A recent report from the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty attempts to compare student test score performance for the 2015-16 school year across Wisconsin’s public schools, charter schools, and private schools participating in one of the state’s voucher programs. Though it highlights important patterns in student test score performance, the report’s limited analyses fail to provide answers as to the relative effectiveness of school choice policies.
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CASTLE ROCK, Colo. -- What if your kid started and ended their day with wrestling? Such a thing exists on a campus in Castle Rock because of a partnership between an online charter school and a non-profit wrestling club.
Luke Morris is one of the head coaches and a principal at Sons of Thunder Academy. It is a unique opportunity as most of the students can adjust their education according to their training commitments, all while stepping outside of a traditional classroom setting.
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The National Society of High School Scholars (NSHSS) selected Alison Ramos to become a member of their organization. “On behalf of NSHSS, I am honored to recognize the hard work, sacrifice and commitment that Alison has demonstrated to achieve this exceptional level of academic excellence,” Claes Nobel NSHSS founder and chairman said. “Alison is now a member of a unique community of scholars — a community that represents our very best hope for the future.”
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When Garrett Ziss, 13, held the 200-year-old half-cent piece, he felt a direct link to the days when Baltimore’s Washington Monument rose on what was then the edge of the city.
His imagination came alive: Had President George Washington’s contemporaries held the same one? Had any of the holders fought in the War of 1812 in Baltimore’s harbor?
Sitting around a table inside the Maryland Historical Society, the young numismatist joined local historians to inspect and record details about two dozen coins and medals discovered two years ago in the monument’s two time capsules.
“These coins have been hidden away for 200 years,” said Garrett, of West Chester, Pa. “The last people who held these coins were probably people who knew George Washington.”
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Morgan, a Conifer resident, started doing nature photography about two years ago after playing with his mom’s iPhone. Since then, one of his photos — a close-up shot of a many-spotted white tiger moth laying a pool of pearly eggs — was picked as a finalist in the 2016 National History Museum’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year contest’s “10 and Under” division, earning it a spot in the annual competition book and a fair amount of press.
Read more about virtual school student Morgan here.
A recent Gallup poll found bipartisan support for federal funding of school choice programs.
“The other two Trump proposals that generate more agreement than disagreement from Americans are cutting taxes for the middle class and providing federal funding for school-choice programs that allow students to attend any private or public school,” Gallup reported. “Republicans strongly support both of these proposals, and Democrats are more likely to agree than disagree with them, although by slim margins.”
In its “National School Choice Poll” the American Federation for Children (AFC) found that 68% of likely voters support school choice, and 72% supported the creation of a federal tax credit program.
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STEVENS POINT — There was no contentious discussion about hot-topic issues. Buzzwords such as success factor and private school multipliers weren’t debated.
Maybe a calm WIAA annual meeting Wednesday at the Holiday Inn Convention Center wasn’t a bad thing as the state looks toward the future of high school athletics, Madison Memorial athletic director Jeremy Schlitz said.
“My biggest takeaway is that things have been pretty intense the last few years,” said Schlitz, who also is the Madison school district athletic director. “This will allow us to reset and reorganize our priorities.”
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As our nation marks National Teacher Appreciation Week, I want to recognize my algebra teacher, Pamela Carpenter, for inspiring me to do my best in all of my classes at Michigan Virtual Charter Academy.
My academic journey has not been easy. I’m in ninth grade, but have attended many different schools. Due to medical issues, I’ve had a hard time in my classes, especially in traditional, brick-and-mortar settings. I have done poorly in school and even flunked classes and repeated a grade – mostly due to the number of classes I missed because of my health problems.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. -- In today's polarized environment, it can often be hard to discern the truth. So allow me to lay out two facts plainly and clearly: I believe every student should have an equal opportunity to get a great education. And I believe many of those great educations are, and will continue to be, provided by traditional public schools.
These are not new views for me. You may just never have heard them if you only read about my views in the press.
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The controversy surrounding U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos has brought into stark relief the battle lines in the debate over educational choice in America. Opponents of educational freedom continue to assert that choice is risky, unproven, and dangerous to public education systems. Broad educational options, they say, must be stopped or rolled back. These opponents seem woefully unaware that they are fighting a battle they’ve already lost.
The current state of educational choice in America makes clear that while bitter skirmishes continue, the war for educational choice—public and private—is over. Choice won.
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