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Thursday, August 29th, 2024

The Unequal Effects of School Closings

Author:     Alec MacGillis
Source:     ProPublica
Publication Date:     Aug. 26, 2024 | 5 a.m. EDT
 Link: The Unequal Effects of School Closings
Stephan:  

The United States, as you can see from the chart that heads this report the U.S. scores 36th in the world on educational capabilities. That we are the world’s leader on education is another of the lies we routinely tell ourselves. In fact we have a very poorly educated population, and a well-educated population is critical to a successful democracy.

As you see here Americans score very badly in the international rankings on educational capabilities

Reporting Highlights

  • Enrollment Plunging: Since the pandemic began, public school enrollment has declined by a million students nationwide, as many have switched to private schools and homeschooling.
  • City Schools Are Closing: Rochester, New York, is shutting 11 of its 45 schools. In Seattle, parents expect 20 elementary schools will close. In Columbus, Ohio, nine schools may cease to operate.
  • Unequal Effects: Closings fall especially on majority-Black schools. As top students move to private and suburban schools, special-needs students are left behind in fewer city facilities.

These highlights were written by the reporters and editors who worked on this story. Were they helpful?

In the 1990s, when Liberia descended into civil war, the Kpor family fled to Ivory Coast. A few years later, in 1999, they were approved for resettlement in the United States and ended up in Rochester, New York. Janice Kpor, who was 11 at the time, jokingly wonders whether her elders were under the impression that they were moving to New York City. What she remembers most […]

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