Dumbing Us Down

What to know: Oregon is lowering its expectations for students—eliminating requirements that they learn to read, write and do math.

The TPPF take: Oregon is failing its students and their families.

“Woke society continues to take aim at the nation’s education systems, insisting that minority students are simply incapable of meeting the academic standards that other students are expected to reach,” says TPPF’s Selene Rodriguez. “While lowering education standards or inflating grades might mask the problem, educators ultimately set up their students for failure and impede their ability to be a functioning member of society.”

For more on lower standards for students, click here.


Home Schooling

What to know: Home schooling is skyrocketing in Texas. The Texas Home School Coalition says as many as 20 percent of Texas students is now learning at home.

The TPPF take: The home schooling boom shows that parents want more choices for their children.

“School choice is the civil rights movement of our time,” says TPPF’s Richard Johnson. “Few things matter more to parents than ensuring their children have a high-quality education that equips them with the tools and experiences necessary to succeed. It is time for Texas to give poor and working-class families the assistance they need to send their children to the school of their choice.”

For more on school choice, click here.


Economic Freedom

What to know: Economic freedom hit record highs worldwide, a new report says—but then came the pandemic and government lockdowns.

The TPPF take: Those government shutdowns limited economic freedom, with devasting impacts to people’s lives and livelihoods.

“In the U.S., America had a record low poverty rate and record high median household income in 2019,” says TPPF’s Vance Ginn. “The unemployment rate reached new lows for almost every demographic and the overall rate was at 3.5% in February 2020. As shutdowns happened across the country, the national unemployment rate skyrocketed to 14.8% in April 2020 and remains higher at 5.2% today.”

For more on economic freedom, click here.