How a Tougher Test and Chaos in D.C. Just Made Things a Whole Lot Harder for Kids Learning English

Conor P. Williams wrote for The 74 about changing standardized tests for English Learners in DC public schools. 

This year, everything happens in the summer. Insofar as anyone is keeping score at home, the past few weeks could be remembered as the moment when the Trump administration finally engaged on education.

There’s been public jousting over Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos’s approach to civil rights enforcement, sexual assault, and sexual harassment. Members of Congress, state education leaders, and the Trump administration fought over the implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), the country’s new K-12 education law. And, finally, congressional Republicans advanced portions of the Trump administration’s proposed budget cuts — especially to teacher training programs — closer to becoming a reality.