SCHOOLS

The latest MCAS were a mixed bag, with slight improvements in math and science but a decline in English language arts (ELA) skills, according to data released by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Thursday. This is the second release of results since the pandemic shut down schools and upended routines in 2020. The scores are still lower…

The high school and middle school in Ashburnham, Massachusetts, were placed in lockdown Tuesday morning as a result of a bomb threat at the high school, police said.

Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration has rewritten Virginia’s model policies for the treatment of transgender students, issuing guidance for school divisions that would roll back some accommodations and tighten parental notification requirements.

The excellence of Massachusetts’ schools belies that students of color and ones from low-income families continue to fall behind white students in the Bay State, something that’s only been accelerated by the pandemic. That’s according to a report released Wednesday by a swath of advocacy groups who are calling on Massachusetts leaders to address the state’s educational inequalities. “We...

Students in Uvalde, Texas, returned to school on Tuesday for the first time since the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in May, where a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers. Robb Elementary students have been reassigned to other campuses across the district for the new school year after the city’s mayor announced plans to demolish Robb. Meredith Yeoman,...

The pandemic impacted nearly every aspect of American life.  New test score results show that students also suffered, with academic performance dropping to levels not seen in more than three decades.  According to results from the Nation’s Report Card, standardized test scores for 9-year-old students fell in both math and reading. Average scores in reading fell five points; math...

After two-and-a-half years of the coronavirus pandemic and all its educational disruption, many parents are now worried that monkeypox could pose problems for their children. The good news is that the rising tide of monkeypox cases has been declining in Massachusetts over the last two weeks. Health officials announced 37 more cases on Thursday, bringing the state’s total case count…

Infectious disease experts explain how to navigate sending children and college students back to school amid COVID and Monkeypox concerns.

The policy announced by Gov. Charlie Baker and education officials would increase funding for school safety initiatives.

Governor Charlie Baker and Lt. Governor Karyn Polito, joined by Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education Jeff Riley, Acting Commissioner of Early Education and Care Amy Kershaw and public safety officials, announced plans to file legislation proposing significant investments in school safety initiatives to support programming, training and resources for schools and districts throughout the Commonwealth.

Gov. Charlie Baker and Massachusetts education officials on Thursday announced plans to file a nearly $40 million proposal in order to significantly invest in school safety initiatives that are intended to help make schools safer and more secure across the state. Baker spoke at 10:30 a.m. at the State House to provide the update on his administration’s efforts to keep…

The effects of the pandemic continue to affect our schools.

And as the first day of school approaches, COVID-19 is still a problem. While it may not shut down schools, the effects of the last two years will be felt in the form of social and emotional issues, as well as staffing shortages. Massachusetts is in better shape than many states when it comes to the teacher and substitute teacher…

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Department of Public Health issued the latest guidance Monday for K-12 schools and districts across the state.

Massachusetts public health and education officials are not recommending mask mandates, broad-sweeping testing, contact tracing, or test-to-stay testing in schools this coming fall. Officials are urging school district to instead focus their COVID-19 mitigation strategies on vulnerable and symptomatic people this coming school year. The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Department of Public Health issued the…

The CDC is no longer recommending quarantine, even after exposure to someone infected with COVID-19. That means gone are screenings at K-12 schools, though students with symptoms should still take COVID tests.

As some 50 million kids return to the classroom, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is updating COVID-19 guidance for the first time since May. The CDC is no longer recommending quarantine, even after exposure to someone infected with COVID-19. That means gone are screenings at K-12 schools, though students with symptoms should still take COVID tests. There are…

Cases of adolescent anxiety have at least doubled since the pandemic, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association. And “mental health problems were already at an emergency level before the pandemic even happened,” psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Bober says. Bober joins LX News and shares advice for kids facing stress and anxiety ahead of this school year.

The fall start date at Gardner Public Schools has been pushed back.

The Gardner Public Schools district in Massachusetts will push back the first day of the year due to supply chain problems that have slowed the construction of the new elementary school. Superintendent Mark Pellegrino announced in a letter Monday that the team was delayed from completing the elevator because pieces were missing from a shipment of electrical parts. There are…