In the Know
stories from my inbox
The posts have been pretty heavy back to back, so expect lighter more indulgent posts in the future. But in the meantime, here are just a few stories that I’ve been glued to:
Education
With the Republican win in Virginia’s governor’s race, education has been a key campaign point. And because of it public schools have taken a hit: the pandemic is proving to be a long-lasting and confusing threat to children and teacher safety, and Critical Race Theory has become an umbrella term, lumping together any concern a parent might have towards how their children are being taught— on everything from race, gender, to math and science.
We can go back and forth on the legitimacy of these arguments, but something far greater is at stake: the quality of a child’s education is key to the success of their future. Take it from me: education was my saving grace.
But even within states, hell within cities, two children can get a k-12 education in the same district, and the number of resources, let alone the quality of schooling can be completely different. And on a macro scale? Compare the test scores of key subjects of American students to our counterparts of the world: it is beyond embarrassing.
The media is doing what they do best: reporting on the divisive problems that leave us angrier than ever, but worry not:
Some schools are getting it just right. Solutions Journalism Network recently curated a list of how schools across the country are getting equitable education to the children who will become our future. Here are some of those stories:
America’s reading problem: Scores were dropping even before the pandemic | The Hechinger Report
States’ urgent push to overhaul reading instruction (Delaware is one of several states that made revamping early literacy a priority, especially after the pandemic set kids further back) | The Hechinger Report
Retraining an entire state’s elementary teachers in the science of reading (North Carolina passed a law to make every school replicate how reading is taught in its most successful classrooms) | The Hechinger Report
Rural Central Valley school tops list of best for reading in California. Here’s how | The Fresno Bee
Reading remedies: This Alabama school battled COVID reading woes through teacher support, training | AL
U.S. Schools Take on a Bigger Role in Student Mental Health | Undark
Searching for Answers in the Face of Conflict
How Otukpo Became An Oasis Of Peace In Benue After Fulani Militia’s Attack | The Sahara Reporters
Costa Rica's answer to range anxiety | Future Planet (BBC)
States are investigating how Instagram recruits and affects children | NPR
Tennis official doubts email claiming Chinese player Peng Shuai is OK was sent by her | NPR
‘We’ll fight like hell’: US abortion rights leader on finding hope in a moment of crisis | The Guardian
When the ice stops singing | Pioneers Post
Their lands are oceans apart but are linked by rising, warming seas of climate change | NPR
Keep an Eye on These
If we aren’t careful about burning out these fires now, they will compound:
Child labor laws in some states may be weakened as US industries look to hire teens (Experts fear increased stress and loss of sleep among students as some Republicans want to allow teenagers to work longer hours) | The Guardian
These otherworldly photos convey climate change's effects on Arctic regions | The Picture Show by NPR
Your public school kid's lunch might be served on a pizza slice box. Here's why | NPR
Discrimination increases risk for mental health issues in young adults, UCLA-led study finds | UCLA Newsroom
The pandemic exposed the human cost of the meatpacking industry’s power: ‘It’s enormously frightening’ | The Guardian
Why low income countries are so short on COVID vaccines. Hint: It's not boosters | NPR
They're the invisible victims of climate change | NPR
South African students are selling school Wi-Fi passwords for lunch money | Rest of World
Evictions rising even as rental help from Congress reaches millions of people | NPR
Exciting Stories of Hope
Michelle Wu is Boston's first woman and first person of color elected mayor | NPR
Novelist Damon Galgut wins Booker Prize for 'The Promise' | NPR
U.S. journalist is freed from Myanmar prison with ex-diplomat Richardson's help | NPR
Sesame Street makes history with the debut of its first Asian American muppet | NPR
A North Carolina man who was wrongfully imprisoned for 24 years is pardoned | NPR
These 4 college freshmen from India have a remarkable story to tell | NPR
Inflation
Largely, if ever, not the fault of Presidents, inflation is enough to tank a President’s reputation and their chance of ever running for reelection, let alone getting their agenda fully passed and supported.
No seriously, there isn’t much a president can do on inflation, but that doesn’t matter.
It’s hard for me to explain, so I’ll let the experts do it:
Inflation is at 30-year highs. Here's how it's hurt past presidents | NPR
Opinion | Joe Biden’s Empty Inflation Toolbox | Politico
February edit: Obviously where you stand politically influences how you view inflation, but it can also stand for something else: “Inflation is not only an economic phenomenon, it’s also a psychological one in politics, because it is a psychological proxy for things being out of control”, says William Galston, a political scientist at the Brookings Institution | The Wall Street Journal
cover image by https://unsplash.com/@hostreviews