Five Best Blogs: What Would Ryan Gosling Do?

Miles To Go Before Reauthorization Thompson:  Just as it seemed the fragile bipartisan coalition that brought us the Senate HELP committee reauthorization bill couldn’t get any wobblier.

Some NAEP Exclusion Rates Still High EdWeek: Most states did boost their representation of these populations in the latest round of math and reading testing, but many still have far to go to reach the inclusion targets. 

Schools Squeeze Most Out Of Budgets Washington Times: Budget items that once seemed immune to cuts — including bus service and American flags — have become fair game for officials forced to count every penny. 

The Myth of the Innovator Hero The Atlantic: The popular heroic narrative has almost nothing to do with the way modern invention (conceptual creation of a new product or process, sometimes accompanied by a prototypical design) and innovation (large-scale diffusion of commercially viable inventions) work.

GED Overhaul Raises Profit-Making Questions EdWeek: Chestang said that it was too early to know whether the price would change, but said the company recognized the importance of keeping "costs lean and the test accessible."

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The 10 States Doing the Least to Help the Poor 24/7 Wall St: Differences in wealth have always existed, and states have tried to level the playing field by redistributing money through education spending, unemployment benefits, health care, welfare, and other means.

1 in 5 Americans Suffer From Severe Hearing Loss Atlantic Wire: Previous estimates of hearing loss in the United States have relied too much on samples from specific locales and age groups, so it's unclear just how rampant this problem is in America.

Putting Lipstick on a Pig DFER: In short, Milwaukee tried a lot of the tricks that most places try when they launch a turn-around effort. They used the well-worn "turn-around" playbook.

Keep Floating at the Top Ta-Nehisi Coates: I'm sure Chelsea Clinton is intelligent and talented, but this sort of nepotism always grates.

Teacher: Year Going “Pretty Shitty”  teachbad: Tim Laudner, 26, is a second year history teacher at Norris Middle School in Omaha, NE. Mr. Laudner is not having a good year. He hasn’t lost all hope, but neither is he optimistic.

Advertisements on report cards? Unfortunately, yes The Answer Sheet:  A school board in Colorado is so desperate for revenue that it is selling advertising space on the report cards that students at 91 elementary schools take home.

Welcome to Stand, John Legend! SFC: Music artist John Legend has joined nonprofit development and training organization Stand for Children to support a movement working toward improved public schools. 

Is Pizza a Vegetable? In School Lunches, Congress Says Yes EdWeek:  One of the big changes would, in essence, allow pizza with tomato sauce to be considered a vegetable. That's allowed under the bill because of a change to how schools would be able to count the amount of tomato puree or paste in a dish. 

National Review is an "open book" NCTQ: Many colleges and universities who are refusing to cooperate with the National Review justify their opposition with the claim that NCTQ is not being sufficiently transparent about its methodology.