On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Barbara Biasi, assistant professor at the Yale School of Management, joins Mike and David to discuss Wisconsin’s Act 10 and its impact on teacher compensation. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber highlights a study on the underrepresentation of certain racial and socioeconomic groups in gifted education.

Recommended reading: 

• Barbara Biasi, “Wisconsin’s Act 10, Flexible Pay, and the Impact on Teacher Labor Markets,” Education Next (April 25, 2023).
• Shawn Johnson, “Wisconsin’s Act 10 is back in court. Here’s what to know about the controversial law.,” Wisconsin Public Radio (December 4, 2024).
• Dante D. Dixson, Scott J. Peters, Jonathan A. Plucker, Carolyn M. Callahan, The (Conference) Room Where it Happens: Explaining Disproportional Representation in Gifted and Talented Education, Annenberg Institute at Brown University (2025)

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at [email protected].

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Alyson Klein, assistant editor at Education Week, joins Mike and David to discuss how President Trump could weaken the U.S. Department of Education without dismantling it entirely. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber shares a study examining the impact of early math intervention on student outcomes in Kentucky.

Recommended content: 

• Alyson Klein, “How Trump Can Hobble the Education Department Without Abolishing It,” Education Week (December 12, 2024).
• Chester E. Finn, Jr., “Will Trump eliminate the federal role in education or weaponize it?,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (December 12, 2024).
• Michael J. Petrilli, “How much blame does the federal government deserve for America’s mediocre schools?,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (November 21, 2024).
• Zeyu Xu, Umut Özek, Jesse Levin and Dong Hoon Lee, Effects of Large-Scale Early Math Interventions on Student Outcomes: Evidence From Kentucky’s Math Achievement Fund, SAGE Journals (2024)

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at [email protected].

 New for 2025! You can now watch this episode on YouTube. 

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Checker Finn, Fordham’s president emeritus—and the original Education Gadfly—joins Mike and David to discuss the best and worst news in education reform in 2024. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber shares the top five research studies of the year.

Recommended content: 

Michael J. Petrilli, “How much blame does the federal government deserve for America’s mediocre schools?,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (November 21, 2024).

• Michael J. Petrilli, “The end of MCAS is the end of an era. Now let’s figure out what comes next.,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (December 5, 2024).
• David Griffith and Daniel Buck, “It’s time for tough love to address chronic absenteeism,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (September 5, 2024).
• Dan Goldhaber and Grace Falken, ESSER and Student Achievement: Assessing the Impacts of the Largest One-Time Federal Investment in K12 Schools, CALDER (2024).

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at [email protected].

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Philip K. Howard, chair of Common Good and a bestselling author, joins Mike and David to discuss what it takes to create positive school environments, as outlined in his recent Hoover Institution essay, “The human authority needed for good schools.” Then, on the Research Minute, Amber shares an Urban Institute report analyzing states’ demographically adjusted 2022 NAEP performance.

Recommended content: 

• Philip K. Howard, “The human authority needed for good schools,” Hoover Institution (November 19, 2024).
• Ashley Berner, “3 ways to increase choice and decrease polarization in U.S. schools,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (September 23, 2024).
• Jeff Murray, “Digging into the 2024 survey of American public school teachers,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (July 25, 2024).
• Matthew Chingos, States’ Demographically Adjusted Performance on the 2022 Nation’s Report Card, Urban Institute (2024).

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at [email protected].

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Colleen Hroncich, a policy analyst with the Cato Institute’s Center for Educational Freedom, joins Mike and David to discuss why pro–school choice ballot measures failed in Kentucky, Nebraska, and Colorado—and what it means for the future. Then, on the Research Minute, Adam shares a study examining 100 years of data on elite private and public colleges, revealing persistent gaps in socioeconomic diversity despite changes in racial and geographic representation.

Recommended content: 

• Colleen Hroncich, Neal McCluskey, “Referendum Losses Are No Mandate against School Choice,” Real Clear Education (November 8, 2024).
• Juan Perez Jr., “Republicans’ big idea for remaking public education hits voter resistance,” Politico (November 27, 2024).
• Michael McShane “Op-ed: Despite blows, school choice swept the ballot this election,” Chalkboard News (November 14, 2024).
• Ran Abramitzky, Jennifer K. Kowalski, Santiago Pérez & Joseph Price, The G.I. Bill, Standardized Testing, and Socioeconomic Origins of the U.S. Educational Elite Over a Century, NBER (2024) 

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at [email protected].

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Jim Peyser, former Massachusetts Secretary of Education, joins Mike and David to discuss voters’ recent decision to eliminate the MCAS graduation requirement and what it means for the future of high school. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber shares reports exploring the changing landscape of homeschooling in America.

Recommended content:

• James A. Peyser, “Don’t Abandon Common High School Graduation Exams” Education Next (2024).
• Frederick M. Hess, “Why Did Massachusetts Just Pull the Plug on 30 Years of K–12 Success?” AEI (November 6, 2024).
• Angela R. Watson, Homeschool Participation: Post-Pandemic Persistence and Growth Trends, Journal of School Choice (2024)
• Alanna Bjorklund-Young and Angela R. Watson, The Changing Face of American Homeschool: A 25-Year Comparison of Race and Ethnicity, Journal of School Choice (2024) 

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at [email protected].

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Dale Chu, a senior visiting fellow at the Fordham Institute, joins Mike and David to discuss how the election results could impact education and whether there’s reason for optimism. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber shares a study examining how geographic access to public colleges affects enrollment decisions across different races and socioeconomic groups.

Recommended content: 

• Matt Barnum, “Trump Gears Up for Assault on Wokeness With Education Overhaul,” The Wall Street Journal (November 11, 2024).
• Alia Wong, “A push for school choice fell short in Trump’s first term. He may now have a more willing Congress,” Associated Press (November 8, 2024).
• Tim Daly, “We’re living through an education depression,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (November 1, 2024).
• Riley Acton, Kalena E. Cortes, and Camila Morales, Distance to Opportunity: Higher Education Deserts and College Enrollment Choices, Annenberg Institute (2024)

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at [email protected].

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Jill Barshay, author of The Hechinger Report’s “Proof Points” column, joins Mike and David to discuss her recent article on the surprising effects of colleges eliminating remedial courses. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber shares a study examining the impact of Washington’s academic acceleration policies on high school students.

Recommended content: 

• Jill Barshay, “A decade of data in one state shows an unexpected result when colleges drop remedial courses,” The Hechinger Report (September 23, 2024).
• Michael J. Petrilli, “‘Kid, I’m Sorry, but You’re Just Not College Material’ Is exactly what we should be telling a lot of high school students,” Slate (March 18, 2014).
• Chester E. Finn, Jr., “What's the point of high school?” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (September 5, 2024).
• Megan Austin, Ben Backes, Dan Goldhaber, Dory Li, and Francie Streich, Leveling Up: An Academic Acceleration Policy to Increase Equity in Advanced High School Course Taking, American Educational Research Journal (2024).

 Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at [email protected].

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Brandon Wright, Fordham’s Editorial Director and author of the latest Think Again brief, “Are Education Programs for High Achievers Inherently Inequitable?” joins Mike and David to explain why the answer to that question is “no” and why such programs are important. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber shares a study examining how individual teachers’ effectiveness shifted when instruction went from in-person to on-line during the 2020-21 school year.

Recommended content: 

• Brandon L. Wright, Think Again: Are Education Programs for High Achievers Inherently Inequitable? Thomas B. Fordham Institute (October 2024). 
• Building a Wider, More Diverse Pipeline of Advanced Learners: Final Report of the National Working Group on Advanced Education, Thomas B. Fordham Institute (June 2023). 
• Brandon L. Wright, “Hope and progress for gifted education,” Advance (July 5, 2022).
• Jonathan Plucker, “Do programs for advanced learners work?” Thomas B. Fordham Institute (June 24, 2020).
• M. Cade Lawson and Tim R. Sass, Teacher Effectiveness in Remote Instruction, Annenberg Institute at Brown University (2024).

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at [email protected].

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, Marc Porter Magee, CEO and Founder of 50CAN, joins Mike and David to discuss “The State of Educational Opportunity in America," 50CAN’s new report based on a survey of over 20,000 parents from all 50 states and D.C. Then, on the Research Minute, Adam shares a study examining how teacher strikes affect compensation, working conditions, and student achievement.

Recommended content: 

• The State of Educational Opportunity in America, 50CAN (2024). 
• “Student enrollment is dropping. The charter sector should keep growing anyway.” —Michael J. Petrilli
• State of Educational Opportunity: Ohio Survey of Ohio Parents, Thomas B. Fordham Institute and 50CAN (2024).
• Melissa Arnold Lyon, Matthew A. Kraft, and Matthew P. Steinberg, The Causes and Consequences of U.S. Teacher Strikes, NBER (2024).

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at [email protected].

On this week’s Education Gadfly Show podcast, David Deming, a professor of Political Economy at the Harvard Kennedy School, joins Mike and David to discuss his article in The Atlantic arguing that it’s not enough for governments and the private sector to eliminate college-degree requirement for good-paying jobs. Then, on the Research Minute, Amber shares a study investigating the “fade-out effect” in early childhood education programs.

Recommended content: 

• “We need supply-side education policy” —David Deming
• “The vibes for career-tech programs are great. But they’re too rare.” —Michael J. Petrilli
• “What Kamala Harris should do on education and training” —Bruno V. Manno
• John A. List and Haruka Uchida, Here Today, Gone Tomorrow? Toward an Understanding of Fade-out in Early Childhood Education Programs, NBER (2024)

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our podcast? Send them to Stephanie Distler at [email protected].