Why Easy Grading Is Good for Your Career
New Jersey high school teacher Peter Hibbard flunked 55 percent of the students in his regular biology class the year before he retired. There were no failures in his honors classes, he said, but many of his regular students refused to do the work. They did not show up for tests and did not take makeups. They did not turn in lab reports. Homework was often ignored.

Looking at the Dropout Issue
Some of the most troubling questions about schools, such as what causes dropouts, have few clear answers because there is so little research. And the reason that data is lacking, at least in part, is that educators who would otherwise demand it are too busy with more even pressing issues, such as improving teaching and raising low student achievement.

Misguided Colleges Skewer Score Choice
I'm so old I took the SAT only once.

Survey Shows Gap Between Scientists and the Public
On the whole, scientists believe American research leads the world, but only 17 percent of the public agree, a new survey has found.



University of California Makes Cuts After Reduction in State Financing
The university will mandate furloughs, defer hiring and cut some academic programs in an effort to make up for a large reduction in state financing.



Homeless, and on a College Path to Independence
The Advantage Academy, a program offered by the city and St. John’s University, gives individuals the chance to earn an associate’s degree.



Geoffrey Canada and Education's Future
I have devoted many years to writing about schools, but much of the time I am really writing about poverty. Paul Tough has devoted several years to writing about poverty, but much of the time he is really writing about schools.

Is AP Good for Everyone?
I am no match for Chester E. Finn Jr. in a debate. The president of the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation and author of "Troublemaker: A Personal History of School Reform Since Sputnik" (Princeton University Press) is feared by many ideological adversaries for his sharp wit and inexhaustible erudition. But I am taking him on anyway in this column because he suggested recently in his own weekly Gadfly column that I was promoting Advanced Placement courses for all students, even those unable or unwilling to handle their difficulties. I thought this would also be a good way to explore the limits of the movement to make high schools more challenging, a very lively issue in our highest-performing schools. Here we go:

The Nation's Most Elite Public Schools
Each year when Newsweek publishes its list of America's Top High Schools, I always know what question the largest number of e-mails will ask. To paraphrase, and somewhat soften, the usual language: "Where the devil is my nationally famous magnet school on your dumb list?"