SC teacher shortage could get relief as House passes back-door measure ahead of deadline – By Bristow Marchant, The State

State lawmakers took action on Thursday to get legislation that would provide teachers more flexibility and help tackle the teacher shortage signed into law before a legislative deadline. The S.C. House of Representatives unanimously approved two bills that now include measures to give teachers more freedom to change jobs without running the risk of having their teaching certification suspended, among other measures meant to put more teachers into classrooms.

This week’s moves were meant to get the teaching measures passed into law before the Legislature’s biannual session comes to an end next Thursday, at which point any pending bills that haven’t become law will die.

Last year, the state House passed a measure to ensure South Carolina teachers have greater contract flexibility by a 111-0 vote. The move came as teachers have called for change to strict rules that can leave teachers blackballed from classroom positions if they leave a teaching job early.

One way to appreciate teachers: These schools provide their day care – By Carly Flander and Valeria Olivares, The Associated Press

When Christina Zimmerman returned to teaching last year after maternity leave, she grappled with postpartum depression that she says could have led to quitting her job.

But her school’s onsite day care made all the difference, as she knew her daughter was just a few classrooms away.

“I can be mom and teacher in the same breath,” said Zimmerman, who teaches fourth grade at Endeavor Elementary in Nampa, Idaho. “I’ve dreamed of teaching since second grade. Truthfully, it’s all I’ve wanted to do, but I also want to be there for my child.”

In states such as Idaho and Texas, where funding for early childhood education is limited, some schools are spearheading initiatives to provide quality, affordable child care. It’s a teacher retention tool as much as it is a way to ensure youngsters are prepared when they enter kindergarten.

More kids are being homeschooled, fewer in public schools in Montana – By Nicole Girten, Daily Montanan

Enrollment data released earlier this week from the Office of Public Instruction shows there’s been an increase in students seeking private or homeschooled instruction and a decrease in public school enrollment for the 2023-2024 school year.

Public K-12 students decreased by 1,988 students, or 1.3%, this year and the nonpublic enrollee population grew by 403 students or 2.4%. The number of homeschooled kids, factored in the nonpublic enrollment, rose by more than 9% in the last year.

Superintendent Elsie Arntzen attributes the shift in part to families wanting to homeschool their children.

“Like all Montana families, our public school districts are facing budget constraints due to increasing costs and inflation. Montana schools must prioritize student learning in their budgets as this decrease leads to fewer state dollars,” Arntzen said in a statement.

Gov. Kim Reynolds signs law to raise Iowa students' lagging literacy. The classroom impact: - By Stephen Gruber-Miller, The De Moines Register

Gov. Kim Reynolds sat cross-legged, surrounded by first graders, on the floor of a classroom in Adel Elementary School, watching as the students practiced their vowel sounds.

Reynolds had just come from signing a new law aimed at improving how early literacy classes are taught in Iowa. In the classroom, she saw some of those teaching techniques in action.

First grade teacher Erin Koelker showed students letter combinations such as "igh," "ay" and "ore" and had kids call out the sounds the letters make. The students also used handheld whiteboards to write down all the sounds that each vowel can make.