The GSV Big 10: A Nation at Risk

NAEP not Great, COVID Hangover, and the Architect of the Florida Boom...

Chart of the Week

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The Big 10:

1. NAEP scores show disheartening trends for the lowest-performing students | Chalkbeat

   Not a surprise for anybody paying attention, but NAEP scores—a.k.a. the Nation’s Report Card—were disheartening. 70%+ of our country’s 8th graders aren’t proficient in reading or math. The most troubling thing is that the bottom half of students are being left behind. Kudos to Alabama, Louisiana, West Virginia, and South Carolina who showed progress.

2. Testing Theories of Why: Four Keys to Interpreting US Student Achievement Trends | AEI

   AEI does a bit of a deeper dive into what’s going on with NAEP and it’s worth the read beyond the executive summary. It would be easy if we could blame the bad results on COVID, but the facts are that the problems surfaced before the pandemic and COVID just accelerated those bad trends.

3. Expanding Educational Freedom and Opportunity for Families | whitehouse.gov

   POTUS hit the ground running and on the heels of the depressing NAEP results, issued an Executive Order for promoting school choice. 75% of adults favor school choice and putting the President’s shoulder behind the movement gives it additional oomph.

4. COVID lockdowns disrupted a crucial social skill among preschoolers, study finds | Medical Xpress

   OK…we have beaten a dead horse for a while, but in case it hasn’t been clear, COVID was a train wreck for the World’s youth. Studies show that developmental milestones typically reached by 2.5-year-olds are now being delayed until around age 5.

5. What’s New: The Updated Edtech Insiders Generative AI Map |

   Edtech Insiders

   A picture is worth a thousand words. Edtech Insiders illustrates the broad swath of companies in the Generative AI Edtech space. With all the moving parts, this is a very helpful map to see what’s out there, sorted by neighborhood.

6. AI Interview Question | Gokul Rajaram

   Silicon Valley legend and personal friend, Gokul Rajaram shares his framework for interviewing in an AI-changed World. Shallow thinkers need not apply.

7. Chronic absenteeism threatens to derail K-12 education | eSchool Education

   99% of success in life is showing up. Moreover, it’s tough to learn if you aren’t in class. Chronic absenteeism has doubled in the past five years to 26% of all students. Once again, COVID wasn’t the cause, but it amplified the problem.

8. DeepSeek harnesses links with Chinese universities in talent war | Times Higher Education

   DeepSeek shocked Wall Street and Silicon Valley by debuting its faster, way cheaper, and better LLM model last week. It was hiding in plain sight. Moreover, the conventional wisdom that the United States was years ahead of China (and everybody else) was exposed as both arrogant and ignorant.

9. Survey: Majority of Texas K-12 teachers consider leaving classroom amid burnout crisis | El Paso Times

   Texas teachers' concerns about vouchers actually point to a bigger opportunity here. School choice creates the kind of competition that will finally force us to treat teaching like the high-stakes profession it should be - with better pay and real career paths that attract top talent. This shakeup will make the entire education ecosystem stronger - benefitting students, parents, and teachers alike.

10. 🎙️ Ep 34 · Jeb! 43rd Governor of Florida, Jeb Bush | Ed on the Edge | Dash Media

    The BOOM that everybody sees in Florida didn’t happen overnight…the seeds were planted years ago by Governor Jeb Bush. Foundational to the success was reimagining the K-12 education system that focused on choice and accountability. There isn’t anybody we know who is more thoughtful on education policy than JEB!

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This Week’s People Moves

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• Bruno Vilarinho: V4 Company ➡️ Aerolito, Head of Sales

  Tanay Ambati Ramesh: Sticks And Bricks Building Solutions ➡️ Unacademy, Senior Associate, HR Operations

• Stuart John: BCG X ➡️ Memorang, Chief eXperience Office

• Scott VanHoy: TouchMath® ➡️ Learnosity, Board Member

• Rebecca Manning: Maple Bear Global Schools Ltd. ➡️ Code Wiz, Vice President Operations