On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Joshua Dunn, Executive Director of the Institute of American Civics at the University of Tennessee, joins Mike and David to discuss how public schools will be affected by the end of the Chevron deference—the judicial doctrine in which courts defer to federal agencies’ reasonable interpretations of ambiguous statutes. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber examines a new paper criticizing the famous STAR class size study. Recommended...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Robert Pondiscio, a senior fellow at Fordham and the American Enterprise Institute, joins Mike and David to discuss the state of curricular reform. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber examines new data from the Institute of Education Sciences’ Condition of Education Report. Recommended content:  “40 years after ‘A nation at risk,’ could curriculum reform finally move the needle on academic improvement?” —Robert Pondiscio, The 74“The ‘case for...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Derrell Bradford, the president of 50CAN, joins Mike and David to discuss a new coalition called No More Lines that seeks to end residency requirements for public schools. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study examining whether ESSER funding influenced spending on school personnel. Recommended content:  “Coalition Challenges Residency Requirements for Public Schools” —Jo Napolitano, The 74“America’s private public schools”...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Rick Hess, the director of education policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, joins Mike and David to discuss his new book, Getting Education Right. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study examining how civics educators taught about and framed the 2020 election. Recommended content:  "Getting education right: A conservative vision for improving early childhood, K–12, and college” —Frederick Hess and Michael...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Lorén Cox, the policy director for the Education and Society program at the Aspen Institute, and Karen Nussle, the founder and CEO of Ripple Communications, join Mike and David to discuss how cross-partisanship—both sides agreeing on the same conclusion for disparate reasons—benefits education. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study examining how college achievement and retention is affected by “corequisite” remedial...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Adam Kho, an assistant professor at the Rossier School of Education, and Alex Quigley, the executive director of the Durham Charter School, join Mike and David to discuss whether charter authorizers can determine the quality of prospective charter schools. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study examining the effects of including parental preferences in algorithms that assign students to schools in New York City. Recommended...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Rebecca Sibilia, the executive director of EdFund, joins Mike and David to debate whether we’ve fixed school funding in America. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study examining the effects of school shootings on survivors’ test scores, attendance, and long-term health. Recommended content:  "School finance data 'sucks.' Rebecca Sibilia's new org is offering $ to fix it" —Greg Toppo, The 74“Think Again: Is education funding in...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Mike Miles, the superintendent of Houston ISD, joins Mike and David to discuss the reforms he’s implementing in the Lone Star State’s largest district. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber examines a new study of how increased learning time affects reading and math achievement. Recommended content:  “Back to the future: Houston takes a page from ed reform’s recent past” —Dale Chu, Fordham Institute“Texas’s controversial takeover of Houston’s...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Adam Tyner and Meredith Coffey, the national research director and a senior research associate at the Fordham Institute, join Mike and David to discuss their new Think Again report on whether “equitable” grading benefits students. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber examines a new study investigating how extreme temperatures affect student performance on standardized tests. Recommended content:  “Think Again: Does ‘equitable’ grading benefit...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Chad Aldis, Fordham’s Vice President of Ohio Policy, joins Mike and David to discuss the impending cessation of federal ESSER funds. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study investigating the competitive effects of charter schools on traditional public schools in Florida. Recommended content:  “ESSER’s sunset: Not a cut, but a return to normalcy” —Chad Aldis, Fordham Institute“The fiscal cliff and teacher layoffs” —Chad Aldeman,...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Alan Safran, the CEO and co-founder of Saga Education, joins Mike and David to discuss best practices for high-impact tutoring. Then, on the Research Minute, Adam reports on a new study investigating the impacts of computer science education on early career outcomes. Recommended content:  “Could tutoring be the best tool for fighting learning loss?” —Anna Nordberg, The New York Times“White house calls for focus on tutoring, summer school,...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Chad Aldeman, the founder of Read Not Guess and a columnist for The 74, joins Mike and David to discuss whether the pandemic-era waiving of teacher licensure rules affected student outcomes. Then, on the Research Minute, Adam Tyner reports on a new paper investigating if school choice can meet the conditions necessary for efficient market functioning. Recommended content: “Emergency-hired teachers do just as well as those who go through normal...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Lindsey Burke, the director of the Center for Education Policy at the Heritage Foundation, joins Mike and David to discuss what a second Trump term could mean for federal education policy. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study investigating the impacts of licensure and certification on CTE teacher retention. Recommended content: “If Trump returns…” —Chester E. Finn, Jr., Fordham Institute“Department of Education” —Lindsey M....

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Douglas Lauen, a professor of public policy and sociology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, joins Mike to discuss residential mobility, academic achievement, and charter schools. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reviews a study investigating how school facilities funding impacts test scores and housing prices. Recommended content: “New home, same school: Charter schools and residentially-mobile students” —Doug Lauen“The...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Angela Rachidi, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, joins Mike to discuss whether a reformed and refundable child tax credit can reduce poverty. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reviews a study investigating a cost-effective high-dosage tutoring intervention. Recommended content: “How to actually triumph over poverty” —Angela Rachidi, National Review“The child tax credit: 25 years later” —Angela Rachidi, Senate Committee on...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Ray Domanico, the director of education policy at the Manhattan institute, joins Mike to discuss whether New York should eliminate the Regents Exams as high school graduation requirements. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reviews a study investigating the trends in parental school involvement over the past two and a half decades. Recommended content: “Revising graduation requirements could improve academic rigor in New York” —Ray Domanico,...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Debbie Veney, a senior vice president at the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, joins Mike to discuss the growth in the charter sector since 2019. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reviews a new study investigating the effects of mock instruction and coaching on pre-service teacher performance. Recommended content: “Believing in public education: A demographic and state-level analysis of public charter school and district public...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Checker Finn, Fordham’s president emeritus—and the original Education Gadfly—joins Mike and David to discuss the best and worst developments in education reform in 2023. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reviews the best education research of the year. Recommended content: “Standards-based reform | A Nation At Risk +40” —Michael Petrilli, Hoover Institution“What would another Trump term mean for education?” —Chester E. Finn, Jr., Fordham...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Kara Arundel, a senior reporter at K-12 Dive, joins Mike to discuss two decades of private school choice in D.C. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study investigating the success of science-of-reading interventions in California. Recommended content: “‘Opportunity’ knocked—and stayed: Two decades of private school vouchers in the nation’s capital” —Kara Arundel, K–12 Dive“‘Opportunity’ knocked—and stayed: Successes and flaws of...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Jeanette Luna, a production and research associate at the Fordham Institute, joins Mike to discuss the competitive pressures facing America’s largest school districts. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study investigating whether post-Covid grade inflation has begun to recede. Recommended content: “The education competition index: Quantifying competitive pressure in America’s 125 largest school districts” —David Griffith and...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Tim Daly, the CEO of Ed Navigator, joins Mike to discuss the causes and harms of grade inflation—and how to fix it. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study that investigates whether exposure to certain peers and teachers explains achievement gains resulting from enrollment in early algebra. Recommended content: “Grade inflation is locking in learning loss, part one” —Tim Daly, The Education Daly“How to fix grade inflation” —Tim...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Chad Aldeman, the founder of Read Not Guess and a columnist for The 74, joins Mike to discuss how the end of COVID relief funds could cause a wave of teacher layoffs. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study investigating whether schools gamed their academic gains during No Child Left Behind. Recommended content: “Schools could lose 136,000 teaching jobs when federal COVID funds run out” —Chad Aldeman, The 74“Fiscal cliff could...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Natalie Wexler, host of the Knowledge Matters podcast, joins Mike to discuss the connection between knowledge building and reading comprehension. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber covers a new study on the efficacy of college and workforce partnerships in the P-Tech high school model. Recommended content: “The science of reading isn’t just ‘phonics,’ but what else is it?” —Natalie Wexler, Forbes"Knowledge matters podcast” —Natalie Wexler“Social...

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Tim Donahue, an English teacher at the Greenwich Country Day School, joins Mike to discuss who loses when grades are inflated. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber reports on a new study that examines if Tennessee’s new school funding law really is progressive. Recommended content: “If everyone gets an A, no one gets an A” —Tim Donahue, New York Times“Grade inflation is not a victimless crime” —Frederick Hess, The Education GadflyChristopher...