Early Ed Watch

More than 80 percent of elementary school teachers, grades 3 through 5, report that they are spending more learning time on math or language arts at the expense of other subjects. This is one of the most disconcerting findings from a recent survey of 1,000 3^rd through 12^th grade public school teachers commissioned by Common Core, a DC-based non-profit that promotes content-rich curricula and instruction.

This week the National League of Cities (NLC) released a set of case studies on five cities that are trying to create a seamless educational pipeline for children from birth through third grade: Boston, Hartford, San Antonio, San José and Seattle. The preK-3rd efforts in these cities are led by mayors in partnership with local school districts and community-based organizations.

This month’s issue of Educational Leadership magazine, published by ASCD, features an article I wrote, “Preparing Teachers for the Early Grades.” In it I share findings and recommendations from my policy paper, “Getting in Sync: Revamping Licensing and Preparation for Teachers in Pre-K, Kindergarten, and the Early Grades.”

If young children are going to use and consume electronic media, which is better: playing an interactive app or watching a video? In a piece for Slate today, I describe results from an experiment at Georgetown University that tries to answer that question. The short answer is that an interactive touch-responsive game may promote more learning, at least with 2-and-a-half-year-olds. But the caveats are many.