1. Federal student loans will move to Treasury, further shrinking Education Department. The Trump administration announced a three-phase transition that will eventually include management of most federal student loans as well as the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
– Cory Turner, education correspondent, NPR
2. The Tennessee House passed a measure requiring schools to track and report students’ immigration status. Although the Senate version of the bill has already passed, lawmakers must reconvene before the bill can become law. Legislators sparred over the controversial measure with some arguing that it would cost taxpayers millions of dollars and create increased immigration enforcement activity in certain communities. Others insisted that the bill is a setup for Republican lawmakers to continue fighting the long-standing legal precedent that guarantees all children the right to an education.
– Camellia Burris, education reporter, WPLN
3. Cursive is back. But should students be learning the skill? Teachers and legislators credit the resurgence to nostalgia and some evidence of educational benefits. But surprisingly, the curves and swoops are contentious among experts, and some argue that cursive does not add any real value for students, especially in the age of artificial intelligence.
– Ava Berger, general assignment reporter, NPR
4. A dietitian and a doctor review RFK Jr's new food pyramid. Our friends at NPR’s science podcast, Short Wave, talked to a dietitian nutritionist and a diabetes specialist about their takes on the new food pyramid – which emphasizes protein, full-fat dairy and what Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. calls “healthy fats.” They also interviewed NPR Ed’s very own Kadin Mills about his reporting on how the new food pyramid could impact school lunchrooms.
– NPR’s Short Wave team |
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