FOUR MORE YEARS: Obama Wins Re-election, Plans to Continue Education Reforms Through Race to the Top, NCLB Waivers: By defeating former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney on November 6, President Barack Obama earned a second four-year term in the White House. In the U.S. Congress, Democrats retained control of the Senate while Republicans kept their majority in the House of Representatives—a status-quo outcome that will force the two parties to work together to accomplish legislative goals.

DISPELLING THE MYTH: Duncan Defends NCLB Waivers in First Post-Election Speech: In his first post–Election Day remarks, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said, by re-electing Barack Obama as president, the American people affirmed that education is “not just an expense on a budget line that can be sacrificed in tough economic times,” but that it is “an investment in the future of our nation and our children—all of our children.” Duncan pivoted from the election to equity and achievement gaps and devoted the majority of his speech to defending the waivers that the U.S. Department of Education granted to states from certain aspects of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB).

BACK TO BUSINESS: Averting “Fiscal Cliff” Next Priority for Obama and Congressional Leaders: With their re-elections secure, President Obama and leaders in the U.S. Congress quickly turned to the immediate business of preventing the so-called “fiscal cliff,” the informal name given to the mix of automatic spending cuts and tax hikes that are scheduled to go into effect on January 2, 2013.

RAISING THE BAR: More Kentucky Students Prepared for College and a Career, According to New Tests Pegged to Common Core State Standards:More than 47 percent of Kentucky’s public high school students were prepared for college and/or a career in School Year (SY) 2011–12, based on results released on November 2 from the state’s new tests, which are tied to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). The percentage represents an increase of nine percentage points compared to the previous year. In 2010, Kentucky became the first state to adopt the CCSS in English language arts and mathematics. 

TALKING ‘BOUT THE YOUNG FOLKS: Record Shares of Young Adults Have Finished Both High School and College: In 2012, a record 33 percent of the nation’s twenty-five- to twenty-nine-year-olds completed at least a bachelor’s degree, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of newly available data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Overall, 31 percent of the U.S. population over age twenty-five holds a bachelor’s degree or more, according to the report, Record Shares of Young Adults Have Finished Both High School and College.

TEACHER ABSENCE AS A LEADING INDICATOR OF STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT: No Substitute for Teacher’s Presence in Classroom, Report Finds: Schools that serve high percentages of African American and Latino students are more likely to have teacher absences, according to a new report from the Center for American Progress. The report, Teacher Absence as a Leading Indicator of Student Achievement: New National Data Offer Opportunity to Examine Cost of Teacher Absence Relative to Learning Loss, bases its findings on the U.S. Department of Education’s biennial Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) survey on teacher absences, released in early 2012.

DEBATING EDUCATION: Obama and Romney Promote Education Records, Importance of Education to the Economy and Public Safety During Final Debates: Although education was not a big topic during the final two presidential debates, both President Barack Obama and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney linked education’s importance to the nation’s economy and public safety while promoting education reforms they support as president and governor, respectively. One possible issue of contention that emerged between the candidates was the issue of immigration and how each administration would treat the children of illegal immigrants.

NO DEAL: Americans Believe Cuts to Federal Education Funding Should Not Be Part of Plan to Reduce Debt or Deficit, Poll Finds: Three out of four Americans oppose reducing federal education funding to lessen the debt and deficit, according to a recent poll from the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press. The poll also finds that more than 60 percent of Americans oppose cutting federal funding for college loans.

RETHINKING POLICY AND PRACTICE IN SUPPORT OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS: New Alliance Report Identifies Challenges and Solutions for Helping ELLs Meet Higher Expectations Associated with Common Core: The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) offer great promise for advancing the quality of education and outcomes for all students, but meeting the higher expectations associated with them could prove especially daunting for the rapidly growing population of English language learners (ELLs)—students who must learn grade-level content while simultaneously trying to master the English language. A new report from the Alliance for Excellent Education discusses these challenges, highlights initiatives already underway to help ELLs meet these challenges, and outlines how policy and practice must change to help ELLs graduate ready for college and a career.

TAKING COLLEGE COURSES IN HIGH SCHOOL: Dual Enrollment Doubles the Credits, Doubles the Success in College, Report Finds: Students who take college-level courses while in high school are more than one and a half times more likely to enroll in, persist through, and complete college, according to a new study of more than 30,000 Texas high school graduates by the education nonprofit Jobs for the Future (JFF). The report, Taking College Courses in High School: A Strategy for College Readiness, argues that dual enrollment, in which high school students complete courses for college and high school credit, may be key to states and school districts increasing college and career readiness.