The latest public education news from The Texas Tribune.
Public schools in Texas are reopening this month as parents, students and educators balance learning losses from virtual classes during the pandemic with an alarming rise in COVID-19 and a large number of unvaccinated students. Full Story
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Educators who spoke to The Texas Tribune overwhelmingly denounced the new social studies law going into effect Sept. 1. These are the provisions they say could cause problems for them — and Texas students. Full Story
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A lot of the news from the last few days — about the Legislature, about COVID-19 and about immigration — has a real déjà vu quality to it. And there’s a good reason for that. Full Story
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Public health experts and medical professionals are sounding the alarm over the highly transmissible delta variant of COVID-19. The governor has stood firm on his ban against masking mandates in schools. Full Story
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Republican Texas lawmakers have justified their efforts to limit how racism and current events are taught in school by saying that critical race theory judges people by the color of their skin. Martin Luther King III and experts disagree. Full Story
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The move is largely symbolic as the legislative session has been ground to a halt by the quorum-busting Democrats who fled Texas 11 days ago. Even if the Democrats returned, Abbott would have to add the item to his special session agenda for it to have a chance at passing. Full Story
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Fear, happiness and relief show up in the artwork of San Antonio students asked to depict their reactions to the challenges of the past year. Full Story
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Counseling services launched just before the pandemic to help students adjust to new schools are now seeing high levels of stress and anxiety among many students preparing to return to classrooms, and their parents. Full Story
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After a year of isolation, fear and stress, many students are expected to struggle with returning to classrooms this fall. One Dallas school is trying to get ahead of the curve by training its teachers and staff to spot and help kids having trouble. Full Story
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On Tuesday, the Senate passed Senate Bill 7, which would provide retired teachers, counselors and school staff a one-time payment of up to $2,400 through the Teacher Retirement System of Texas. Full Story
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It's largely symbolic, but the Texas Senate is nearing the end of its work on Republican priorities for the special legislative session after passing bills limiting "critical race theory" and abortion access Friday. Full Story
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Transgender students would be prevented from joining public school and university sports teams that correspond to their gender. Full Story
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Conservative priorities to restrict pretrial release from jail and ban critical race theory in schools were up in the air after Democratic lawmakers chartered flights to Washington, D.C. But so was funding for retired teachers and legislative employees. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott added the legislation to the special session agenda after similar bills failed to pass during the regular session earlier this year. Full Story
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Texas teacher Juan Carmona says it’s important to talk about the experiences of marginalized groups with students of color because they should see themselves represented in history books. Full Story
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The bill would also remove a requirement to teach that white supremacy is "morally wrong." One Democratic lawmaker said the bill’s attempts could lead to a “frightening dystopian future.” Full Story
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We asked our readers for their questions about the special legislative session that starts Thursday in Texas. These are the answers. Full Story
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The Texas Education Agency cited COVID-19’s disproportionate effect on communities of color as reason for lower engagement and attendance rates among students of color. Full Story
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In this week's episode, Matthew speaks with Ross, Patrick and Reese about the politics surrounding Donald Trump's trip to Texas and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on student learning. Full Story
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The fight over critical race theory is thriving in Texas, and could make an appearance in the special legislative session that starts next week. Full Story
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