‘Why is the material in a standardized test treated as more confidential than …. former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s emails?’; Florida insists severely disabled teen take standardized test — despite pleas from family; Alabama lawmaker apologizes for bill requiring teachers be trained not to have sex with students; Is there a more apt example of trying to ‘do the wrong thing right” than in our schools?; New York is in for a sea change in education policy. Here’s what and why.; How NOT to save the world: Why U.S. students who go to poor countries to ‘do good’ often do the opposite; Big trouble at Teach For America?; No, great schools can’t close achievement gaps all by themselves; Thomas Jefferson would not have liked this college trend;     ‘Why is the material in a standardized test treated as more confidential than …. former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s emails?’ Texas teacher: 'What I do know for sure is that these tests have become far too important. They are treated as top-secret, national security-level documents.' By Valerie Strauss  •  Read more » Florida insists severely disabled teen take standardized test — despite pleas from family Mom: 'I know that Madison will never go to college, get a job, or leave home. I'm okay with that. All of the education and testing in the world is not going to change the fact that she's severely disabled.' By Valerie Strauss  •  Read more »   Alabama lawmaker apologizes for bill requiring teachers be trained not to have sex with students And then there's the legislation in Kansas that would allow anyone who saw a transgender person in a school bathroom to sue the school for $2,500.... The state bills just keep on coming. By Valerie Strauss  •  Read more »   Is there a more apt example of trying to ‘do the wrong thing right” than in our schools? Do we do the things we do because they’re better for kids or because they are easier for us? By Valerie Strauss  •  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   New York is in for a sea change in education policy. Here’s what and why. A new education chancellor means a sea change. By Valerie Strauss  •  Read more »   How NOT to save the world: Why U.S. students who go to poor countries to ‘do good’ often do the opposite 'Most of them are likely to return saying they got more out of the experience than they gave. We can only hope that their hosts aren’t saying they wish their visitors had never come.' By Valerie Strauss  •  Read more »   Big trouble at Teach For America? A former TFA corps member, now an academic, argues that TFA’s diversity gains have come at the expense of teachers of color, whose numbers have declined drastically in the very cities where the organization has expanded. By Valerie Strauss  •  Read more »   ADVERTISEMENT   No, great schools can’t close achievement gaps all by themselves An infographic explains why. By Valerie Strauss  •  Read more »   Fire-breathing stunt goes wrong at pep rally for standardized testing. (Yes, a testing pep rally.) If you look up the definition of “pep rally,” you will invariably find some reference to sports, as in a rally to build support for a specific team before a game. Take the Merriam-Webster definition: An event before a school sports event that is meant to get students and fans excited and to encourage the […] By Valerie Strauss  •  Read more »   Thomas Jefferson would not have liked this college trend STEM vs a liberal education. Or why not both? By Valerie Strauss  •  Read more »   Recommended for you   Opinions Thought-provoking opinions and commentary, in your inbox daily. Sign Up »         Share Answer Sheet:       Twitter      Facebook Trouble reading? Click here to view in your browser. You received this email because you signed up for Answer Sheet or because it is included in your subscription. For additional free newsletters or to manage your newsletters, click here. We respect your privacy. If you believe that this email has been sent to you in error or you no longer wish to receive email from The Washington Post, click here. Contact us for help. ©2016 The Washington Post, 1301 K St NW, Washington DC 20071