Today, the U.S. Department of Education canceled over $350 million in contracts and grants to several Regional Educational Laboratories and Equity Assistance Centers, claiming the review of the contracts uncovered “wasteful and ideologically driven spending not in the interest of students and taxpayers.” The Department of Education terminated 10 contracts totaling $336 million with the […]
Franchesca Warren
For fifteen years Franchesca taught English/Language Arts in two urban districts in Atlanta, Georgia, and Memphis, Tennessee. Increasingly frustrated with decisions being made about public education from people who were not in the classroom, in 2012 she decided to start a blog about what it was really like to teach in public schools. In the last four years, The Educator's Room has grown to become the premiere source for resources, tools, and strategies for all things teaching and learning. To learn more about Franchesca Warren's work, please visit www.franchescalanewarren.com.
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
2024 NAEP reading scores show declines, Highlighting challenges in student achievement
The latest results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), also known as The Nation’s Report Card, reveal that the nation’s fourth- and eighth-graders continue to struggle to regain academic ground lost during the pandemic. While there are some encouraging signs in mathematics, reading scores have declined further, raising concerns among education experts. The […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
After Trump Bans DEI, Air Force pulls class with Tuskegee Airmen video
Update: On Sunday, the U.S. Air Force said it will resume instruction of trainees using a video about the first Black airmen in the U.S. military, known as the Tuskegee Airmen, which has passed a review to ensure compliance with President Donald Trump’s ban on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The Air Force has temporarily […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education
U.S. Department of Education Dismisses Complaints on “Book Bans” and Ends Related Oversight
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced on Friday that it has dismissed 11 complaints about removing certain books from school libraries. The complaints alleged that local school districts created a hostile environment for students by eliminating materials deemed age-inappropriate, sexually explicit, or obscene. OCR also announced it has rescinded department […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education
President-elect Trump appoints Penny Schwinn as United States Deputy Secretary of Education
President-elect Trump appointed Penny Schwinn as the next United States Deputy Secretary of Education. Schwinn previously served as the Tennessee Department of Education Commissioner and vice President for PK-12 and pre-bachelor programs at the University of Florida and the Texas Education Agency. On late Friday, Trump announced the pick on Truth Social but initially misspelled […]
Posted inAsk the Educator's Room
Massive PowerSchool Data Breach Exposes Historical Student and Teacher Records Across U.S. Schools
School districts across the United States are grappling with the fallout of a cyberattack on edtech giant PowerSchool, which resulted in the unauthorized access of personal data from millions of current and former students and teachers. The breach, first detected on December 28, 2024, compromised PowerSchool’s customer support portal and provided attackers access to the […]
Posted inInterviews
Dr. Mike Dunn: Trailblazing Educator Instilling a Passion for Wonder and Curiosity in the Classroom
If you look at Dr. Mike Dunn’s resume, you’ll almost immediately guess he loves adventure and the outdoors. But to meet him is to meet someone deeply passionate about education and ensure all students and their community’s complex needs are met. I first met Mike ten-plus years ago- he started writing for The Educator’s Room […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
House Passes Social Security Fairness Act to Address WEP and GPO Reductions
Today in the Oval Office, President Biden Sunday signed the Social Security Fairness Act, repealing two statutes that have reduced payouts to public sector workers, including teachers, for decades. “The bill I’m signing today is about a simple proposition,” Biden said before signing the Social Security Fairness Act. “Americans who have worked hard all their […]