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Star Ledger--Beep, beep, beep: N.J. might lift ban on pagers in schools
TRENTON -- New Jersey lawmakers are considering lifting a ban on an item once considered so disruptive and synonymous with drug dealers that it was outlawed on school grounds.
Soon, if state Senators Ron Rice and Jim Whelan get their way, the once controversial pager, also known as a beeper, will be considered contraband in schools no longer.
The Democratic lawmakers don't think teens actually want a pager. But that's the point, they said.
"Fast forward almost three decades and it's no longer an issue," said Rice (D-Essex), the original sponsor of the law banning pagers in schools. "The law has clearly outlived its usefulness, and it's time to come off the books."
http://www.nj.com/education/2017/03/nj_lift_ban_on_pagers_in_school.html#incart_river_index
Adam Clark | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com| March 10, 2017 at 1:08 PM
Washington Post--Education Digest: Senate votes to overturn teacher-education regulations
Teacher education
Senate votes to ditch standing rules
The Senate voted 59 to 40 Wednesday to overturn Obama administration regulations meant to ensure that new K-12 public school teachers are ready for the nation’s classrooms.
Emma Brown March 12 at 4:28 PM
The Atlantic-- Religious Conviction and Prison Convictions: This Week's Top 7 Education Stories
The best recent writing about school
Hayley Glatter| Mar 10, 2017
Education Week--No, Congress Didn't Vote to Scrap ESSA: Answers to Your FAQs
Congress has voted to get rid of the Obama administration's accountability regulations for the Every Student Succeeds Act. And that's opened a bunch of questions about the state of play for the new education law.
We have answers—both to your wonky questions and the ones you were too embarrased to ask.
Is ESSA still on the books?
Yes. Lawmakers did NOT repeal the Every Student Succeeds Act, they just voted to repeal a particular set of regulations issued under that law, which is actually the latest version of a much older law, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
To repeat: ESSA is still the law of the land. Congress isn't supposed to even think about replacing it until around 2020 at the earliest. And a new law could take longer than that. Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., an ESSA architect, thinks ESSA could be around for decades.
So what did lawmakers just vote on, then?
By Alyson Klein on March 10, 2017 5:26 PM
