On February 1, thirty-nine states, 15,000 teachers, and 1.7 million students will participate in the first-ever national Digital Learning Day, a national awareness campaign spearheaded by the Alliance for Excellent Education showcasing how technology can take learning in the United States to a much higher level and provide all students with experiences that allow them to graduate from high school prepared for college and a career.

Today, the Alliance for Excellent Education announced that thirty-nine states, 10,000 teachers, and 1.5 million students have signed up in support of the first-ever national Digital Learning Day on Wednesday, February 1, 2012. Digital Learning Day is a national awareness campaign designed to celebrate innovative teachers and highlight instructional practices that strengthen teaching and personalize learning for all students.

Today, the Alliance for Excellent Education announced that two thirds of all states have signed up as partners in support of the first-ever national Digital Learning Day, which will take place on February 1, 2012. Digital Learning Day is a national awareness campaign designed to celebrate innovative teachers and highlight instructional practices that strengthen teaching and personalize learning for all students.

On Friday, January 6, U.S. House of Representatives Education and the Workforce Committee Chairman John Kline (R-MN) released two draft pieces of legislation on accountability and teacher effectiveness as part of the committee's work to overhaul the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), currently known as the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act. In response, Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education and former governor of West Virginia, made the following statement.

Several states' applications for waivers from requirements of the current No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act could weaken accountability for high school graduation rates if approved by the U.S. Department of Education, according to a new policy brief from the Alliance for Excellent Education. The brief, "Waiving Away High School Graduation Rate Accountability?," includes an analysis of eleven state applications submitted by Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Tennessee.

Digital learning can connect middle and high school students with better teaching and learning experiences while also addressing three major challenges facing the nation's education system-access to good teaching, tight budgets, and boosting student achievement-according to a new report from the Alliance for Excellent Education.

Cutting the nation's high school dropout rate in half would have tremendous benefits for the economy. But as a new economic analysis released today by the Alliance for Excellent Education shows, cutting the dropout rate in half and ensuring that those "new graduates" meet national goals for postsecondary attainment creates new jobs, increases earnings for individuals, and boosts states' tax revenues.

On October 20, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee passed a bill to overhaul the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), currently known as the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). In response, Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education and former governor of West Virginia, made the following statement:

Yesterday, U.S. Representatives Glenn Thompson (R-PA) and Judy Chu (D-CA) and Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) introduced the Education for Tomorrow’s Jobs Act, which would combine rigorous college preparation with workplace experience in an effort to improve student engagement, academic achievement, and success after high school.

Building upon a growing movement, the Alliance for Excellent Education and its partners are calling on teachers, schools, principals, community leaders, parents, and students to participate in the first-ever national Digital Learning Day on February 1, 2012. Digital Learning Day will celebrate innovative teaching practices that make learning more personalized and engaging and encourage exploration of how digital learning can provide more students with more opportunities to get the skills they need to succeed in college, a career, and life.