Race to the Top
Education news, analysis, and opinion about the federal grant program to states that encouraged education reform from 2010 to 2013
We are no longer updating this page
We are no longer updating this page
See also: Federal Policy, Department of Education
College & Workforce Readiness
Importance of SAT, ACT Scores Dwindling in College Admissions
A new survey shows that colleges are responding to the call to make SAT or ACT scores optional when students apply for admission.
College & Workforce Readiness
High School Students Getting More Interested in Activism, Counselors Report
Counselors at half of the nation's high schools say students are getting more interested in political activism. More than a third of college admissions officers say they're seeing more students write essays about political activism.
College & Workforce Readiness
A Math Remediation Effort Boosted Students' College Credits. But Did Learning Improve?
Tennessee offers college remediation in 12th grade, and it pays off with boosting students' enrollment rates in credit-bearing classes. The catch? Students didn't appear to be any stronger in math than their peers.
College & Workforce Readiness
Does Your School Post Its 'Profile' Online? And Why That Matters for College Admission
Students at high schools with large low-income populations could be at a disadvantage when applying to college because of a little-known document that's part of the process: each high school's "school profile."
College & Workforce Readiness
High School Counselors Think Colleges Should Drop SAT, ACT Requirements
A pair of new surveys shows deep skepticism about the value of college-admissions exams among high school counselors and college-admissions leaders. Both groups also worry about too much pressure to take AP courses, and lack of equal access to those classes.
Education Funding
Opinion
Teacher Evaluation Is Stuck in the Past
Race to the Top is over, but the initiative is still driving teacher-evaluation policies and priorities, write two professors.
Federal
Ed. Sec. Bus Tour: From Early Education Through College
U.S. Secretary of Education John King kicked off a bus tour Monday that will go through six states and eleven cities and towns, ending in New Orleans on Friday at a charter school that has seen a significant turnaround.
Education Funding
Free Teaching Website Expands on EngageNY's Mission
The new nonprofit, known as UnboundEd, is offering teachers free common-core-aligned curricular materials and paid professional development.
Education Funding
Letter to the Editor
Policies, Not Administrators, to Blame for Teacher-Evaluation System
To the Editor:
Charlotte Danielson's Commentary included many good ideas about teacher development ("It's Time to Rethink Teacher Evaluation").
Charlotte Danielson's Commentary included many good ideas about teacher development ("It's Time to Rethink Teacher Evaluation").
Education Funding
Report Roundup
Race to Top Grants Spur Mixed Successes for Seven States
With the crush of news about the Every Student Succeeds Act, Race to the Top may not be as high-profile as it once was—but states can learn from the competitive-grant program, according to a new U.S. Department of Education report.
Student Well-Being
Opinion
Another Brick in the (Data) Wall
We used to believe, as public educators, that our product was our students--their eventual contribution as advanced scholars, civic-minded community members, and part of the labor force. All of that has changed. Our product now is publicly displayed test scores. Our data.
Education Funding
New Analysis of States' Race to the Top Work Released by Ed. Department
States reported both successes and struggles in work funded by the Race to the Top competitive-grant program, a U.S. Department of Education report says.
Education Funding
A Tennessee District Perseveres in Wake of Online-Testing Woes
The state pulled the plug on new online tests aligned to the common core, but school leaders in Kingsport, Tenn., see it as a temporary setback in implementing the news standards and assessments.
Education Funding
Opinion
With ESSA Passage, Delaware Offers Lessons
Paul Herdman of the Rodel Foundation of Delaware checks in where his state is after RTTT and how the state's education plan can serve as a model for other states responding to ESSA's reduction of federal oversight.
