A sharp drop in the number of youngsters in Arizona kindergartens this year due to COVID-19 could have ripple effects for years to come on their education.

The sponsor of three bills aimed at altering state vaccination laws said Thursday that her proposals are "misunderstood.''

The issue vexing policymakers and the State Board of Education on the A to F school grade system is defining what one means by a “school.” The diverse education community, with its multiple delivery variables in unique learning communities, holds some dramatically different ideas of what is a school.

AzMERIT scores are in, and schools are being issued grades based on how their students performed on a test taken six months ago that measured math and English language skills. Teachers across the state are running for cover, hoping and praying their students fared well on these high stakes tests. Some will celebrate while others will wonder if they will lose their jobs. But all still must teach.

If we really want to improve education in Arizona, if we really want to improve Arizona’s economy, helping struggling readers is where we need to start. It’s an issue that impacts every Arizonan. Ultimately, we are all in this together. Struggling readers are not “those kids.” They are Arizona’s kids, and they are our future.

Advocates for Arizona public schools say Gov. Doug Ducey needs to back up his stated intent to better fund teachers with cash for years to come.

In an informal opinion today, state Solicitor General John Lopez sidestepped questions posed by Treasurer Jeff DeWit in the wake of voter approval last month of the measure.

Arizona parents won't know until summer if their third-graders will be held back next school year.

The Arizona Senate rejected a proposal Monday that would have let parents opt out of having their children undergo statewide assessments.

In contrast to the typical image of a little red schoolhouse, this one-room school in Page, Arizona, in 1957 was a war surplus troop carrier. (The troop carriers were called “cattle cars” and were pulled by trailer trucks during World War II.) The older woman standing in the doorway is Mary Howe.