School districts and educators chafing under the mandates of the No Child Left Behind Act are hoping to prod the U.S. Department of Education into giving them a reprieve from the provisions they see as most onerous, as the prospects for an overhaul of the law by Congress anytime soon remain cloudy. The Obama administration and congressional…

It's been a rough time for the image of K-12 virtual education. Studies in Colorado and Minnesota have suggested that full-time online students are struggling to match the achievement levels of their peers in brick-and-mortar schools. Articles in "The New York Times" questioned not only the academic results for students in virtual schools, but…

Of all the recent budget cuts made by the Eagle County, Colorado, school district--the loss of 89 staff jobs through attrition and layoffs, a 1.5 percent across-the-board pay cut, and the introduction of three furlough days--none sparked as much anger or faced the same scrutiny as the decision to cut three foreign-language teaching positions and…

If it's the squeaky wheel that gets the grease, middle-class children are more likely than their lower-income peers to grow up learning how to make the gears of the education system turn smoothly. Working-class parents, meanwhile, tend to raise their children to avoid conflict and be self-sufficient in problem-solving, an Indiana University…

Through order and English immersion, a network of charter schools strives to turn Latino students into informed citizens and leaders inside and outside the community. Chicago-based United Neighborhood Organization, or UNO, is a Latino advocacy group with a history of community organizing. The group recently received a $98 million grant from the…

Groups that advocate on behalf of specific disabilities are proliferating, fueled by a medical establishment that can trace disorders down to their very genes and a communication system that can easily connect people around the globe. However, some advocates worry that too much focus on autism or Down syndrome, even on the presidential-campaign…

New Jersey lawmakers recently changed state law to require schools to bear the burden of proving, if there is a dispute with parents, that the educational plans they create for students with disabilities are appropriate. The state's action, which follows a similar move by New York state in August, is considered a success by parents and advocacy…

The Education Leaders Council (ELC), founded by dissident state policymakers nearly a decade ago to push a conservative agenda and now the recipient of millions in federal dollars, is trying to resolve questions about its management. Members of the board of directors have voiced concerns in recent months to Chief Executive Officer Lisa Graham…

For years, Marilyn Arons, 67, has taught parents how to use the main federal special education law to get the most appropriate education for their children. And now, the role of experts such as Ms. Arons is at the center of a U.S. Supreme Court case that will be heard next week. The case, which began in 1997, involves New York state's Arlington…

Documentary films that have become classroom classics are running into problems, because their expired rights are preventing schools from obtaining copies. No totals are available on how many films' rights have expired, or how many may soon expire, but the viewing public--including educators--has cause for worry. When rights expire and copies…

John Tinker and Mary Beth Tinker are back in a classroom in their hometown, once again wearing black armbands and drawing attention to a war. Now in their 50s, the siblings are living symbols of constitutional rights for secondary school students. In 1965, they and a handful of others were suspended for wearing black armbands to their public…

Private school students with special needs are among the intended beneficiaries of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Parents and private school advocates hope changes in the newest version of the law will make it easier for them to get school district services without having to enroll in public schools. Under the…

These articles highlight reactions to the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark ruling upholding the Cleveland voucher program. "Justices Settle Case, Nettle Policy Debate" (Mark Walsh) discusses how the ruling has rejuvenated the school choice movement and reinvigorated debates over how best to improve education for all students. "Voucher…

In this article, the author reports some 3,800 near-simultaneous "house parties" organized throughout Pennsylvania to call on their federal lawmakers to put more money into education. The parties, in which three-quarters of them were organized by teachers such as Jane Dugdale, are the main election-season event of a new coalition of…

In Baltimore, Chicago, New York, Oakland, California and Philadelphia, to name a few cities where it has been active, Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) has emerged as a major player in K-12 in education issues. Its army of organizers has tackled everything from a lack of stop signs to such vexing issues as teacher…