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FAILING AMERICA’S STUDENTS.  As Mark Anthony once said, “if you have tears, prepare to shed them now.” The latest American College Testing (ACT) scores are out, assessing readiness of high school seniors to succeed in college, and it’s not good. Only 60% of high schoolers met collegiate success benchmarks in English, 46% in reading, 40% in math and 38% in science. Every category showed a decline from the previous year. The math number is the most alarming, because of its dire impact on future American competitiveness in a digital world.

THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK.  The ACT report shows the results of lack of competition among and competency-based learning in schools. But rather than decry the continued failure, the education Blob continues to churn out inaccurate reports. Take the recent report by the Center for American Progress (CAP) aimed (with little analysis or real data) at virtual, or online, charter schools. These schools provide students children in numerous challenging environments a chance to learn at home. While ostensibly aimed at online charters, the CAP report is mainly a rehash of previous attacks on the very idea of educational choice as well as cherry-picked statistics. Nate Davis, Chairman and CEO of K12 Inc., the nation’s leading provider of online charter schooling, pointed out that CAP “did not engage with the educators, nonprofit charter board members, providers, or parents of online charter schools for this report. The report does not include significantly more relevant data and school-level information, nor does it examine other important factors including effects of mobility on graduation rates and achievement, in particular for academically at-risk students… CAP chose instead to attack the model rather than understand why parents are choosing online charter schools and how to best address students’ needs.” Thankfully, like the rebels in Star Wars, the educational choice warriors are fighting for a noble cause. May the force be with them!

BULLYING IS ANOTHER REASON.  Expanded options serve everyone – the gifted, the challenged and all in between. But increasingly data suggests bullying is another reason for us to ensure these options don’t go away. Hat tip to Tommy Schulz at AFC for this data:

The U.S. Department of Education’s NCES in 2015 stated that 21.3% of students in public schools reported that they were bullied, compared to 15.3% of students in private schools. 33% of students who reported being bullied say they’re bullied once or twice a month.Among other things, that’s what inspired FL legislators to pass the Hope Scholarship, where many victims of bullying “find safety and comfort.”

GRANNY KNOWS BEST.  In a most timely retort from someone with experience with online schools, a happy grandmother wrote to the editor of the Daily Chronicleof Centralia, Washington. “Beginning in elementary school my granddaughter, (Name withheld by CER), was a victim of bullying. The bullying continued into middle school where more than 100 of her classmates sent hateful messages daily on Facebook. When she attempted to leave, they added her back… Her grades dropped. We made the switch to online school and haven’t looked back. Since enrolling in Washington Virtual Academy, (my granddaughter’s) grades have improved immensely. She is not focused on the social issues that once distracted her and she now spends her time studying and focusing on building a successful future.” (That’s what generalized research ignores by the way!)

MORE ARE NEEDED.  That’s the educated and reliable conclusion of a new book by Dr. Cara Candal, educator, mom and charter expert whose work with the Pioneer Institute and CER is well known. The Fight for the Best Charter Public Schools in the Nation documents the Massachusetts education miracle, which analyzes why, despite the success of its charters, schools are unable to grow. Candal also argues that innovation is critical to expansion and success, something reticent bureaucrats often eschew waiting for the perfect to be the enemy of the good.  Former top lawmakers Governor Bill Weld and Senate President Tom Birmingham wrote the forward. “Today, the majority of students in urban Massachusetts districts attend schools whose performance ranks in the bottom 20 percent of public schools statewide. Most of those children are poor, black, or Latino, and many are immigrants. Nothing has proven more effective at closing that gap than our charter schools, which are the best-performing in the country.” Let’s have more of them, they all say. Here, here. Buy the book. Join the fight.

PUT ANOTHER CANDLE ON OUR BIRTHDAY CAKE!  We are so proud to be celebrating CER’s 25th Anniversary this week with a Summit and Gala. To be held at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Miami beach, the summit will feature a power-packed list of speakers including Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossello, former Governors Jeb Bush and Tommy Thompson, the reigning Miss America Nia Franklin and dozens of the top leaders in education, business and technology. For last minute details and registration visit staging.edreform.com/cer-25th-anniversary.

THE RACE FOR EDUCATION.  Gubernatorial races are hotter this year on education than most. Unfortunately, most of this year’s candidates are focused on the status quo. As usual, there is a lot of talk about pumping more money into the system but not enough talk about how to use that money to promote real reform. A number of candidates are campaigning on platforms of boosting teacher pay, but few are talking about how to recruit and retain great teachers while holding them accountable for outcomes (Florida’s Republican candidate, Ron DeSantis is one exception to this rule). Access to vocational-technical education, apprenticeships and alignment between college and career are also of-the-moment topics, but few candidates offer anything more than a loose vision of what this should look like or how they will make it happen. Likewise, comprehensive policies to promote personalized learning and competency-based education are lacking from most platforms, though many use these buzzwords well. Support for ed choice continues to split along party lines, with Republican candidates in places like Maryland, Illinois, and California seeking to empower parents and most Democrats citing staunch opposition to these reforms. Democratic candidate Bob Krist of Nebraska is a refreshing exception to this rule: he’s stated support for tax-credit scholarships in a place badly in need of opportunity-based reform. CER is tracking the candidates and will be grading the winners. Meanwhile, make sure both education innovation and opportunity drive your votes!

Founded in 1993, the Center for Education Reform aims to expand educational opportunities that lead to improved economic outcomes for all Americans — particularly our youth — ensuring that conditions are ripe for innovation, freedom and flexibility throughout U.S. education.