Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · 15h

Thoughts? @matthewakraft.com @kevincarey1.bsky.social @mattbarnum.bsky.social @carajackson.bsky.social @laryferlazzo.bsky.social @ingoisphording.bsky.social @anya1anya.bsky.social @chingos.bsky.social @mpolikoff.bsky.social @benjaminjriley.bsky.social @conorpwilliams.bsky.social

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · 15h

Hey Bluesky friends, how can we get more folks on the left to support gifted education? Would my 3 ideas help? schooledbymikepetrilli.substack.com/p/how-can-we...

How can we depolarize “gifted education”?

SCHOOLED | Monday, 10/14/25

schooledbymikepetrilli.substack.com

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Reposted by Michael Petrilli

Michael Dannenberg @mdannenberg1.bsky.social · 19h

Education “reform advocates should always want…bipartisan support…[I]t makes for a stronger & more durable coalition,” says @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social True, but sometimes that’s not enough (see NCLB). You need the upper middle class as well. schooledbymikepetrilli.substack.com?utm_campaign...

SCHOOLED | Michael J. Petrilli | Substack

SCHOOLED is Michael J. Petrilli’s twice-weekly newsletter restarting the ed reform conversation. Expect sharp analysis, curated commentary, and lively debates—including from YOU. This is one newslette...

schooledbymikepetrilli.substack.com

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · 1d

The Disappearing Black School Board Member

Who sits on your local school board? It’s fewer Black folks than two decades ago. wordinblack.com/2025/10/disa... @alexanderrusso.bsky.social @dmhouston.bsky.social @wordinblacknews.bsky.social

The Disappearing Black School Board Member

Who sits on your local school board — and does their race really matter?

wordinblack.com

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · 6d

The low numbers for Hispanic school board members are extremely disappointing. I wonder if political scientists find the same underrepresentation on city councils, county councils, state legislatures, etc., or is there something about school board elections driving this? @dmhouston.bsky.social

David Houston @dmhouston.bsky.social · 6d

But this pattern is, again, somewhat exaggerated by the large number of small, rural, and mostly white districts. The racial/ethnic disparity is less severe when accounting for the number of students that school board members serve.

7/12

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Reposted by Michael Petrilli

David Houston @dmhouston.bsky.social · 6d

Supported by both the Fordham Institute and @wallacefoundation.bsky.social, Michael Hartney and I explored the extent to which U.S. school board members are politically and demographically representative of the communities they serve.

Here's a summary of our main findings:

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · 6d

New from Fordham, the Wallace Foundation, @dmhouston.bsky.social & Michael Hartney:

Who’s on Board? School Boards and Political Representation in an Age of Conflict fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...

Who’s on Board? School Boards and Political Representation in an Age of Conflict

School boards have become ground zero for America’s education culture wars, with fiery debates over race, gender, curriculum, and pandemic policies making national headlines. But beyond the noise, how...

fordhaminstitute.org

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · 6d

New from Fordham, the Wallace Foundation, @dmhouston.bsky.social & Michael Hartney:

Who’s on Board? School Boards and Political Representation in an Age of Conflict fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...

Who’s on Board? School Boards and Political Representation in an Age of Conflict

School boards have become ground zero for America’s education culture wars, with fiery debates over race, gender, curriculum, and pandemic policies making national headlines. But beyond the noise, how...

fordhaminstitute.org

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · 12d

WATCH NOW: The New Federal Education Tax Credit: Policy and Politics, featuring @progressivepolicy.org's Rachel Canter, @dfer.org's Jorge Elorza, @brookings.edu's Jon Valant, @futureedgu.bsky.social's @thomastoch.bsky.social, and yours truly.
future-ed.org/webinar-the-...

WEBINAR: The New Federal Education Tax Credit: Policy and Politics

The Trump administration’s newly passed federal tax credit scholarship program could dramatically reshape the education landscape, providing families with potentially billions of dollars in funding…

future-ed.org

Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · 13d

Steven Pinker on the Harvard admissions department:

"It is terrible. I’ve argued that as much. They use holistic criteria, which is mumbo-jumbo. It’s mysticism."

Image for a recent Conversations with Tyler podcast, featuring Harvard professor Steven Pinker.

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Reposted by Michael Petrilli

De-BOO-ra Wexler @debrawexler.bsky.social · 25d

There have been plenty of takes since last week's #NAEP results showed 12th graders performing at the lowest reading level since the test launched in 1992. This analysis from @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social is esp. disconcerting: that cohort had achieved NAEP’s highest 4th-grade reading scores.
#edusky

The Covid generation: Best readers ever in fourth grade, worst readers ever by twelfth

There’s been a lot of smart analysis of the dismal NAEP results released last week. But here’s an alarming fact that you probably haven’t seen before: The cohort of students who scored at record-low l...

fordhaminstitute.org

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · 26d

The cohort of students who scored at record-low levels in 12th grade reading were part of the same generation of kids who scored at record-high levels in 4th grade.

So what happened? fordhaminstitute.org/national/com...

The Covid generation: Best readers ever in fourth grade, worst readers ever by twelfth

There’s been a lot of smart analysis of the dismal NAEP results released last week. But here’s an alarming fact that you probably haven’t seen before: The cohort of students who scored at record-low l...

fordhaminstitute.org

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · 26d

An example of remedial education done right, courtesy of the U.S. military.

Once these recruits couldn't make the cut. Now they make up a quarter of Army troops.

www.usatoday.com/story/news/p...

Once these recruits couldn't make the cut. Now they make up a quarter of Army troops.

Three years ago, the Army faced a recruitment crisis. Behind its recovery is a program for would-be soldiers who don't make the cut.

www.usatoday.com

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Reposted by Michael Petrilli

Dan Goldhaber @cedr.bsky.social · 27d

It's solo @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social on the Gadfly, but if you want some good arguments for phone bans (the scant evidence is a bit mixed, but as parent, I'm 100% that we ought to have them) listen in!

fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...

On the negative NAEP news, and the real reason screen time is hurting student learning | Episode 986 of The Education Gadfly Show

This week, Mike Petrilli digs into the latest NAEP results—and explores whether the rise of smartphones and social media might help explain them. It’s another solo episode, just Mike and the mic.

fordhaminstitute.org

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · 27d

ICYMI, most teachers HATE so-called "equitable grading," especially the "gifty fifty."

www.the74million.org/article/a-th...

A Thousand Teachers Were Asked About ‘Equitable’ Grading. Most Didn’t Like It

Teachers found the practices meant to remove grading bias were ‘harmful’ to engagement, according to a survey by Thomas B. Fordham Institute and RAND.

www.the74million.org

Reposted by Michael Petrilli

Morgan Polikoff @mpolikoff.bsky.social · Sep 10

I, too, am very skeptical that through-year assessments are the right solution to concerns about accountability.

Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · Sep 10

In yesterday's SCHOOLED, my take on through-year assessments in Texas, plus edu-opinions from @cedr.bsky.social @karenvaites.bsky.social @chadaldeman.bsky.social @marcportermagee.bsky.social & more: substack.com/home/post/p-...

SCHOOLED

Tuesday, 9/9/25

substack.com

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · Sep 10

In yesterday's SCHOOLED, my take on through-year assessments in Texas, plus edu-opinions from @cedr.bsky.social @karenvaites.bsky.social @chadaldeman.bsky.social @marcportermagee.bsky.social & more: substack.com/home/post/p-...

SCHOOLED

Tuesday, 9/9/25

substack.com

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · Sep 8

Yet another reason for y'all on the left to hate standardized tests (especially difficult ones).

Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · Sep 8

Citizenship Tests Could Be About To Get Much Harder. Here’s What You Need to Know time.com/7315217/citi...

Citizenship Tests Could Tougher. What You Need to Know

The head of the Citizenship and Immigration Services said the current test is "too easy" and promised to make it harder.

time.com

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · Sep 8

Citizenship Tests Could Be About To Get Much Harder. Here’s What You Need to Know time.com/7315217/citi...

Citizenship Tests Could Tougher. What You Need to Know

The head of the Citizenship and Immigration Services said the current test is "too easy" and promised to make it harder.

time.com

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · Sep 4

We need to figure out how to de-weaponize OCR. Both parties have been pushing it past its limits.

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · Sep 3

Yup, and also "rejecting disparate impact theory."

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · Sep 3

FYI @laurameckler.bsky.social @mattbarnum.bsky.social @alexanderrusso.bsky.social @chadaldeman.bsky.social @marcportermagee.bsky.social @danagoldstein.bsky.social @cedr.bsky.social @paul-bruno.com @mpolikoff.bsky.social

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · Sep 3

Today's must read: A sweeping and insightful overview from
@bostoncollege.bsky.social 's Shep Melnick.

Trump’s Civil Rights Agenda Comes for Public Schools www.educationnext.org/trumps-civil...

Trump's Civil Rights Agenda Comes for Public Schools

After intense scrutiny of higher education, federal government sets sights on K–12

www.educationnext.org

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Michael Petrilli @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social · Aug 29

The solution to the new teacher-affordable-housing crisis?

Roommates! www.pew.org/en/research-... @pewresearch.org @cedr.bsky.social @palan57.bsky.social @larryferlazzo.bsky.social

How States and Cities Decimated Americans’ Lowest-Cost Housing Option

Low-cost micro-units, often called single-room occupancies, or SROs, were once a reliable form of housing for the United States’ poorest residents of, and newcomers to, New York, Chicago, San Francisc...

www.pew.org

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Reposted by Michael Petrilli

Bipartisan Policy Center @bipartisanpolicy.org · Aug 28

LIVE #LearningTuesday sessions return on 9/2 w/ a vital discussion on the fed role in education w/ John King; Margaret Spellings; Adam Gamoran of @wtgrantfdn.bsky.social ; @michaelpetrilli.bsky.social of Fordham Institute; Ruth López Turley of Kinder Institute for Urban Research

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Reposted by Michael Petrilli

Dan Goldhaber @cedr.bsky.social · Aug 27

So much to say on this!

Let me begin with a rant based on an offhand remark that
@michaelpetrilli.bsky.social made about emails/texts from schools: "too much is better than too little." I do not believe this to be true!

fordhaminstitute.org/national/res...

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Managing district budgets during uncertain times, with Jonathan Travers | Episode 983 of The Education Gadfly Show

ERS president and managing partner Jonathan Travers joins Mike Petrilli on The Education Gadfly Show to talk about school district budgeting during uncertain times.

fordhaminstitute.org

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