An education columnist for the Washington Post, Jay Mathews, joins Education Next editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss Mathews' new book, "An Optimist’s Guide to American Public Education," and The Challenge Index, Mathews' annual ranking of American high schools. An excerpt from the book, "What I Learned in 23 Years Ranking America’s Most Challenging High Schools," by Mathews, is available now. https://www.educationnext.org/what-i-learned-in-23-years-ranking-americas-most-challenging-high-schools/

An assistant professor at American University, Claudia Persico, joins Education Next editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss Persico's new research, which investigates whether students of color are being properly identified for special education. "Segregation and Racial Gaps in Special Education," written with Todd E. Elder, David Figlio, and Scott Imberman, is available now. https://www.educationnext.org/segregation-racial-gaps-special-education-new-evidence-on-debate-over-disproportionality/

A professor of psychology at the University of Virginia, Daniel T. Willingham, joins Education Next editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss how findings in education research can be better translated to help teachers in a live classroom setting. Willingham's article, "Making Education Research Relevant: How researchers can give teachers more choices," co-written with David B. Daniel, is available now. https://www.educationnext.org/making-education-research-relevant-how-researchers-can-give-teachers-more-choices/

The President of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, Mike Petrilli, joins Education Next editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss how education may remain changed since the Covid-19 pandemic, when teachers might return to schools full time, and why cameras in the classroom may be here to stay. Petrilli's article, "A Post-Covid Case for Classroom Cameras," is available now. https://www.educationnext.org/post-covid-case-classroom-cameras-pandemic-ends-keep-teachers-cameras-on/

The executive director of the Center for Assessment, Scott Marion, joins Education Next editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss the uncertainty surrounding annual math and reading assessments this spring, and what schools can do to maintain instruction and accountability in 2021.

The executive vice president of 50Can, Derrell Bradford, joins Education Next Editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss the ongoing school closures amid to Covid-19, and how this is essentially an extension of teacher union activism of the past few years. Bradford's blog post, "A Rolling National Teacher Strike Is Why Schools Are Closed," is available now. https://www.educationnext.org/rolling-national-teacher-strike-is-why-schools-are-closed/

The president of the American Federation of Teachers, Randi Weingarten, joins Education Next editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss efforts to reopen public schools, including President Joe Biden's goal to re-open K-8 schools within the administration's first 100 days.

An Associate Professor of Education and Economics at Boston University, Joshua Goodman, joins Education Next Editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss how remote learning during a pandemic affects the snow day calculus.

The Director of the Center for the Study of Government and the Individual at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, Joshua Dunn, joins Education Next Editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss how parents have filed lawsuits in efforts to open schools for in-person instruction, and how the Supreme Court might eventually weigh in on these cases. Dunn's article, "As Unions and Public Officials Push to Keep Schools Closed, Parents Fight Back," is available now. https://www.educationnext.org/unions-public-officials-push-keep-schools-closed-parents-fight-back/

A research scientist for the Collaborative for Student Growth at NWEA, Megan Kuhfeld, joins Education Next Editor-in-chief Marty West to discuss Kuhfeld's new study, which tracks student reading and math scores during the Covid-19 pandemic. Kuhfeld's blog post, "Reading Suffered Less Than Expected During Pandemic, New Fall 2020 Student Data Show," is available now. https://www.educationnext.org/reading-suffered-less-than-expected-during-pandemic-new-fall-2020-student-data-show/