Tag: thestacker

The disruption to education at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic was widespread, affecting how and where students learned. The lasting result has left a serious impact on what they're learning too, according to standardized testing. Elementary students' test scores in mathematics and reading plummeted between 2020 and 2022. For older students, Advanced Placement exams and the SATs both were affected. Thousands of students had technical problems when they took an online, at-home version of the AP exams in May and June 2020. The College Board also dropped plans for an at-home choice for the SATs in 2020.The AP program dates to 1955, established to ensure America's students did not fall behind those in the Soviet Union. The program offers college-level co...

The overwhelming majority of scientists agree that the world is facing a climate change crisis. Americans are deeply divided—largely along partisan political lines. They disagree about how impactful they believe climate change effects will be and what to do about it. But one area where there's more agreement is green construction, where tax breaks meet energy savings. In general terms, green construction, which includes the planning, designing, and constructing of an environmentally sustainable building.One key measure of taking a green approach to building is being classified as Energy Star certified. Buildings in the United States may become Energy Star certified by exceeding a minimum score set out by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. This sc...

Americans held $7.3 trillion in 401(k) plans as of June 30, 2021, according to the Investment Company Institute. And the typical wealth held in an American family's 401(k) has more than tripled since the late 1980s. With the widespread adoption of 401(k) plans, it might surprise you that they're a relatively new employee benefit—and one that was created unintentionally by lawmakers.Today, public and private sector employees alike use a 401(k)—or the nonprofit equivalent, a 403(b)—in order to plan for a comfortable retirement. In essence, a 401(k) allows an employee to forgo receiving a portion of their income, instead steering it into an account where the money can grow through investments. Unlike pensions, these retirement plans put more of the plannin...

One measure of how much more prevalent computers are in schools is the way that teachers and students have been surveyed about their use. Distilling insights from the National Center for Education Statistics, eSpark looked at how computer use in public schools has changed over the past decade, including how the COVID-19 pandemic affected computer use in classrooms.In 1983, there was one computer per 125 students enrolled in public schools, according to an article in Education Week. Some were being used for career guidance, not in the classroom. By 2009, the National Center for Education Statistics asked whether computers were available in the classroom, most of which were shared, and whether teachers occasionally brought in other computers for students ...

If you have a graduate degree, you will likely earn more and remain employed, according to a May 2022 analysis by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. And interest in graduate school is on the rise. The number of applications rose 7.3% in the fall of 2020 vs. the year before, per an October 2021 report from the Council of Graduate Schools. That's a jump from the average 2.5% yearly growth from the previous 10 years.Schools seeing the greatest increases specialized in business and the sciences—biological, agricultural, and health—per the council's report, while mathematics, computer sciences, and engineering saw the largest decline. Applicants are becoming more diverse, with a 20.4% increase among Latino students, 16% increase among Black students, and a...