On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Checker Finn, Fordham’s president emeritus—and the original Education Gadfly—joins Mike and David to discuss the best and worst news in education reform in 2024. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber shares the top five research studies of the year.

Recommended content:

Michael J. Petrilli, “How much blame does the federal government deserve for America’s mediocre schools?,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (November 21, 2024).

• Michael J. Petrilli, “The end of MCAS is the end of an era. Now let’s figure out what comes next.,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (December 5, 2024).
• David Griffith and Daniel Buck, “It’s time for tough love to address chronic absenteeism,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (September 5, 2024).
• Dan Goldhaber and Grace Falken, ESSER and Student Achievement: Assessing the Impacts of the Largest One-Time Federal Investment in K12 Schools, CALDER (2024).

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at sdistler@fordhaminstitute.org.

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Philip K. Howard, chair of Common Good and a bestselling author, joins Mike and David to discuss what it takes to create positive school environments, as outlined in his recent Hoover Institution essay, “The human authority needed for good schools.” Then, on the Research Minute, Amber shares an Urban Institute report analyzing states’ demographically adjusted 2022 NAEP performance.

Recommended content:

• Philip K. Howard, “The human authority needed for good schools,” Hoover Institution (November 19, 2024).
• Ashley Berner, “3 ways to increase choice and decrease polarization in U.S. schools,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (September 23, 2024).
• Jeff Murray, “Digging into the 2024 survey of American public school teachers,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (July 25, 2024).
• Matthew Chingos, States’ Demographically Adjusted Performance on the 2022 Nation’s Report Card, Urban Institute (2024).

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at sdistler@fordhaminstitute.org.

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Colleen Hroncich, a policy analyst with the Cato Institute’s Center for Educational Freedom, joins Mike and David to discuss why pro–school choice ballot measures failed in Kentucky, Nebraska, and Colorado—and what it means for the future. Then, on the Research Minute, Adam shares a study examining 100 years of data on elite private and public colleges, revealing persistent gaps in socioeconomic diversity despite changes in racial and geographic representation.

Recommended content:

• Colleen Hroncich, Neal McCluskey, “Referendum Losses Are No Mandate against School Choice,” Real Clear Education (November 8, 2024).
• Juan Perez Jr., “Republicans’ big idea for remaking public education hits voter resistance,” Politico (November 27, 2024).
• Michael McShane “Op-ed: Despite blows, school choice swept the ballot this election,” Chalkboard News (November 14, 2024).
• Ran Abramitzky, Jennifer K. Kowalski, Santiago Pérez & Joseph Price, The G.I. Bill, Standardized Testing, and Socioeconomic Origins of the U.S. Educational Elite Over a Century, NBER (2024)

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at sdistler@fordhaminstitute.org.