The Latest

  • An adult sits at a table near a wall in a classroom. A student is sitting across from McMahon with their back to the camera
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    Retrieved from U.S. Department of Education/Flickr on March 02, 2026
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    Q&A

    McMahon: Education Department shutdown is still the goal

    One year into the job, the education secretary is setting her sights on improving literacy and expanding school choice. 

  • Three young boys relax on a bean bag and play on mobile phones in a school corridor.
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    Getty Images
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    What do students need to know about gambling?

    Young boys may face the highest risks, with their behavior sometimes spurred by video games and social algorithms, a Common Sense Media report says.

  • Two woman professionals stand in a hotel ballroom with a trophy following a presentation.
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    Permission granted by National Association of School Psychologists
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    NASP '26

    6 ways to prioritize the whole child in school psychology evaluations

    Family input, implicit bias and strength-based approaches are all crucial factors, a prominent researcher told NASP attendees.

  • Inside of a courtroom at the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in the James R. Browning United States Court of Appeals Building
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    Retrieved from Library of Congress.
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    Education Department loses appeal on mental health grant cancellation

    The decision kept a lower court’s injunction in place, meaning the agency has to make new decisions on discontinued grants. 

  • A blurred photo of a teenage student in glasses learning computer science while using a computer in a classroom.
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    Getty Images
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    States weigh limits, outright bans on ed tech in schools

    Momentum appears to be growing against any screen time in schools as states like Tennessee and Kansas propose prohibiting ed tech for grades K-5.

  • The facade of the Capitol building is reflected on windows across from it
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    Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    House hearing stresses that AI teacher training is a must

    Lawmakers expressed bipartisan interest in a larger federal role in support for AI professional development during a recent subcommittee hearing.

  • A door opens to an empty classroom with chairs flipped upside down on top of desks.
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    Getty Images
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    Tracker

    As student enrollment declines, a look at public school closures

    We’re tracking districts’ plans to shutter or consolidate schools amid enrollment pressure from falling birthrates and growing school choice.

    Updated March 3, 2026
  • Students work on computers while a teacher instructs in front of them in a classroom.
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    Getty Images
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    ‘First thing I’ve written in 3 years’: Students’ AI habits prompt teacher training, lesson design

    Two educators who use artificial intelligence in their classroom combine prompt engineering, in-class assignments and guardrails.

  • A brick wall with the name of an elementary stands among fire scorched landscape
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    Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
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    Students feel safer in school when their concerns are heard, YouthTruth finds

    Survey findings reveal gaps between staff and student safety perceptions and the need to include student voice in preparedness.

  • An adult and a student are seated at a table across from each other in a room. They have bubble wands next to their faces are are blowing at the wands.
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    Getty Images
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    Week In Review: The special education population is on the rise

    We’re rounding up last week’s news, from new interagency agreements to the State of the Union.

  • An illustration of a student looking into an empty outline of a teacher in a classroom.
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    Illustration: Cathryn Virginia for Industry Dive

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    STAFFED UP

    Teachers struggle to afford housing. What are districts doing about it?

    To help recruit and retain staff, more districts are stepping in to give them a break on rent — and even a leg up on home ownership.

  • A person is sitting at a desk in a classroom looking at a laptop. On the desk is a pile of laptops.
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    Jon Cherry via Getty Images
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    1 in 3 schools recovered in math or reading post-pandemic, NWEA reports

    Schools serving high-poverty and historically marginalized students are less likely to have recovered — but showed the largest achievement gains.

  • parents
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    Courtesy of Becket
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    District must pay $1.5M in Maryland opt-out case

    The settlement in Mahmoud v. Taylor, which also includes court-enforced compliance, comes after the Supreme Court ruled in parents' favor last year.

  • Miguel Cardona stands at a podium that says "NASP" on it.
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    Roger Riddell/K-12 Dive/K-12 Dive
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    Q&A // NASP '26

    Cardona: Student mental health cannot be a ‘red or blue’ issue

    From the student suicide rate to consequences of misusing artificial intelligence, the former education secretary says the need for supports is urgent.

  • The outside of the U.S. Department of Education building is shown with the wording "U.S. Department of Education"
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    Douglas Rissing via Getty Images
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    The Education Department’s 9 interagency agreements: What is going where

    In moves to downsize, the department is sending some K-12 and higher education programming to other agencies like Labor and Health and Human Services.

  • A photo illustration of a circle encompassing a question mark, pencil, and scantron test.
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    Photo illustration: Shaun Lucas/Industry Dive; Getty Images

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    POP QUIZ

    Test yourself on the past week’s K-12 news

    From new interagency agreements to student mental health supports, what did you learn from our recent stories?

  • President Trump, wearing a red tie and a glower, is flanked by VP JD Vance and House Speaker Mike Johnson behind a podium.
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    Andrew Harnik via Getty Images
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    Trump touts ‘we ended DEI in America’ in State of the Union

    In a speech noted for its length, the president touched on DEI, AI and transgender policies, but not on a broader education agenda.

  • An empty chair sits in a dark room. Nothin else is in the room
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    eranicle via Getty Images
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    DOJ: ‘Shocking overuse’ of restraint, seclusion in Missouri district

    A two-year probe finds more than 300 students were secluded almost 4,000 times and nearly 150 students were restrained 777 times.

  • A student solves a math equation and writes answers on the whiteboard during class.
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    Getty Images
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    How math logic puzzles can get students ‘proof-ready’

    Sudoku and other puzzles can incorporate play and critical thinking skills, while easing students into solving standard math problems. 

  • The exterior building of Wisconsin's state capitol on a sunny day.
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    Getty Images
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    Districts, parents sue Wisconsin Legislature over K-12 funding formula

    Plaintiffs say failure to keep up with inflation has led to program and staff cuts at the cost of providing all children "a sound basic education."

  • Two children and adult walk on a street near the U.S. Capitol building. There is snow on the ground and the adult is holding a sled.
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    Heather Diehl via Getty Images
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    Deep Dive

    Congress green-lights education interagency agreements — with reservations

    The Education Department has nine such agreements with other agencies, including the departments of Labor and Health and Human Services.

  • An adult is in a classroom and is sitting at a table holding the letter "O" and curving their mouth into an O. A young student is in front of the adult with their back to the camera.
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    FatCamera via Getty Images
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    Special education enrollment keeps growing. These 3 graphics show how.

    Autism, developmental delay and multiple disabilities marked the fastest growing IDEA disability categories between 2023 and 2024.

  • School bus driving past a Ten Commandments display
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    Mike Simons / Getty Images via Getty Images
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    Appeals court voids Louisiana Ten Commandments injunction

    The law can move forward after a federal appeals court said a decision without the context of actual text displays would be "guessing.”

  • An adult is sitting at a table inside with a student. They are both looking at an open laptop.
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    SolStock via Getty Images
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    More students have access to school counselors, data shows

    For the first time, the high school range of 195 to 224 students per counselor meets the American School Counselor Association recommendation.

  • A branch covered in ice is seen in a close-up view. A snow covered street is seen in the background
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    Brett Carlsen via Getty Images
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    Week In Review: Humanizing the superintendency, and lost instruction due to winter weather

    We’re rounding up last week’s news, from the end of a 60-year-old desegregation case to a Texas district's proposal to close 12 schools.