EdSurge
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A nonprofit newsroom reporting on the powerful forces, fascinating people and innovative practices shaping teaching and learning. edsurge.com Subscribe to our newsletters: https://www.edsurge.com/newsletters
Dan Clark asked his students how they could make their voices heard during a community action project. Their answer: TikTok and Instagram. A full cellphone ban made that authentic outreach harder.
The Case Against the Classroom Cellphone Crackdown - EdSurge News
Instead of banning the technology, schools have an opportunity to promote digital citizenship and student engagement.
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Coursemojo co-CEO Dacia Toll writes that many students hit a “comprehension wall” in middle school, when they move from learning to read to understanding increasingly complex texts.
AI Can Help One of K-12’s Biggest Challenges: Middle School Reading - EdSurge News
Artificial intelligence can bridge the middle grades literacy gap by providing individualized student reading instruction at scale.
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What happens when new federal edtech guidance reaches the people actually buying and implementing the tools? 🎧 Listen to the full episode at the link or on your preferred podcast platform. 🔗: https://www.edsurge.com/news/can-a-letter-from-washington-actually-change-how-schools-buy-technology
Turnitin data found that 19% of U.S. higher education submissions were measured as more than 80% AI-generated, compared with 10% in the U.K. and Australia.
Teachers Forge Ahead on Integrating AI - EdSurge News
A new report highlights a growing push for tools tailored specifically to the classroom.
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The class of 2026 is the first to graduate after spending all of high school in the age of generative AI. In the Me, Myself, and AI art show at the America’s Youth AI Festival in Boston, student artists explored what AI means now, and what it could become 50 years from now.
Student Artists Wrestle with AI’s Promise and Peril - EdSurge News
Four student artists map out what artificial intelligence means for their communities today — and 50 years from now.
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The number of community colleges offering bachelor’s degrees has grown from 187 to 214 since 2024, according to the Community College Baccalaureate Association.
Early Childhood Educators Are Leveling Up at Community Colleges —
Research reveals little to no penalty from employers for teachers who earn four-year degrees at community colleges instead of universities.
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Middle school reading intervention has to start with diagnosis. A student struggling with decoding needs different support than one struggling with vocabulary, fluency, or background knowledge.
Reading Scores Continue to Drop for Many Middle Schoolers
Educators say middle schools need the same coherent literacy systems that transformed K-3.
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“I use ChatGPT. How am I supposed to know that?” Melinda Medina (VOC 2025–2026) writes that AI’s greatest risk may be the quiet erosion of students’ ability to think for themselves.
Protecting Student Cognition in the Age of AI - EdSurge News
Educators must shift their focus from preventing cognitive offloading to preserving the critical thinking skills AI threatens to replace.
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New Department of Education guidance pushes schools to judge edtech by outcomes and evidence, while leaving implementation largely to states and districts. 🎧 Listen to the latest episode of This Week with EdSurge at the link or on your preferred podcast platform.
Can a Letter From Washington Actually Change How Schools Buy Technology? - EdSurge News
On this episode of This Week with EdSurge, unpacking new federal edtech guidance for schools.
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Students debated AI policy through a Senate-style process, with subcommittees, amendments, floor debate, and a roll call vote. Their schools’ current approaches to AI varied widely.
On AI Policy, Students Have Plenty to Say - EdSurge News
At a gathering in Boston, ‘student senators’ proposed a first-of-its-kind national AI policy for K-12 classrooms.
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What is shaping education right now? This Week with EdSurge brings educators, researchers, and other experts together to unpack the ideas, policies, and technologies changing classrooms. 🎧 Listen at the link or on your preferred podcast platform.
Podcasts - EdSurge
EdSurge is the leading source for education technology news, research, and resources.
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Test-optional policies expanded applicant pools at many selective colleges, while shifting more weight to essays, activities, recommendations, and course rigor.
College Admissions Testing is Returning to Mixed Reactions
Supporters argue that reinstating SAT and ACT test requirements better vet student readiness.
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Men make up about 23% of public elementary and secondary teachers, down from 30% in 1988. A new survey looks at what brings men into teaching and what helps them stay.
As Male Teachers Vanish From the Classroom, Schools Look for Ways to Bring Them Back - EdSurge News
A new survey of 145 men in the profession points to mentorship, pay and a sense of belonging as the biggest levers for recruitment and retention.
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Beth Yirga argues that educational equity must include access to relationships. Who gets professional exposure? Who sees themselves reflected in future careers? Who gets to imagine what is possible?
The K-12 Silo Won’t Survive AI — But Our Relationships Might
I left my school to ask tech executives how to prepare students for the future.
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Inside South Hampton K-8’s Library of Innovation: 3D printers, drones, student podcasting, coding, engineering, and tornado warning models tied to real community needs. Tambra Clark shares the story.
The Library That Sparked a STEM Revolution for Our Students
To truly close the digital equity gap, educators must become architects of student possibility.
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The Department of Education issues long-awaited edtech guidance for states and districts. EdSurge Editorial Director Ira Apfel breaks down what stands out. 🔗: https://www.edsurge.com/news/department-of-education-issues-long-awaited-edtech-guidance-for-states-and-districts
Michael Hernandez says AI has reminded educators what matters most: helping students become intellectually agile, emotionally resilient problem-solvers beyond grades and test scores. 🎧 Listen to the full episode of This Week with EdSurge.
Assignments, Invoices, and the AI Fix - EdSurge News
On This Week with EdSurge, searching to see where artificial intelligence quietly adds up.
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Brenna Kirkpatrick grew up thinking math had one method and one answer. Teaching showed her that multiple strategies can help students find a way into the problem.
Math Terrified Me When I Was a Student. That Made Me a Better Tea
A novice educator turns her "weakness" into a teaching strength.
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Student leaders raised concerns about cheating, privacy, security, mental health, deepfakes, equitable access, overreliance on AI, and the need for stronger digital literacy.
On AI Policy, Students Have Plenty to Say - EdSurge News
At a gathering in Boston, ‘student senators’ proposed a first-of-its-kind national AI policy for K-12 classrooms.
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Traditional, virtual, and home-based schooling all come with trade-offs. Mi Aniefuna writes that parents cannot optimize every environment their children inhabit, but they can be intentional about the totality of their experiences.
Why Would Anyone Opt for Virtual Kindergarten? - EdSurge News
As a researcher, I knew the evidence. As a father, I learned that when making decisions for your child, emotions matter as well.
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EdSurge has a new advisory board. Their work spans journalism, AI in education, workforce readiness, public schools, technology, literacy, and teacher identity. 🔗: https://www.edsurge.com/news/edsurge-welcomes-top-journalists-and-educators-to-advisory-board
EdSurge Welcomes Top Journalists and Educators to Advisory Board
Bringing together award-winning reporters and leading educators, the six-member board will provide strategic guidance on newsroom priorities and ...
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In Brayden White’s class, students pretend to be sports executives instead of studying for a grade. He found that they were more willing to guess, debate, make mistakes, and try again.
I Went from Rising Senior to Teacher. Here’s What I Learned
A high school student creates an online class for middle schoolers — and gains perspective on teaching.
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The U.S. Department of Education today issued long-awaited guidance on educational technology use in classrooms, emphasizing outcomes and evidence while stopping short of new federal regulations.
Department of Education Issues Long-Awaited Edtech Guidance for S
The letter emphasizes outcomes and evidence but stops short of issuing federal regulations.
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Prompt engineering may not be the AI skill that lasts. On This Week with EdSurge, Mi Aniefuna argues that computational thinking could give students a more durable foundation as AI keeps changing. 🎧 Listen to the full episode. 🔗: https://www.edsurge.com/news/what-is-ai-actually-costing-schools
Missouri’s cellphone ban made Dan Clark (VOC 2025–2026) rethink what students lose when schools remove smartphones completely. His eighth graders wanted to use TikTok and Instagram for a real civic engagement project.
The Case Against the Classroom Cellphone Crackdown - EdSurge News
Instead of banning the technology, schools have a unique opportunity to promote digital citizenship and authentic student engagement.
edsurge.com
Sight-word cards in the car, math problems on the refrigerator, and face-to-face sound activities can help families continue learning without sending children back to a screen.
Early Childhood Education Teachers Grapple with Screen Time
The AAP’s new guidance helps, but putting it into practice in classrooms remains challenging.
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Brenna Kirkpatrick feared math as a student. When she became a fourth-grade teacher, she worried she would pass that anxiety on to her students. Instead, she learned to turn it into a source of connection.
Math Terrified Me When I Was a Student. That Made Me a Better Tea
A novice educator turns her "weakness" into a teaching strength.
edsurge.com
SAT and ACT requirements are coming back at some selective colleges. Supporters say test scores help measure readiness. Critics say they capture only one narrow part of student potential. 🔗 Read on EdSurge: https://www.edsurge.com/news/college-admissions-testing-is-returning-to-mixed-reactions
Students deserve more than a “device drop,” Tambra Clark writes. At South Hampton K-8, the real work began after the ribbon-cutting, when the Library of Innovation had to become a sustained ecosystem.
The Library That Sparked a STEM Revolution for Our Students
To truly close the digital equity gap, educators must become architects of student possibility.
edsurge.com
Experts interviewed by EdSurge say a well-prepared graduate needs more than strong grades or a diploma. Students also need self-knowledge, adaptability, communication, problem-solving, resilience, and the confidence to advocate for themselves after high school.
Reality Bites: Students Say They Face Stark Challenges After High
A new national survey finds a widening gap between classroom preparation and postgraduation life.
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