Education Resources to Help You Stay in the Know

January 22, 2014

As a newer member of the NewSchools team, one of my New Year’s resolutions is to try and stay more current with education news in 2014. I asked our team for their favorite resources, and thought I would share what I heard from them in terms of go to sources.

Here are some go to education gurus who are active on Twitter and followed by many NewSchoolers:

  • @arneduncan: Arne Duncan, US Secretary of Education
  • @arotherham: Andrew Rotherham, Co-founder and Partner at Bellwether Education Partners
  • @dmmcgriff : Deborah McGriff, Managing Director at NewSchools Venture Fund
  • @MichaelPetrilli: Michael Petrilli, Executive VP of the Fordham Institute and editor of Education Next
  • @HowardLFuller: Howard Fuller, Director, Institute for the Transformation of Learning, Marquette University; Former superintendent of Milwaukee Public Schools
  • @MichelleRhee: Michelle Rhee, Founder of Students First and former chancellor of D.C. Public Schools
  • @nsvf: NewSchools Venture Fund, a daily mix of education news from our favorite sources

I got a lot of input on digital sources for news. I’ve categorized them below for national sources, plus go-tos in some of our key investment areas (DC, Boston, Newark and Oakland for our City Funds, teacher preparation for our Learning to Teach Fund, and edtech for our Seed Fund).

Education resources with a national focus:

  • Education Week: A national education news source. Sign up for the daily “EdWeek Update” for up-to-date news on education policy and practices.
  • Eduwonk: An education policy and politics blog written by Andrew J Rotherham, Co-founder and Partner at Bellwether Education Partners.
  • Politico Morning Education: A daily overview of education policy news. Sign up for the daily newsletter.
  • Gadfly: An education blog published by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute containing education research, analysis, and commentary. Sign up for the daily newsletter.
  • Education Next: A source for national education policy news, research and analysis. Read the quarterly journal for in-depth analysis of education trends and policies; refer to the Education Next blog for daily posts and discussions.
  • The Hechinger Report: An in-depth education news report and analysis of current education policies and initiatives. Sign up for the weekly newsletter for national education news updates.

Education resources with a D.C. focus:

  • FOCUS DC: An advocacy organization that provides information regarding DC charter school advocacy, performance and demographics. Sign up for the daily newsletter to stay current on DC public charter school news.
  • Young Education Professionals-DC: A forum for future education leaders in research, policy and practice to share thoughts on current DC-related education topics.
  • DC Public Charter School Board Blog: A blog published by the DCPCSB informing on DC charter-relevant news and updates.

Education resources with a Boston focus:

Education resources with a Newark focus:

Education resources with an Oakland focus:

  • GO Public Schools: An advocacy organization that connects and activates the Oakland community to advance leadership and policies in the best interest of Oakland public school students. Sign up for their newsletter or school board agenda watch blog here.
  • Oakland Tribune – Education: An Oakland newspaper that reports frequently on local education news.

Education innovation resources:

  • IPersonalize: An education blog by Scott Benson, program officer at the Gates Foundation. This blog includes current news and extensive resources related to personalized, mastery-based learning.
  • EdSurge: A news site for educators, entrepreneurs and investors involved in education technology. Sign up for EdSurge’s newsletter to receive their weekly education technology news digest.
  • Blend My Learning: A blended learning blog that provides a forum for education professions to share and discuss best practices in blended learning.

Teacher preparation resources

  • TNTP Blog: A blog published by The New Teacher Project that shares ideas, research and opinions about topics related to effective teaching and teacher preparation.
  • Puzzl_ED: An education blog by Mike Goldstein, founder of the Match Charter School in Boston, MA. Posts include reflections on best practices, personal experiences and other musings.
  • Doug Lemov’s Field Notes: A blog written by Doug Lemov, author of “Teach Like a Champion,” about effective teaching practices and techniques.

Know of other helpful resources to stay up-to-date when it comes to education news? Be sure to tell us in the comments section.