FYI from BSF, 10.15.21

Education 2021

With so much evidence of gaps in schools in the past weeks, it was welcome to see education data that display some form of uniformity.

Boston voters really care about improving Boston schools.

They care a lot, with over 80% of Boston voters in this week’s mayoral poll reporting "improving Boston public schools" as a major priority. The same mayoral poll showed wide support for an elected school committee (analysis here), and for schools to address unfinished learning.

We never accept data here on its face; no topline or average can pass without a look at subgroups. Which is what makes this finding so very clear - it is true across the board for Boston voters.

Doesn’t matter your voting preference (or if you’re undecided).

Your race.

Your age (wow, look at 18-29 year olds).

Your income.

Your neighborhood.

Even your political affiliation.

Show us where this is true anywhere on any issue, particularly in national politics.

The first debate of the final mayoral election was held on Wednesday. Education was discussed for 6 minutes and 2 seconds, with questions around student assignment and Superintendent Cassellius (clip here). There are other debates to come, but there will likely be no standalone public forum on the number one issue on voters’ minds. Sound bites may be all we have to go on.

The clock for schools as a campaign issue runs out in 19 days. But with this level of voter interest and potential accountability, the clock for schools as a governing issue will run at least four years.

The new mayor will have a clear mandate, and high expectations to meet.

Reopening Boston, MA and Beyond

Boston School Committee held a retreat on Tuesday to discuss their calendar and governing structures.  Deck here.

The state’s weekly report of COVID-19 in schools showed virtually no change from last week, with an uptick in testing activity.  A modest proposal: if Massachusetts starts running low on National Guard members, maybe do pool testing on the bus?

This Post article captures the uneasy equilibrium between safety and normalcy in schools right now.  How are middle schoolers experiencing this?  As profiled, there are Boston families that cannot accept the risk for their medically fragile children.

Look for NYC Mayor DeBlasio’s push to end gifted and talented programs to reverberate in think pieces and local politics (e.g., Boston’s “advanced work classes,” exam schools, etc.).

The pandemic undoubtedly interrupted learning, but new data show evidence of learning decline in American schools well before March 2020: the “Nation’s Report Card” is showing its first drop since the test began in 1970.

While negotiations continue in Washington DC, academics make the case to prioritize universal PreK.
 

Other Matters

Education research was central for this year’s winners of the Nobel Prize for Economics, including studies in Boston.