Category: Education (K-12)
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An Overdue SOL Assessment Reform Bill
by Todd Truitt Virginia’s assessments for its Standards of Learning (SOL) could soon get a muchVirginia’s assessments for its Standards of Learning (SOL) will soon hopefully be getting a much-needed revamp. Senator Schuyler Van Valkenburg, D-Henrico County, and Delegate Dan Helmer, D-Fairfax County, have proposed a bill to significantly upgrade our assessment system. The bill…
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Four Anti-School Choice Myths Exploded
By Chris Braunlich When Governor Glenn Youngkin proposed an Education Opportunity Scholarship Grant – similar to what exists in 28 other states – providing $5,000 in private school scholarships to 10,000 low-moderate income public school K-12 students, the reaction was instantaneous, underscoring America’s partisan divide: Republicans endorsed it. Democrats opposed it. Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Mt. Vernon),…
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Just Read the Bill
by Dick Hall-Sizemore Gov. Glenn Younger has been reading Kerry Dougherty’s columns too much. He announced that he will veto SB 1031, dealing with religious exemption from sending one’s children to school. “I am a strong supporter of homeschooling and will always support the rights of parents to homeschool their children,” he declared. He needs…
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The Endless Appetite for Giving Away Free Stuff
by James A. Bacon Last week I highlighted calls for state-funded grief counseling as an example of the potentially limitless demand for mental health services. If your vision for society is “no more sad people,” that requires an open-ended commitment from the commonwealth. Today I bring your attention to another case of infinitely elastic demand…
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A Commonsense Bill for Math SOL Exams in Spanish
by Todd Truitt The Senate Public Education Subcommittee advanced a commonsense bill negotiated Thursday by Senator Barbara Favola, D-Arlington, and the Youngkin administration, providing for math Standards of Learning (SOL) exams in Spanish for beginning English Learners, as most states provide. The bill addresses the alignment of Virginia’s new school ratings system with federal law,…
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Whose Kids Are They Anyway?
by Kerry Dougherty It’s official. Virginia Democrats have declared war on families. And they’re just warming up. So far, in the nascent General Assembly session, they’ve introduced two appalling anti-family measures. More to come, no doubt. The first is a proposed constitutional amendment that’s an abortion enthusiast’s wet dream. It would enshrine in Virginia’s constitution…
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What Does Louise Lucas Have Against Poor Black Kids?
by James A. Bacon Governor Glenn Youngkin wants to provide an educational escape hatch for lower-income Virginians. He has proposed a private school voucher program that would give $5,000 grants to 10,000 students whose families earn less than 200% of the federal poverty limit ($62,400 for a family of four). Virginia Senate Finance Chair Louise…
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Choosing Politics over Educational Progress
By Derrick Max, Senator Ghazala Hashmi, chair of the Virginia Senate Education and Health Committee, is introducing a bill that has no chance of becoming law — apparently trying to carry water on behalf of the Virginia Education Association (VEA) in hopes of gaining support for her campaign for Lieutenant Governor. Hashmi’s bill would require…
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State Money for Private Schools
by Dick Hall-Sizemore The state of Virginia spends more than $100 million annually for Virginia students to attend private colleges and universities in the state. The program is the Tuition Assistance Grant program, commonly known as TAG, authorized in Sec. 23.1-628 through 23.1-635 of the Code of Virginia. There is no need or merit requirement.…
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Poll: School Accountability System Supported
By Derrick A. Max While Democrats in the Virginia General Assembly appear unanimous in their opposition to the Governor’s new School Performance and Support Framework, there is near unanimous support among registered voters for enhanced educational standards that measure both growth and accountability by student subgroups according to a new poll. In a survey conducted…
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The Real Reason Dem Legislators Hate New Accountability System
by James A. Bacon Democratic legislators in the General Assembly want to delay implementation of the state’s school accountability system that is scheduled to go into place next school year. Critics have called the rollout of the new system “rushed.” The new standards would identify failing schools in “need of intensive support.” Although the Youngkin…
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Oops! VEA Owns Itself
by Todd Truitt In its lobbying efforts to try to kill the new school accountability system, the Virginia Education Association (the state-level “teachers union” organization, or VEA) has produced a report that strongly supports the new system. In what would be described as an “own goal” by soccer parents, the key findings from the VEA’s…
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At Least They’re Culturally Competent!
by James A. Bacon A couple of days ago I skewered New Jersey for enacting a law, effective Jan. 1, that removes a requirement for teachers to pass a reading, writing and mathematics test for licensure. Noting that Virginia teachers seeking initial licensure must pass the Virginia Communication and Literacy Assessment (VCLA), I expressed the…
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Another Reason to Avoid the Virginia Lottery
by Dick Hall-Sizemore One of the top selling points made for approval of the establishment of the Virginia Lottery was that lottery profits would be dedicated to public education in Virginia. That is still the message that the Virginia Lottery peddles. Scroll to the bottom of its website home page, past all the current offerings,…
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Waiting for NAEP
by Charles B. Pyle On December 18, the governing board of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NEAP) -– the battery of fourth- and eighth-grade exams in reading and math known as the Nation’s Report Card -– announced that the results of the 2024 tests will be released January 29, 2025. State-by-state NAEP results are…