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Colleges can admit 'diverse' students without racial preferences
Universities can enhance diversity by giving an admissions break to disadvantaged students of all races. It's legal and it's good politics.

Joanne Jacobs
Apr 22 min read
1 comment


Dump the devices and bring back textbooks
Good, old-fashioned printed textbooks are valuable learning guides.

Joanne Jacobs
Mar 202 min read
6 comments


In a 'boy-friendly' school, boys get more time to play, socialize, choose activities
To be more "boy-friendly," a Baltimore boys' school added free play, student-run clubs and chances to socialize before classes start.

Joanne Jacobs
Feb 162 min read
17 comments


Keep it simple: Attention must be paid
How do teachers get the attention of easily distracted "digital natives?"

Joanne Jacobs
Feb 22 min read
0 comments


Most teens don't read for fun: What can teachers do?
Few teenagers read for fun regularly, and many don't read for school either, writes Natalie Wexler on Minding the Gap. We're "becoming a...
Joanne Jacobs
Dec 3, 20242 min read
7 comments


Teaching shouldn't be 'guess what's in my head'
Explicit teaching works better than student-centered learning.
Joanne Jacobs
Nov 25, 20242 min read
0 comments


Teaching books doesn't work if students won't (or can't) read
English teachers don't teach many novels because students won't do the reading on their own.
Joanne Jacobs
Nov 18, 20243 min read
12 comments


How to lose: Parents don't want kids to see blowjobs in library books
"A lot of Americans have kids in public schools," writes Eduwonk Andrew Rotherham. " They want normal ." They don't want sexualized...
Joanne Jacobs
Nov 8, 20242 min read
1 comment


Democrats take over school board, but books stay 'banned'
When a Pennsylvania school board flipped from Republican to Democratic control, some policies changed -- but many did not.
Joanne Jacobs
Nov 1, 20242 min read
2 comments


Books are too long and boring, say English teachers
When I was in school in the '60s, we read Pride and Prejudice, Wuthering Heights , Great Expectations, Hard Times, Canterbury Tales, The...
Joanne Jacobs
Sep 23, 20242 min read
6 comments


Once, girls were excited to grow up
Once upon a time, the teenage girls in Judy Blume's stories were "excited to grow up," writes Kat Rosenfield on The Free Press. Starting...
Joanne Jacobs
Aug 4, 20243 min read
2 comments


Politicizing humanities leaves grads still seeking deep, impractical learning
Colleges have politicized the humanities, leaving graduates feeling cheated of a liberal arts education.
Joanne Jacobs
Jun 22, 20242 min read
4 comments

Why is 'Gender Queer' in the middle-school library?
Parents don't want drag queens or books that feature sex toys in school libraries.
Joanne Jacobs
Jun 10, 20242 min read
2 comments


Magic worlds
The Rabbit Hole, a children's literature museum in Kansas City, sounds like a wonderful place. Children can explore "scenes from beloved...
Joanne Jacobs
Apr 7, 20241 min read
1 comment


Mamma mia! Is raising kids too hard?
I was born at the peak of the baby boom, the second of four children. (Today is my birthday.) Most of us weren't planned, but we were...
Joanne Jacobs
Mar 31, 20242 min read
7 comments


A 'Colorblind America' sees race, but tries to treat people the same
"Anti-racism" is a kind of "neo-racism," argues Coleman Hughes in his new book, The End of Race Politics: Arguments for a Colorblind...
Joanne Jacobs
Mar 29, 20243 min read
3 comments

Lowering expectations doesn't lead to 'equity'
It's easier to get A's and harder to get an education, writes Fordham's Michael Petrilli. Expectations started falling and grades...
Joanne Jacobs
Mar 20, 20242 min read
15 comments


Teach the children: 'Is the Soviet Union a country?'
Teaching is "oppressive." Teachers should "guide" students to discover things on their own, based on their interests, but shouldn't...
Joanne Jacobs
Mar 16, 20242 min read
2 comments


'I want the library to be there for everyody, not just people who share my voting record'
When a patron donated a book questioning "the transgender craze" to the Blue Hill Public Library, librarian Rich Boulet decided "it...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 25, 20242 min read
1 comment


Odysseus so white
English teachers at Oakland's College Preparatory School, one of the most expensive private schools in California, have "let go" of...
Joanne Jacobs
Feb 23, 20242 min read
14 comments
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