Workforce Development for Rural Missouri
Workforce development is a hot topic in Missouri right now. The governor deemed the issue important enough to give it...
Words Matter
Have you ever seen a word that you use all the time without thinking about it and paused to consider...
It’s Listicle Time!
The end of the year is the time for top-ten lists, top-story lists, and best-moments-of-the-year lists, to name a few....
The data are here! The data are here!
For me, Christmas came early this year. On December 12, the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) released,...
Highest and Lowest Spending Schools in the St. Louis Area
When Congress updated No Child Left Behind (NCLB) with the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) in 2015, many hailed the...
Making Growth Understandable
School test scores are a snapshot. If the test is a good one, it tells us how much a student...
Why Can’t Missouri Be Like . . . Illinois?
Missouri’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) released its school report cards earlier this year in an attempt to...
DESE’s APR Summary Reports Hide Achievement Gaps
If you want to find out how Missouri students are performing, you might think you could go to the Department...
It’s Time to Stop Making Excuses
Missouri students have a college readiness problem. The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) reports that in 2017, just...
Don’t Worry, We’re All Confused
You know a good report card when you see it, and the recently released annual performance reports (APR) for Missouri...
Meet the New Report Card, Same as the Old Report Card
I’m a researcher. When it comes to data I like digging in, and I like unpacking. So, when I heard...
Why Are Missouri School Districts Blocking Course Access?
Educational options are scarce for Missouri students. Missouri’s new virtual learning program should be a resource providing more options for...
The More You Know
If your child is transitioning from middle to high school this fall, you might be wondering how many students at...
We’re on the Road to Nowhere . . .
The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) released preliminary test scores for the 2018–19 school year. And for...
Getting Sent Back to School
What a mixed-up world we live in. In order to keep her daughter in the school she has chosen, a...
Missouri’s School District Accreditation Doesn’t Help Students
When the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) says 99 percent of districts are fully accredited and doing just...
Mission (not) Accomplished
I knew it might be too good to be true. During the 2018 legislative session, lawmakers passed and the governor...
Why Are Other Organizations Doing DESE’s Job?
“Kind of crazy.” That’s how the director of school improvement for the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE)...
An IRC Bonus Pay Program Would Benefit the Ozarks
A survey released earlier this year suggests the Ozark region has a workforce problem. The survey asked businesses in the...
Missouri Families Deserve Choice
My son, I’m happy to say, is a well-adjusted adult who participates in plenty of active sports—mostly surfing and rock...
