Tag: American Enterprise Institute

Commentary: Classical v. Unclassical Curricula

American Greatness
Teacher and Student

Chad Aldeman, a Virginia-based researcher who focuses on education-related issues, recently detailed the educational experience of his daughter, who completed sixth grade in June. He writes that her teachers didn’t use textbooks, assign homework, or expect kids to study at home for tests, didn’t teach kids to sound out words, and didn’t drill times tables. He also mentions that there were no spelling tests, students didn’t practice handwriting of any kind, cursive or otherwise, and didn’t learn the 50 states and their capitals, let alone world geography.

Aldeman is very concerned by this shift, arguing that her educational experience has “reduced instructional time devoted to science and social studies and emphasized isolated skills such as critical thinking or reading comprehension over teaching students a coherent body of knowledge and facts.”

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Commentary: The Coming Election’s Effect on Education

American Greatness
Student

At the recent Donald Trump-Kamala Harris debate, the subject of education was nonexistent. Despite its hot button nature, the moderators did not broach the subject, and some parents are angry.

Michele Exner, a senior advisor at Parents Defending Education, commented that despite student literacy having “hit a crisis point,” those who were already struggling before the COVID-19 pandemic are being failed now. Yet, the moderators did not ask one single question about education. “They completely ignored one of the top issues parents are worried about.”

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Commentary: Chronic Absenteeism Is a Problem, but Most Proposed Solutions Miss the Point

South Carolina Sun Staff
Classroom

Two weeks ago, three unlikely bedfellows joined forces to announce their intention to cut K-12 chronic absenteeism in half by 2029.

The right-leaning American Enterprise Institute, the left-leaning Education Trust, and the nonprofit organization Attendance Works revealed their plan in Washington, DC. The coalition hopes to combat chronic absenteeism, defined as students missing 10 percent or more of school days in a given academic year, by implementing a variety of initiatives, including home visits and similar interventions. Chronic absenteeism rates more than doubled during and after the Covid response. The goal is to reduce these rates to pre-pandemic levels, or around 13 percent.

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Experts Raise Concerns About Rapid Growth of Artificial Intelligence

The Center Square
Computer programmer

Experts on artificial intelligence raised concerns about the implications of AI’s rapid growth at a panel discussion in Washington, D.C. Tuesday.

The American Enterprise Institute hosted a series of panel discussions surrounding the deployment of AI. Panelists discussed safety protocols, workforce development and regulatory initiatives.

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Northwestern University May Have Broken Federal Law by Failing to Report Crimes During Anti-Israel Protests

South Carolina Sun Staff
Northwestern University student protesters

Northwestern University may have violated a federal law by failing to report crimes on campus at least five times during recent anti-Israel protests.

Northwestern appears to have violated a U.S. law called the Clery Act by not taking and publishing police reports from students who say they were assaulted, battered, stolen from, or witnessed crimes committed by anti-Israel protesters on campus. Failure to do so would allow the university to report lower crime numbers and portray a false picture of campus safety.

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Commentary: American Schools Are a Big Reason Our Children Are Unwell

South Carolina Sun Staff
High School students

With “Teacher Appreciation Week” now behind us, it’s crucial that we pay close heed to the well-being of the students, and the news is not good. Gen Z-ers and the newest crop—Generation Alpha—are struggling, and schools are the focal point of the problem.

A new report from Gallup and the Walton Family Foundation surveyed more than 1,000 Gen Z students between the ages of 12 and 18 and found that just 48 percent of those enrolled in middle or high school felt motivated to go to school. Only half said they do something interesting in school every day. On a similar note, a new EdChoice survey reveals that 64 percent of teens said that school is boring, and 30 percent feel that it is a waste of time.

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Commentary: Gov. Al Smith and the Anti-Trump Republicans

South Carolina Sun Staff
Al Smith and FDR

As I’ve watched some of President Donald Trump’s former appointees and allies say they can’t support him in 2024, I was reminded of a similar scenario in American history.

In 1936, Former New York Gov. Al Smith decided that he could not support President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s re-election.

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