The Hechinger Report

Politicians say left-wing professors push their views. New poll shows students don’t see it that way. Conservative politicians warn of “woke” college campuses, where liberal professors teach their opinions and stifle any dissent. Their concerns have led them to get involved in the day-to-day operations of public colleges and universities as never before, including through the creation of taxpayer-funded, right-leaning civic centers.  But most college students don’t share those concerns, our recent reporting found. And a new poll by Gallup echoes what students told us. The poll, which included responses from nearly 4,000 college students, found that about two-thirds of all students — including two-thirds of Republican students — said that their professors encouraged students to share their views “even if it makes others uncomfortable.” Just 3 percent of Republican students said they felt they didn’t belong at their college because of their political leanings.

Politicians say left-wing professors push their views. New poll shows students don’t see it that way.

Conservative politicians warn of “woke” college campuses, where liberal professors teach their opinions and stifle any dissent. Their concerns have led them to get involved in the day-to-day…

As business costs rise, child care programs are increasing tuition to survive It’s becoming markedly more expensive to run a child care business. And as public funding fails to keep up with inflation, those costs are getting passed on to families that in many cases can’t afford to pay more. Those are some of the main findings of a new report by the National Association for the Education of Young Children, which earlier this year surveyed more than 7,000 early childhood educators from a variety of early learning programs across the country. The cost for food and supplies has increased the most, providers say, followed by maintenance for facilities and liability insurance.

As business costs rise, child care programs are increasing tuition to survive

It’s becoming markedly more expensive to run a child care business. And as public funding fails to keep up with inflation, those costs are getting passed on to families that in many cases can’t afford to pay more. Those…

Are microschools a solution to falling public school enrollment? One district thinks so GREENFIELD, Ind. — Seventh grader Taitym Lynch plans most of her school day herself, mapping out a schedule each morning on her school laptop. She typically starts with math when her brain is sharpest, logging into an online platform her school uses for math lessons. Next she often tackles science with her “class guide,” a teaching assistant who walks her though topics like animal food chains. Lynch chooses to have lunch around noon, and finds time to take breaks in the woods that surround her school, Nature’s Gift. Lynch, 13, came to Nature’s Gift this fall after years in a traditional public school.

Are microschools a solution to falling public school enrollment? One district thinks so

GREENFIELD, Ind. — Seventh grader Taitym Lynch plans most of her school day herself, mapping out a schedule each morning on her school laptop. She typically starts with math when her brain is sharpest, logging…

TEACHER VOICE: We don’t have a math problem in Arkansas or in the United States. We have a culture problem For 23 years, I’ve taught high school math. And for 23 years, I’ve been told by people that they either are a “math person” or they are not. I get it: Math isn’t easy. Movies and TV shows make it look effortless for a select few. But math is hard work. If you don’t do the work, and if you don’t have a teacher who can help you build the math skills you need, you may struggle with math. Then you might internalize these challenges into the idea that you’re not a “math person.” …

TEACHER VOICE: We don’t have a math problem in Arkansas or in the United States. We have a culture problem

For 23 years, I’ve taught high school math. And for 23 years, I’ve been told by people that they either are a “math person” or they are not. I get it: Math isn’t easy. Movies and TV shows…

Educators ‘climatize’ their classes to prepare students for work and life on a warming planet About four years ago, Holly Bailey-Hofmann’s English 101 class at West Los Angeles College got a complete makeover. She’d signed up to be part of a pilot program for professors interested in infusing their curriculum with lessons about climate change and community resilience. The program only required her to “climatize” one module of the syllabus, but she loved the work so much she overhauled the whole class. The goal for her students remained the same pre- and post-makeover: learning to write effectively and conduct academic research. Now, though, she teaches reading, writing and research by assigning research studies and nonfiction essays about climate change — including pieces about how…

Educators ‘climatize’ their classes to prepare students for work and life on a warming planet

About four years ago, Holly Bailey-Hofmann’s English 101 class at West Los Angeles College got a complete makeover. She’d signed up to be part of a pilot program for professors interested in infusing…

Conservative-leaning civic centers now teach courses at public colleges COLUMBUS, Ohio — One glossy insert stuck out from the orientation packet handed to hundreds of Ohio State University freshmen last August. It advertised a tempting offer: Students could earn a $4,000 scholarship — close to a third off in-state tuition — if they enrolled in one civics-oriented course and attended three events each semester outside of class. It seemed straightforward, but missing in the fine print was the controversial nature of the center giving the scholarships, sponsoring the lectures and crafting the new courses. It was the Salmon P. Chase Center for Civics, Culture, and Society, created by Ohio’s Republican-dominated legislature with the explicit goal of enticing students to take courses taught by a newly hired group of conservative philosophers, political scientists and historians.

Conservative-leaning civic centers now teach courses at public colleges

COLUMBUS, Ohio — One glossy insert stuck out from the orientation packet handed to hundreds of Ohio State University freshmen last August. It advertised a tempting offer: Students could earn a $4,000 scholarship — close to a…

With reading scores slipping, Massachusetts is changing course. Some teachers aren’t happy WAKEFIELD, Mass. — One winter morning at the Woodville School in this town about 15 miles north of Boston, teacher Danielle Masse was guiding her class of kindergartners through a lesson on identifying the sounds that make up words. She instructed her students to say aloud the word “said,” then explained how to separate it into two parts. The kindergartners repeated the “s” sound followed by the syllable “ed.” Then, Masse walked the students through how to make a new word from the severed sounds, telling them to substitute the “r” sound for the “s” sound and then combine the new “r” with “ed.” …

With reading scores slipping, Massachusetts is changing course. Some teachers aren’t happy

WAKEFIELD, Mass. — One winter morning at the Woodville School in this town about 15 miles north of Boston, teacher Danielle Masse was guiding her class of kindergartners through a lesson on identifying the…

Parents trust report cards more than test scores — with consequences for kids Most parents want to help their children succeed. We check report cards, ask about homework and try to help our kids study. When that fails, we sometimes hire tutors. But in an era of rising grades, it’s easy to be misled. A new study finds parents often assume everything is fine when their child’s report card shows mostly A’s even when standardized test scores slide. That assumption may underestimate the help and guidance their child needs. In an online experiment, researchers at Oregon State University and the University of Chicago created hypothetical fifth graders, whom they called Stacey and Robert, and asked more than 2,000 parents how they would advise the children’s parents to respond to different scenarios of grades and test scores.

Parents trust report cards more than test scores — with consequences for kids

Most parents want to help their children succeed. We check report cards, ask about homework and try to help our kids study. When that fails, we sometimes hire tutors. But in an era of rising grades, it’s easy to be…

OPINION: There is no clear strategy to prepare U.S. high schoolers for life after graduation, and that must change U.S. high schools and districts need to treat college and career readiness as a core, systemic responsibility — not an add-on. Sure, they are working hard to better prepare students for life after graduation: FAFSA completion events, career exploration fairs, internships with local businesses and dual-credit classes at community colleges now define the student experience in many schools. While these programs and events reflect a genuine effort to support students navigating an increasingly complex postsecondary landscape, they fail to coalesce into a clear strategy. That has to change. Until college and career readiness is fully embedded into how schools are organized, funded and led, even the best-intentioned supports will continue to fall short of their potential and fail students who are trying to figure out what’s next.

OPINION: There is no clear strategy to prepare U.S. high schoolers for life after graduation, and that must change

U.S. high schools and districts need to treat college and career readiness as a core, systemic responsibility — not an add-on. Sure, they are working hard to better prepare students…

Alabama made a big investment in elementary math, but underresourced schools still have a long way to go GREENVILLE, Ala. — Toward the end of a math lesson on a sunny Friday in October, fourth-grade teacher D’Atra Howard and math instructional coach LaVeda Gray ducked out of the classroom to huddle. Howard’s students at Greenville Elementary School were calculating remainders in division problems on worksheets, and Howard wanted to confer with Gray on which of them needed extra help. Howard is in her second year of teaching. She’s working at the school, 45 miles south of Montgomery, Alabama, with an emergency certificate — a temporary license that allows someone without a professional teaching credential into the classroom.

Alabama made a big investment in elementary math, but underresourced schools still have a long way to go

GREENVILLE, Ala. — Toward the end of a math lesson on a sunny Friday in October, fourth-grade teacher D’Atra Howard and math instructional coach LaVeda Gray ducked out of the classroom to…

Inside the fight to save Texas’ Native American studies course Savion Horn watched as “before” and “after” images appeared on a screen at the front of his classroom: black-and-white photos of boys and girls, much younger than him and his classmates, first with faces framed by long hair and traditional clothing, then with their locks cut, wearing high-necked dresses and stiff button-ups. For Horn, then a high school senior at Grand Prairie High School near Dallas and a descendant of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, it was his first in-depth lesson on the boarding schools where the U.S. government sent hundreds of thousands of Native American children in the 19th and 20th centuries with the goal of assimilating them and eradicating Native culture.

Inside the fight to save Texas’ Native American studies course

Savion Horn watched as “before” and “after” images appeared on a screen at the front of his classroom: black-and-white photos of boys and girls, much younger than him and his classmates, first with faces framed by long hair and…

OPINION: Want to get young people excited about learning? Give them hands-on programs, mentors and skills that lead to good careers Sitting in a classroom and being lectured day after day is no way to excite young people about learning. Students want educational experiences that engage them, link classroom lessons to real-world relevance and help them find the meaning behind what they are learning in school. Many young people today are finding that kind of learning in high-quality career and technical education programs throughout the country that teach learning experiences aligned to current industry needs. That means opportunities to explore career possibilities that match their strengths and interests and help build key technical and durable skills.

OPINION: Want to get young people excited about learning? Give them hands-on programs, mentors and skills that lead to good careers

Sitting in a classroom and being lectured day after day is no way to excite young people about learning. Students want educational experiences that engage them, link…

What’s behind explosive student behavior? Last summer, I was visiting a Head Start center in rural Ohio when a teacher offhandedly mentioned to me that student behavior has become markedly worse since the pandemic. The teacher was confident she knew why: too much time on iPads at home. The comment stuck with me as another in a long stream of anecdotes I had been hearing about worsening behavior. I wrote about the trend that teachers are talking about — and potential solutions — in a story that ran this week in partnership with the Los Angeles Times.

What’s behind explosive student behavior?

Last summer, I was visiting a Head Start center in rural Ohio when a teacher offhandedly mentioned to me that student behavior has become markedly worse since the pandemic. The teacher was confident she knew why: too much time on iPads at home. The comment…

Biting, kicking, wandering the classroom: Teachers say there’s a rise in misbehavior even among the littlest kids SAN MATEO, Calif. — School had been in session at Lead Elementary for less than an hour, but already Andrea Quinn had paused teaching her first graders nearly 20 times. First, there was the child who had zipped his entire face inside the hood of his green sweatshirt. “Is that a good choice?” Quinn asked. “Yeah?” responded a muffled voice. Then, there was the girl in pink leggings who stood up from her seat, wandered over to Quinn as she was teaching and stood next to her at the front of the room.

Biting, kicking, wandering the classroom: Teachers say there’s a rise in misbehavior even among the littlest kids

SAN MATEO, Calif. — School had been in session at Lead Elementary for less than an hour, but already Andrea Quinn had paused teaching her first graders nearly 20 times. First, there…

When school size matters and when it doesn’t For two decades, New York City’s small high schools stood out as one of the nation’s most ambitious — and controversial — urban education reforms. Now, a long-term study provides a clearer picture of their successes and disappointments. In the early 2000s, under former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the city closed dozens of large high schools with high dropout rates in low-income neighborhoods and, with $150 million from the Gates Foundation, replaced them with smaller ones, often located in the same buildings. Admission to more than 120 of the most popular new small schools was determined by lottery, creating the kind of random assignment researchers prize.

When school size matters and when it doesn’t

For two decades, New York City’s small high schools stood out as one of the nation’s most ambitious — and controversial — urban education reforms. Now, a long-term study provides a clearer picture of their successes and disappointments. In the early…

OPINION: Pathways for future scientists are becoming scarce, threatening a strong and innovative workforce When I was 17, I didn’t know a single scientist. I did not grow up around labs, research universities or people who talked about things like “STEM pathways.” The only reason I am a scientist today is because mentors leading support programs invested in me early, before I knew how to find science on my own. Today, those are the very programs being dismantled. Doors that opened for me and my colleagues are now being quietly shut for others. Federal officials recently confirmed that research funding related to diversity, equity and inclusion at the National Institutes of Health will not be renewed, signaling a broader retreat from efforts designed to widen the pathway to participation in science.

OPINION: Pathways for future scientists are becoming scarce, threatening a strong and innovative workforce

When I was 17, I didn’t know a single scientist. I did not grow up around labs, research universities or people who talked about things like “STEM pathways.” The only reason I am a scientist…

The greening of career education: Students learn new skills they’ll need as climate change advances GREENVILLE, S.C. — On one end of the classroom, high school juniors examined little green sprouts — future baby carrots, sprigs of romaine lettuce — poking out of the soil of a drip irrigation system they built a few weeks prior. On the opposite end of the room, a model of a hydropower plant showed students how the movement of water can stimulate electrical currents. In this class in South Carolina’s Greenville County school district, students primarily learn about one topic: renewable energy. “It’s an extremely important thing to study, especially now with all the new technology coming,” said 11th grader Beckett Morrison.

The greening of career education: Students learn new skills they’ll need as climate change advances

GREENVILLE, S.C. — On one end of the classroom, high school juniors examined little green sprouts — future baby carrots, sprigs of romaine lettuce — poking out of the soil of a drip irrigation…

Inside one state’s approach to fighting antisemitism in schools The town of Concord, famed for its Revolutionary War history, has highly rated public schools, standing out even in the already high-performing state of Massachusetts. But in June of last year, they were singled out in a negative way — for antisemitism. The Anti-Defamation League, the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law and a pro bono team at the law firm Mayer Brown filed a brief with the federal Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights alleging a former student in the Concord-Carlisle district was the victim of antisemitic bullying from middle school through high school by a total of seven others, until he left for a private Jewish day school in November 2024.

Inside one state’s approach to fighting antisemitism in schools

The town of Concord, famed for its Revolutionary War history, has highly rated public schools, standing out even in the already high-performing state of Massachusetts. But in June of last year, they were singled out in a negative way…

After affirmative action: Four takeaways — and puzzles — from college admissions data Most people believed that the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision to end affirmative action in higher education admissions would cause a big drop in Black and Hispanic enrollment at the nation’s top colleges. What happened is actually more complicated. Overall, more Black and Hispanic students enrolled in four-year universities in fall 2024 than in fall 2023. But in nearly all highly selective private and public colleges — the 85 that accept 25 percent or fewer applicants — Black enrollment declined or remained flat; the same was true of Hispanic enrollment at more than half of those institutions.

After affirmative action: Four takeaways — and puzzles — from college admissions data

Most people believed that the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision to end affirmative action in higher education admissions would cause a big drop in Black and Hispanic enrollment at the nation’s top colleges. What…

This state tried to overhaul math instruction. It didn’t go as planned LEHI, Utah — It was the last class before Thanksgiving break, and high school math teacher Sarah Gale was dishing out more than her usual lessons on data science. “I can smell it,” said one student, pressing her sleeve to her face, as Gale walked around the classroom with a jar and samples of Marmite. The salty spread is popular in Australia and Britain, but far less so here, in the suburbs of Salt Lake City. “Yeast extract? Disgusting,” said another student, reading from the jar, as her peers mimicked coughs and dry heaves.

This state tried to overhaul math instruction. It didn’t go as planned

LEHI, Utah — It was the last class before Thanksgiving break, and high school math teacher Sarah Gale was dishing out more than her usual lessons on data science. “I can smell it,” said one student, pressing her sleeve to her…

Getting in is getting easier Think getting into college is all but impossible? Think again. Sure, the most selective institutions still take only a tiny fraction of the people who apply to them. But at almost all the rest, the odds of getting in are good — and getting better. That’s because enrollment in higher education is already down by more than 1.5 million since 2010. Now the number of 18-year-old prospective college students is projected to begin a long decline. And federal data show that today’s high school graduates are less likely to go straight to college than their predecessors were.

Getting in is getting easier

Think getting into college is all but impossible? Think again. Sure, the most selective institutions still take only a tiny fraction of the people who apply to them. But at almost all the rest, the odds of getting in are good — and getting better. That’s because…

Without school vaccine mandates, many kids may never see a doctor Every December brings an end-of-year crush to Washington, D.C.’s pediatric clinics. In addition to the usual culprits — colds, the flu, RSV — that’s also the time when the city school district issues notices reminding parents of children who are behind on required vaccinations to get caught up by December 8, or risk being turned away from school. For Dr. Megan Prior, a pediatrician in the district, the vaccine rush brings an opportunity to catch families up on more than shots. This past December, Prior said, a 12-year-old overdue for her meningitis, tetanus and other vaccines also presented with severe prediabetes that was on the verge of becoming full-blown disease.

Without school vaccine mandates, many kids may never see a doctor

Every December brings an end-of-year crush to Washington, D.C.’s pediatric clinics. In addition to the usual culprits — colds, the flu, RSV — that’s also the time when the city school district issues notices reminding parents of…

OPINION: Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl performance should last well beyond halftime and extend to classrooms  During Sunday’s Super Bowl halftime show, my family, a mix of Filipinos and Cubans, was a hot and beautiful mess. We deeply resonated with the unapologetic pride, critical history and cultural wealth Puerto Rican star Bad Bunny brought to our living room. We smiled and cried, all while salsa-stepping to Bad Bunny’s performance. We immediately texted our extended families to invite them to share this beautiful moment: from the entire delivery in Spanish to the set design that showcased Puerto Rico’s rich agricultural history, and the performer handing his newly minted Grammy award to a Latino child — a symbol of a young Bad Bunny and perhaps the future of immigrant youth.

OPINION: Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl performance should last well beyond halftime and extend to classrooms 

During Sunday’s Super Bowl halftime show, my family, a mix of Filipinos and Cubans, was a hot and beautiful mess. We deeply resonated with the unapologetic pride, critical history and cultural…

Easy A’s, lower pay: Grade inflation’s hidden damage For more than three decades, grades in American schools and colleges have been going up, up, up. A’s are more common. Failure is rarer than it once was. At the same time, student achievement, as measured by standardized tests like the ACT and NAEP, has stagnated or declined. Grades say students are learning more. Tests say they are not. Credit: Slide from Feb 3, 2026 presentation by economist Jeff Denning at Harvard Graduate School of Education Does this disconnect matter? Maybe higher grades motivate students to show up to school every day and learn.

Easy A’s, lower pay: Grade inflation’s hidden damage

For more than three decades, grades in American schools and colleges have been going up, up, up. A’s are more common. Failure is rarer than it once was. At the same time, student achievement, as measured by standardized tests like the ACT and…

Funding cuts, shifts in aid could make college harder to afford for low-income families It was in the quiet of the summer when Jeff Kahlden heard that a promising young student he advised in a rural high school west of Fort Worth, Texas, was in trouble. The boy was left with no place to live after his grandmother, who was raising him, had a stroke. Kahlden was then counseling low-income high school students considering going to college. The work was part of Upward Bound, part of a collection of federally funded higher education support programs for lower-income Americans called TRIO. He and other Upward Bound staff took the boy into their own homes and gave him the help he needed to get through his senior year of high school, then on to community college and ultimately to a satellite campus of the University of Texas, where he earned a bachelor’s degree.

Funding cuts, shifts in aid could make college harder to afford for low-income families

It was in the quiet of the summer when Jeff Kahlden heard that a promising young student he advised in a rural high school west of Fort Worth, Texas, was in trouble. The boy was left with no place to live after…

OPINION: Community colleges are uniquely positioned to train the nation’s AI workforce Every industrial revolution begins by creating a new middle class. The steam engine, for example, didn’t just replace blacksmiths; it generated a workforce of machinists, engineers and factory supervisors who helped build the infrastructure of modern industry. We’re seeing that pattern begin to resonate today with artificial intelligence. A rich tapestry of high-paying, high-demand jobs will define the next wave of economic development. A central challenge in creating these jobs is ensuring that people across all pathways can access the education needed to participate in the AI economy. The divide will no longer be between college-educated and non-college-educated workers; it will be between those trained to work with AI and those who are not.

OPINION: Community colleges are uniquely positioned to train the nation’s AI workforce

Every industrial revolution begins by creating a new middle class. The steam engine, for example, didn’t just replace blacksmiths; it generated a workforce of machinists, engineers and factory supervisors who…

Kindergarten readiness varies widely by income, new data shows. Cities are stepping in to help This story was produced by the Associated Press and reprinted with permission. SAN ANTONIO — Sandra Mosqueda watched with an amused smile as her 2-year-old son, Atreus, began sweeping the floor with a miniature mop. Atreus is part of the inaugural class of infants and toddlers receiving free preschool in a citywide program in San Antonio, Texas. It's something his mother doesn’t take for granted. As a child, she herself wasn't able to start preschool this young. In the case of her two older boys — now in first grade and kindergarten — the free preschool set them up for success in elementary school.

Kindergarten readiness varies widely by income, new data shows. Cities are stepping in to help

This story was produced by the Associated Press and reprinted with permission. SAN ANTONIO — Sandra Mosqueda watched with an amused smile as her 2-year-old son, Atreus, began sweeping the floor with a…

Parental stress, raids, and isolation: How immigration raids traumatize even the youngest children Last year, Susana Beltrán-Grimm was visiting Hispanic families for a research project about parents and math, when she started to notice a trend. Parents didn’t want to talk about math with the Portland State University professor. Instead, they wanted to talk about their fears as immigration enforcement ramped up across the country. “The concern was, ‘This is happening, and I’m scared to go to work, I’m scared to take my child to the park. I don’t feel comfortable taking them to school,’” Beltrán-Grimm said. Many parents told her, “I’m trying to figure out how I’m not as stressed so I don’t stress my child,” she recalled.

Parental stress, raids, and isolation: How immigration raids traumatize even the youngest children

Last year, Susana Beltrán-Grimm was visiting Hispanic families for a research project about parents and math, when she started to notice a trend. Parents didn’t want to talk about math with the…

College admissions offices take on a new role: Coaxing accepted students to show up MINNEAPOLIS — Kathy Cabrera Guaman not only survived the nail-biting process of applying to college; she got into three. But the celebrations were short-lived. Now she was sitting somberly and absorbing how much work comes after that triumphant moment of acceptance and before she sets foot in a classroom in the fall. For incoming students at most colleges and universities, this has long meant slogging through endless and complex steps they’re left mostly on their own to figure out — financial aid, loans, majors, placement tests, class registration, housing, roommates, textbooks, a meal plan, health insurance, public transportation, immunizations.

College admissions offices take on a new role: Coaxing accepted students to show up

MINNEAPOLIS — Kathy Cabrera Guaman not only survived the nail-biting process of applying to college; she got into three. But the celebrations were short-lived. Now she was sitting somberly and absorbing how much…

Hispanic-serving colleges scramble to fill gaps left by federal grant cuts CHICO, Calif. — As an undergraduate studying psychology at California State University, Chico, Gabriel Muñoz thought that his degree might lead him to a career in human resources. Not because he was excited about that prospect — he wasn’t — but because he wasn’t sure what other options he’d have. Then he learned about the university’s Future Scholars Program, in which undergraduate students get paid to do summer research and have access to mentors and professional development workshops. He applied and was accepted, and the experience sparked in him a love of research, he said; now he plans to enroll in a master’s program in psychology at Chico State and go on to earn his Ph.D.

Hispanic-serving colleges scramble to fill gaps left by federal grant cuts

CHICO, Calif. — As an undergraduate studying psychology at California State University, Chico, Gabriel Muñoz thought that his degree might lead him to a career in human resources. Not because he was excited about that…