Advancing Equity With Policy
How to build fairer schools through smarter policy
Blog Posts
Jean-Pierre Jacob, M.Ed., MS, is a freelance policy writer and AP Biology Teacher.
Author: Jean-Pierre Jacob
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In my last post, I showed that New York’s Grade 8 math performance has declined over the last 8 years. According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), the average Grade 8 math score for New York public school students in 2024 was 271, with only 26% of students scoring at or above NAEP…
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If you’ve been in schools over the last decade, you’ve felt the shift in math learning. Teachers talk about it, students feel it, and families notice it. But when you look at the long-term data, the story becomes even clearer: math achievement in New York has declined significantly over the last 15 years, and the…
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Across the country, school districts are using academic tracking as a tool to tailor instruction to students’ perceived ability. These tracking systems sort students into high, middle, or low academic paths as early as elementary or middle school. On paper, academic tracking promises a fix to student scores backsliding since the COVID-19 pandemic (NAEP, 2024)…
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On January 29th, 2025, the Trump administration issued an executive order that mandated educational institutions eliminate DEI programs or risk losing federal funding. The Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling Executive Order recommended eliminating all federal funding sources that “support or subsidize the instruction, advancement, or promotion of discriminatory equity ideology”. This order prevents federal…
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Despite having one of the strongest K–12 systems in the nation, New Jersey’s higher education outcomes reveal persistent inequities. The six-year completion of post-secondary education rate is 61%, which places New Jersey 25th nationally and well behind nearby states such as Rhode Island (72%) and the District of Columbia (82%). Full-time students graduate at a…
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American education is facing more than one crisis right now as attendance rates are slipping, literacy scores are falling, the Department of Education is shrinking, and on top of all that, arts education and extracurricular activities are vanishing from our schools. These enrichment opportunities are often dismissed as extras but they’re not. They’re experiences that…
Advancing Equity With Policy 