After the long-fought battle against her confirmation on Capitol Hill, Secretary Betsy DeVos has been stirring things up in her first few weeks on the job. Among other things, she has attacked public school teachers, bashed protesters, did not participate in the first Twitter chat her department had for teachers on Feb. 21, added more confusion on Common Core Standards, and made it clear her priority will be pushing for school choice. This week, we offer up some of the latest insights on potential policy challenges and changes to expect in education this year and other top stories on ed tech and teaching.
So Far, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos Is Just What Her Critics Feared
In a brief time, Secretary DeVos has already shown herself to be what her critics have worried about since she became a nominee. To advocates of public education, the absence of mentioning traditional schools is alarming. Check out The Washington Post’s latest analysis of her first days on the job. Read more
What Betsy DeVos Means for Education Technology
Betsy DeVos’ confirmation for the Secretary of Education finally went through, and it’s created a lot of big concerns for schools. In both K-12 and higher education, Secretary DeVos will usher in a new era of technology innovation. Read more
5 Policy Headaches and Opportunities for U.S. Education Businesses Under DeVos
At this time, the only clear policy direction coming from the Department of Education seems to be its desire to “return power in education back to parents, communities, and states.” Already there are amendments that would change accountability rules regarding ESSA, which will prove problematic for businesses supporting the education industry. There are five policy issues that ed tech companies are watching closely. Read more
6 Significant Challenges for Technology in Higher Education in 2017
In a new report, a panel of higher-ed experts talk through the biggest challenges that will create difficulties with technology adoption on college campuses this year – including the problem with digital literacy, integrating formal/informal learning, and how to solve the achievement gap with technology. Read more
5 Ways Teachers Are Fighting Fake News
According to a recent study from Stanford, students at nearly every grade can’t differentiate between fake and reliable news, showing that they lack the critical thinking skills. NPR recently asked for teachers to submit stories about how they’re teaching media literacy – check out the top five stories. Read more
What School Leaders Must Learn About Equity
ESSA offers the chance for school administrators to improve cultural competency, in a number of ways. Superintendents from various districts around the U.S. are all saying they want effective training on confronting and remedying equity in education. It’s up to states to develop the capacity to create learning opportunities for their teachers as well as their leadership. Read more
