Latest Coverage

"No one denies that the governor's proposal is a bold move to provide California's lower-income children with a better chance for an education. But already some in the Legislature - particularly those in suburban districts - are crying foul. In the zero-sum game of education funding, where state resources are at a premium, the governor may have just unleashed a tidal wave of controversy about how much the state should help disadvantaged children."

"Children who enrolled in Head Start at 3 years of age improved more than children who started Head Start at age 4. More generally, studies show that children reared in poverty during their first 5 to 6 years have substantially poorer long-term educational, health and economic outcomes than children reared in poverty after 5 to 6 years of age. So the early years are very important."

"Through Providence Talks, researchers and policy makers are likely to learn much more about whether pulling this language lever can really help level the academic playing field. At the same time, however, by asking scores of regular parents to opt into massive, data-driven recording and analysis of all the language their children hear in their first few years, and then encouraging them to change the personal matter of how they talk to their kids as a result, they are launching a project of unprecedented scope and audacity."

"Chronic absenteeism - kids missing more than 10 percent of the school year, or about 18 days - is just as big a problem as mobility, according to reports from states or districts that track that data. In 2011-12, more than 2,300 K-3 students in Greater Cincinnati fell into that category, according to the fledgling Read On! Attendance Collaborative. The coalition of non-profit education and community groups is starting to track absenteeism for the first time."

"Aging & Long Term Care of Southeast Washington, the agency providing services to seniors and people with disabilities in eight counties including Benton and Franklin, expects to lose $160,000 to sequestration if an alternative isn't adopted by Congress."

"Such disparity perpetuates a cycle of poverty, keeping even the smartest, hardest-working kids out of academic environments that might help them climb out of the economic basement. High achievers who forgo an education at a top-flight school could lose millions of dollars in earnings over a lifetime by forfeiting opportunities that a big-name diploma could bring."

"A big new study from Caroline M. Hoxby and Christopher Avery finds that high-achieving kids from poorer families are much less likely to apply to top colleges, even even though they would have a very good shot at getting in and qualifying for financial aid. And here's the stunning part: For many of those low-income students, the top colleges would actually be cheaper than the schools they do end up going to again, because of financial aid."

"The near-peer influence of those recent college graduates who shepherd high school and college students to a four-year degree works: So far, 58 percent of students who've participated in the program in its initial location of Minneapolis-St. Paul have earned bachelor's degrees."

"Most high schools with large numbers of low-income students still resemble the Central Magnet of the 1980s, based on the results of the new study, which is by Caroline M. Hoxby of Stanford and Christopher Avery of Harvard. The students do not apply to selective colleges partly because the colleges have not been aggressive in recruiting them. And even if a college has reached them and urged them to come, many students cannot fathom doing so. They may not know anyone who has attended such a college, Ms. Hoxby notes."

"Compared to people in other age groups, more individuals under age 3 live in poverty and are more likely to experience developmental problems. Early childhood education helps to mitigate the disparities caused by poverty. Programs like Early Head Start, which serves pregnant women and children from birth to three years, offer services through individualized plans to children and their families."

"Just 9 percent of students from the poorest families complete a degree -- meaning less than a third who ever enroll make it to commencement. By comparison, 54 percent of the most wealthy students earn a diploma, meaning they have about a two-thirds success rate."

"The Texas Education Agency estimates that for next fiscal year, up to $51 million in federal money could be slashed from special-education programs and $65.4 million from Title I, a federal initiative that aids low-income students, along with cuts to teacher professional development, career-technical programs and English language acquisition classes."