson about his new study, “The Power of Teacher Expectations: How racial bias hinders student attainment,” co-authored with Nicholas Papageorge. Read the article here: http://educationnext.org/power-of-teacher-expectations-racial-bias-hinders-student-attainment/

On election day last week, voters in Douglas County, Colorado elected a slate of school board members who want to undo the reforms embraced by the last board. Max Eden, a Senior Fellow at the Manhattan Institute, joins EdNext Editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss the results of the election, and in particular, what they mean for school choice efforts nationwide. Read Eden's recap of election night here: http://educationnext.org/reflections-on-election-in-douglas-county-colorado/

How much does summer vacation disrupt student learning and how much does it contribute to achievement gaps? In this episode, David M. Quinn of the Rossier School of Education at USC joins EdNext Editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss how researchers analyze summer learning loss and how it varies by student background. Quinn wrote "Summer Learning Loss: What Is It, and What Can We Do About It?," with Morgan S. Polikoff: http://educationnext.org/summer-learning-loss-what-is-it-what-can-we-do-about-it/

Eva Moskowitz, the founder of Success Academy Charter Network, joins EdNext Editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss her new memoir, The Education of Eva Moskowitz, and the role of charter schools in New York City. Read a review of her book here: http://educationnext.org/success-story-review-education-of-eva-moskowitz-memoir-success-academy/

Western Governors University has earned praise for its innovative model of competency-based learning. But the U.S. Department of Education’s Inspector General has called for the government to bar WGU students from federal student aid programs. In this episode, Michael Horn of the Christensen Institute joins EdNext Editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss the WGU model and why a government audit found it wanting. Horn wrote about this in a recent blog post, “Government Accountability Goes Unaccountable: Chilling WGU’s Innovation Engine," available at: http://educationnext.org/government-accountability-goes-unaccountable-chilling-wgus-innovation-engine/

Tom Vander Ark joins EdNext editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss the benefits of technology in schools and why it would be a mistake to reject the use of computers in the classroom. In a new EdNext forum on whether screen time in schools should be limited, Tom wrote “The Problem Is Wasted Time, not Screen Time.” http://educationnext.org/problem-is-wasted-time-not-screen-time-forum-scoggin-vander-ark/

How does the current array of technology in schools fit with the ages-old aspiration of forming thoughtful and reflective young men and women who will strive for a greater good beyond themselves? That’s the question Daniel Scoggin raises in his half of a new Education Next forum, “Should We Limit Screen Time in School?” Read his article, "Putting Dialogue over Devices Shapes Mind and Character," here: http://educationnext.org/putting-dialogue-over-devices-shapes-mind-and-character-forum-scoggin-vander-ark

In a speech last week at Harvard University, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos noted that a new study from the Urban Institute finds that a Florida program designed to expand access to private schools has helped more low income students enroll in college. In this episode of the podcast, Matt Chingos, one of the authors of the study, talks with Marty West about how the Florida Tax Credit scholarship program works, how the effects of the program were studied, and how his findings fit in with those of other studies of voucher and tax credit programs. Matt wrote about the study for EdNext in "Private School Choice Increases College Enrollment in Florida. Could It Work Nationally?" http://educationnext.org/private-school-choice-increases-college-enrollment-florida-work-nationally/

Read Rob's article, "How to Avoid Getting Ripped Off by Ed-Tech Vendors," here: http://educationnext.org/how-to-avoid-getting-ripped-off-ed-tech-vendors-ten-tips/

Brian A. Jacob of the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan joins EdNext Editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss the causes and consequences of chronic absenteeism in schools. Jacob wrote about this subject with Kelly Lovett here: http://educationnext.org/chronic-absenteeism-old-problem-search-new-answers/

As Ashley Berner explains in a new book, public education does not have to mean that all schools are the same. In earlier days, and in other countries, the government is the regulator of schools and provides quality control but does not directly operate all schools. This version of public education may better reflect American democracy, Berner notes. Ashley Berner joins Marty West to discuss pluralism and public education in this week's episode of the EdNext podcast. A blog entry she wrote based on her book appeared earlier this year: http://educationnext.org/to-improve-education-america-look-beyond-traditional-school-model/ Also, Robert Pondiscio reviewed her book for EdNext: http://educationnext.org/pitfalls-of-uniform-state-run-public-education-berner/

Robert Pondiscio joins EdNext Editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss the curriculum-driven reform efforts led by the Louisiana Department of Education. Robert is the author of a new article, "Louisiana Threads the Needle on Ed Reform: Launching a coherent curriculum in a local-control state," available at: http://educationnext.org/louisiana-threads-the-needle-ed-reform-launching-coherent-curriculum-local-control/

Susan Payne Carter, assistant professor of economics at the United States Military Academy, joins EdNext editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss her new study which found that students whose professors banned laptops and tablets from class outperformed students whose professors allowed the devices. Read the full study here: http://educationnext.org/should-professors-ban-laptops-classroom-computer-use-affects-student-learning-study/

In the 2017 EdNext poll on school reform, parents were asked whether they would rather send their child to a two-year college, a four-year college, or neither. When respondents are given information about the costs and benefits of the different options, this changes the decisions of some respondents, but not others. EdNext editor-in-chief Marty West sits down with senior editor Paul E. Peterson to discuss how different groups respond. Read the findings of the 2017 EdNext Poll here: http://educationnext.org/2017-ednext-poll-school-reform-public-opinion-school-choice-common-core-higher-ed/