The latest public education news from The Texas Tribune.
The end of the widely reviled No Child Left Behind Act — and Texas’ standoff with the federal government over that 2002 law — is in sight, to the elation of the state education commissioner, superintendents and teachers. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Standardized-Test.jpg)
Today we take our public schools explorer — your source for graduation rates, test scores and other Texas education data — to the next level. Our revamped explorer makes it easier for you to navigate information on all Texas school districts and public schools. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/12/07/TT-PSE-art1024x680-003.jpg)
We're pushing out our revamped Texas Public Schools Explorer, which lets you easily find graduation rates, test scores and more for all of the 1,219 school districts and 8,646 public school campuses in Texas. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/12/07/TT-PSE-art1024x680-001.jpg)
Posed with a troubling, social media-driven trend — a steady rise in improper student-teacher relationships — Texas senators began work Monday to figure out what, if anything, they can do about it. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/12/07/SenEd.jpg)
Early education advocates on Tuesday urged the Texas Education Agency to ensure that a diverse group of school districts will be able to apply for funding through a new state grant program designed to bolster the quality of pre-kindergarten. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/06/18/DISDPre-K4.jpg)
In this week's edition of the Trib+Edu newsletter: Sizing up the contenders to succeed Michael Williams at TEA, tracking the progress of the follow up to No Child Left Behind and an interview with Kevin Cokley of the University of Texas at Austin. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/04/17/TribPlus-EDU.jpg)
A look at who might be among Gov. Greg Abbott's choices as he ponders the possibilities to fill the post Texas Education Agency Commissioner Michael Williams will leave in January. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/11/17/commissioner.jpg)
In Texas’ biggest school districts, most students who failed up to two state exit-level tests were allowed to graduate this year because of a new state law, according to a study by one of the law's biggest critics. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/TexasEducation.jpg)
Weeks after a Houston-area mom sparked an uproar over a caption in her son’s textbook that described African slaves as “workers,” the State Board of Education tentatively approved several changes to its textbook adoption process. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/10/23/IMG_8540.jpg)
The State Board of Education on Wednesday rejected a rule change that would have allowed school boards to hire anyone they wanted as superintendent — even if the candidate had no public education experience. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/10/23/0K7B9406.jpg)
On 11/13, I talked about the future of public education policy in Texas with state. Rep. Mary González, D-Clint; Lizzette González Reynolds of the Texas Education Agency; El Paso ISD Superintendent Juan Cabrera; and Eduardo Rodriguez of the Council on Regional Economic Expansion and Educational Development. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/Screencap-PubEdNFY.jpg)
In this week's edition of the Trib+Edu newsletter: Unique challenges make special ed teachers hard to attract and retain, using technology to help students learn and an interview with Jeanne Tunks of the University of North Texas. Full Story
The University of Texas System plans to build a new campus on 300 acres in the southwestern part of Houston, an initiative its leaders say will drastically expand the system's presence in the state's biggest city. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/02/05/_BDB3634.jpg)
House Speaker Joe Straus issued more than 150 interim charges Wednesday, directing committees to study issues such as the effectiveness of border security operations and the impact of the plummeting cost of oil on the local economy. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/06/09/UP9A7921.jpg)
At the historic Texas School for the Deaf in Austin, strobe lights are supposed to flash in case of fire. But in some places on campus, those visual alarms do not work, according to a state audit report released Tuesday. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/02/10/15875352853_bc2f724625_z.jpg)
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Friday called for an end to “a never-ending cycle of perpetual litigation” over how the state funds its public schools, saying the courts should stay out of a legislative decision. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/09/29/UP9A0115.jpg)
Here's full video of the "You're Welcome, America: Texas in 2050" session from the 2015 Texas Tribune Festival. The session was presented by Steve Murdock, a former state demographer and a former director of the U.S. Census Bureau. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/22300530372_be14982729_z.jpg)
At our 10/29 conversation, Chief Justice Nathan Hecht of the Texas Supreme Court talked about the timing of a possible ruling on the state's appeal in the school finance lawsuit. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/TTEventsHecht351TT.jpg)
In this week's edition of the Trib+Edu newsletter: Veteran teachers offer mentorship to ward off young teachers' disillusionment, a new study encourages teachers to develop rapport with their students and an interview with Steven Woltering of Texas A&M University. Full Story
The Public Education track at The 2015 Texas Tribune Festival featured panel discussions on turning around struggling schools, pre-K, public education and the Legislature, and charter schools. There was also a conversation with Education Commissioner Michael Williams. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/10/28/public_ed.png)