Articles
2020 - 2024
-
Inside the Weekend’s Gathering of America’s Most Unhinged Right-Wing Moms
It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more.
Slate | The Hechinger Report
July 5, 2023 -
Florida Just Expanded School Vouchers — Again. Here’s What it Could Mean for Public Education.
Vouchers and “school choice” sound good. But it’s more complicated. What is the impact on public schools, which 90 percent of children in America attend?
The Hechinger Report | USA Today
April 24, 2023 -
Back to School and Back to Normal. Or At Least Close Enough
The fizzle and fun of school is mostly back. And students are embracing it. A snapshot of the start of school in the Methow Valley, WA.
The New York Times
October 11, 2022 -
Pandemic Leads Colleges to Revise, Improve Mental Health Efforts
Students want to raise the profile of mental health talk on college campuses
The Washington Post
March 3, 2022 -
College Students to Administrators: Let’s Talk About Mental Health
Covid has cracked open a conversation students are desperate to have.
The Hechinger Report
March 3, 2022 -
In 2022, Let’s Rethink Work
The pandemic offers us a reset button. We cannot unsee what we saw on Zoom.
WCW Post
January 10, 2022 -
More Students Question College, Putting Counselors in a Quandary
Is it time to re-think what “success” looks like and how to help students achieve it?
The Hechinger Report | USA Today
January 3, 2022 -
Glimpses of How Pandemic America Went Back to School
NY Times reporters fanned out across the country to document the start of school. I went to Winthrop, WA.
New York Times
September 20, 2021 -
For adults returning to college, ‘free’ tuition isn’t enough
States and colleges are pressing to get more adults to complete degrees, but many programs are not structured to serve them.
The Hechinger Report | USA Today
August 5, 2021 -
A ‘gobsmacking number’ of students in need aren’t applying to college. Are we missing ‘an entire generation’?
The low-income and first generation students who need college help most are not getting it.
USA Today
March 4, 2021 -
‘Right now is not my time’: How Covid dimmed college prospects for students who need help most
A perfect storm of remote school and complexity of applying to college leaves low-income and first generation students short on help
The Hechinger Report
March 4, 2021 -
How to Raise Rural Enrollment in Higher Education? Go Local.
Given the rural-nonrural divide in America, this may be the most important college access program you’ve never heard of.
The Hechinger Report | The Washington Post
December 13, 2020 -
Lessons From Tornadoes Help a Community Combat Covid
Rural Lawrence County, TN brings science (plus “Masks, Distancing, Sanitizing”) to the battle to keep students learning during this wild academic year.
New York Times
October 16, 2020 -
A Regional Public University’s Identity Crisis
The coronavirus pandemic has hastened a reckoning for nonflagship public campuses in Ohio and across the Midwest: Who should they serve?
NBC News | The Hechinger Report
August 19, 2020 -
With dorms shut and classes online, college students DIY campus life
Students create quarantine campuses because college is more than classes.
The Hechinger Report | The Washington Post
May 18, 2020 -
College is Hard. Iggy, Pounce, Cowboy Joe and Sunny are Here to Help.
Campuses are using AI-enabled chatbots to help students navigate and connect.
New York Times
April 8, 2020 -
On College Campuses, Social Media Provides Private Spaces for Thousands
Campus-specific social media is a running conversation, as real as what’s happening face to face.
New York Times
March 1, 2020
2016 - 2019
-
He Wanted to Be a Pro Basketball Player. He Became a Teacher Instead.
Q&A with education visionary Jeff Duncan-Andrade.
New York Times
November 21, 2019 -
What happens when college students discuss lab work in Spanish, philosophy in Chinese or opera in Italian?
Language course enrollments are plummeting. Is teaching foreign language sections of English courses an answer?
The Hechinger Report | The Washington Post
November 19, 2019 -
Where 4-Year Schools Find a Pool of Applicants: 2-Year Schools
Community college students are feeding a counter-narrative to the jostle for prestige in admissions. And it’s compelling.
New York Times
October 11, 2019 -
From Albania to Singapore, U.S. Students Look For Tailored Experiences Abroad
More students than ever are studying abroad. But they are doing it differently. It’s brief, structured and in English.
New York Times
June 12, 2019 -
Forget the Shouting and Demonizing: College Students Organize Civil Discussions
Kids on campus are doing what adults can’t seem to: Talk politics, nicely. With both sides at the table.
The Hechinger Report | The Washington Post
April 5, 2019 -
For Many Poor Students, the Ivy League is Culture Shock
Behind the viral videos of poor kids getting into Ivies is the hard challenge of surviving and belonging.
The Washington Post
March 1, 2019 -
Women are Playing Sports, but Not Coaching Them
If women can run companies and countries (and the House), why not teams?
Wellesley Centers for Women blogpost
February 6, 2019 -
America’s Colleges Struggle to Envision the Future of Diversity on Campus
In the midst of application season and the Harvard admissions trial, campuses want “diversity” but aren’t certain what it is — or how to get it.
The Christian Science Monitor | The Hechinger Report
January 16, 2019 -
Training the Next Generation of Doctors and Nurses
Can tech in medical education make time to build other skills, like helping patients navigate a complicated system?
New York Times
November 9, 2018 -
The iGen Shift: Colleges are Changing to Reach the Next Generation
Campuses are finally getting it. The new arrivals are not Millennials, version 2.0.
The New York Times
August 3, 2018 -
Is The New Education Reform Hiding in Plain Sight?
Test scores are the public face of school quality, but parents value happiness, engagement. Isn’t being seen and known as an individual key to learning?
The Hechinger Report | The Washington Post
July 2, 2018 -
At Christian Colleges, a Collision of Gay Rights and Traditional Values
A new generation of students refuses to choose between loving Jesus and being gay.
New York Times
June 6, 2018 -
What Does it Mean to Be A Female Athlete?
Men in sports do not face scrutiny of their physical gifts or surveillance of their hormone levels. At what point are new track rules about biological conformity and gender norms?
Wellesley Centers for Women blogpost
May 15, 2018 -
Ivy Degree — Now What? Low-income grads struggle with careers, status
There is no “golden ticket.” Earning an elite degree brings fresh stress for low-income first gens who must decide whether to get rich — or save the world.
Christian Science Monitor | The Hechinger Report
April 1, 2018 -
Low-income, first-generation students have — finally — established a beachhead at Ivy League schools. Now the real work starts.
Low-income first gens are no longer the outsiders they once were.
The Hechinger Report | The Washington Post
March 15, 2018 -
Unraveling Power Structures in Sports
If sports are more than athletic contests — if they have social, political and economic value — we must care who gets to play.
Wellesley Centers for Women blogpost
February 11, 2018 -
In a Volatile Climate on Campus, Professors Teach on Tenterhooks
How do you teach charged subjects on politically divided campuses — productively?
New York Times
November 15, 2017 -
More Diversity Means More Demands
Students are protesting for official recognition of their identities. It’s loud, but fact is: Times are changing.
New York Times
August 25, 2017 -
Liberal Lessons in Taking Back America
When front porch debate is a bygone, lessons in face-to-face political organizing are critical.
New York Times
August 25, 2017 -
Listening in on Portland State Activists
Campus disruption doesn’t just happen. You have to plan it.
New York Times
August 25, 2017 -
Is the College Degree Outdated?
There’s a credential revolution on. What do you REALLY need to succeed?
The Atlantic | The Hechinger Report
April 27, 2017 -
Learning to Think Like a Computer
A question for our age: Should everyone learn to talk to machines?
New York Times
April 5, 2017 -
Voices from Rural American on Why (or Why Not) to Go to College
College looks different from outside the bubble.
New York Times
February 2, 2017 -
Colleges Discover The Rural Student
Colleges are now reaching out to the hard-to-get-to.
New York Times
February 2, 2017 -
Commentary: Olympics are Gold for Women Athletes
The Cold War push that showed how that our opponents made us better — even now.
Wellesley Centers for Women Research and Action Report
December 26, 2016 -
When Is a Girl Not a Girl?
What sex testing in sport is really about. (Hint: Not catching guys in skirts and wigs)
Women's Review of Books
November 23, 2016 -
How the University of Alabama Became a National Player
When states cut $, some go big. U of A is the envy — and the worry — of public higher education.
New York Times
November 3, 2016 -
Leftover Meal Plan Swipes: No Waste Here
Campus meal plan rules leave some students with too much; others are hungry. Can they share?
New York Times
August 7, 2016 -
Career Coaching for the Playdate Generation
Are we over-helping our kids? Has failure become too dangerous? A new industry of personal coaches has sprouted to help students get internships, pick majors, search for jobs — even figure out what they care about.
New York Times
April 11, 2016 -
A New Spin on College Financing? Treating Students Like Stocks
Could Income Share Agreements be an alternative to student loans? Or will they change what college is about?
PBS Newshour (Hechinger Report) | The Hechinger Report
March 18, 2016
2011 - 2015
-
Can Elite Colleges Reshape Admissions?
A new app wants college admissions to feel less fake, on both sides. Plus, pitched to help first gens, does it?
New York Times
October 26, 2015 -
Women’s Soccer and the New Feminist Power
Women=Books Blog
July 21, 2015 -
First-Generation Students Unite
Tired of being invisible, first gens get together, “come out” and speak up.
New York Times
April 9, 2015 -
Rape Culture on Campus
Why do some college students think sexist and racist behavior is okay?
Women=Books Blog
March 31, 2015 -
A Tragic Mess
Book review of The Price of Silence: The Duke Lacrosse Scandal, The Power Elite, and the Corruption of Our Great Universities By William D. Cohan
Women's Review of Books
March 31, 2015 -
Is Your First Grader College Ready?
College prep hits the playground set, plus video.
New York Times
February 4, 2015 -
When to Take The SAT
One LI school district starts SAT prep in kindergarten, plus advice for everyone else.
New York Times
February 4, 2015 -
Did 1900’s female PE teachers see what the NCAA can’t?
National Girls and Women in Sports Day
Wellesley Centers for Women blogpost
February 3, 2015 -
The New P.E. Aims to Build Bodies and Brains
PDF here: Can exercise make kids smarter?
Harvard Education Letter
February 3, 2015 -
Charters and Districts (Begin to) Collaborate
PDF here: Edu-frenemies finding common ground.
Harvard Education Letter
October 31, 2014 -
N.C.A.A., Play by Play: Pop Quiz
Test your NCAA history.
New York Times
October 30, 2014 -
Take Notes From the Pros
Good notes are key to good grades, even if you don’t take them yourself.
New York Times
October 30, 2014 -
Business Schools Add Admissions Bells and Whistles
B-School admissions seeking the authentic you.
New York Times
August 2, 2014 -
Computer Science for Everyone?
PDF here:Computational thinking is super skill that must start young (and speak to girls).
Harvard Education Letter
June 30, 2014 -
‘Trauma-Sensitive’ Schools
PDF hereRecognizing that tough home lives don’t stop at the schoolhouse door can change classroom success.
Harvard Education Letter
April 30, 2014 -
10 Courses with a Twist
New York Times
April 7, 2014 -
Finding Tomorrow’s Prodigies
Christian Science Monitor
February 23, 2014 -
Learning to Think Outside the Box
New York Times
February 4, 2014 -
Engaging Young Minds with Philosophy
Harvard Education Letter
December 31, 2013 -
The Value in a Free Degree
New York Times
November 2, 2013 -
The Boy Genius of Ulan Bator
New York Times
September 14, 2013 -
Attention Class!
Harvard Education Letter
August 31, 2013 -
The End of College?
Christian Science Monitor
June 1, 2013 -
Changing the Face of Math
Harvard Education Letter
April 30, 2013 -
Gym Class Blues
Review of Active Bodies: A History of Women’s Physical Education in Twentieth-Century America by Martha H. Verbrugge.
Women's Review of Books
February 3, 2013 -
‘Grit’ and the New Character Education
Harvard Education Letter
December 31, 2012 -
The Year of the MOOC
Includes a sidebar on the big three — Coursera, edX, Udacity.
New York Times
November 13, 2012 -
Got the Next Great Idea?
New York Times
July 21, 2012 -
The Algebra Problem
Harvard Education Letter
April 30, 2012 -
Apps for Navigating Campus Life
New York Times
April 14, 2012 -
How Big Time Sports Ate College Life
New York Times
January 21, 2012 -
From Math Helper to Community Organizer
Harvard Education Letter
December 31, 2011 -
The Online-College Crapshoot
New York Times
November 5, 2011 -
Waldorf Education in Public Schools
Harvard Education Letter
October 31, 2011 -
The Master’s as the New Bachelor’s
New York Times
July 21, 2011 -
Closing Time
HGSE Ed Magazine
May 31, 2011 -
Differentiated Instruction Reexamined
Harvard Education Letter
April 30, 2011 -
Chased to the Top: What Happens When We Limit the Learning Process
Description goes here: a commentary on how being a parent and an education journalist shapes Pappano’s thoughts about reform.
ASCD Express
March 16, 2011 -
To improve schools, stop treating them like businesses
Christian Science Monitor
January 10, 2011
2006 - 2010
-
In School Turnarounds, the Human Element is Crucial
Education Week
October 24, 2010 -
Kids Haven’t Changed; Kindergarten Has
Harvard Education Letter
August 31, 2010 -
Education Leadership Skills to Fix Failing Schools
New York Times
January 2, 2010 -
Scalping Courses: Tuition vouchers for sale on Craigslist. A deal?
New York Times
January 2, 2010 -
Ponytail Pull Was Bad (But Good for Women’s Sports)
Why Elizabeth Lambert’s ponytail pull was bad — but is (alas, sadly) good for women’s sports.
Huffington Post
November 18, 2009 -
Baseball is War
A book review of Stolen Bases: Why American Girls Don’t Play Baseball by Jennifer Ring.
Women's Review of Books
October 31, 2009 -
Athlete Mom
Huffington Post
September 23, 2009 -
Bonding and Bridging: Schools open doors for students by building social capital
PDF
Harvard Education Letter
August 31, 2009 -
Dividing Up The Pot (Behind closed doors as aid officers decide just how much they want you to say yes)
New York Times
April 18, 2009 -
The Price Gap Between Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tickets is Madness
Op Ed.
Christian Science Monitor
April 2, 2009 -
Boston Reinvents Teacher Training
Scholastic Administrator Magazine
February 28, 2009 -
The Fallout
New York Times
January 3, 2009 -
Loans in the Time of Facebook
New York Times
November 1, 2008 -
Answers and Questions: Schools Survey Their Students — and Grapple With the Results
PDF
Harvard Education Letter
October 31, 2008 -
The endless school year
New York Times
July 26, 2008 -
Ultimate Study Tool: Frequent Testing
New York Times
July 26, 2008 -
What About College? Too many students leave high school unprepared for the next step
Special issue: Education Reform at 15.
CommonWealth
May 31, 2008 -
Playing With The Boys
Huffington Post
May 28, 2008 -
Small Kids, Big Words
PDF
Harvard Education Letter
April 30, 2008 -
The Power of Family Conversation
PDF
Harvard Education Letter
April 30, 2008 -
Slackers, beware! That fat envelope is conditional. If your grades drop, some colleges won’t hesitate to take it back
New York Times
February 24, 2008 -
Women and men in sports: separate is not equal
Viewpoint essay.
Christian Science Monitor
January 30, 2008 -
To Survive The Lecture Course, Take Heed If The Professor Waves His Arms
New York Times
January 5, 2008 -
Might Pregnancy Be A Boon to Female Athletes?
Huffington Post
November 7, 2007 -
The Foreign Legions
New York Times
November 3, 2007 -
A semester in Ghana: $4,725. A year in Beijing: $35,150. Experience abroad: Priceless?
New York Times
November 3, 2007 -
Lessons From The Loan Scandal
New York Times
July 28, 2007 -
Meeting of the Minds: The parent-teacher conference is the cornerstone of school-home relations. How can it work for all families?
PDF
Harvard Education Letter
June 30, 2007 -
Slackers, Beware
New York Times
April 21, 2007 -
Harvard [loves] New York
New York Times
April 21, 2007 -
Conduct Unbecoming
New York Times
April 21, 2007 -
More than Making Nice: Getting teachers to (truly) collaborate
PDF
Harvard Education Letter
February 28, 2007 -
The Incredibles
New York Times
January 6, 2007 -
Language Lessons: Is English Immersion any Improvement over Bilingual Education?
Cover story.
CommonWealth
November 30, 2006 -
Top Preschool Teachers: and Their Smart Start Secrets
Cover story.
Nick Jr. Family Magazine
August 31, 2006 -
It Takes Muscle
New York Times
July 29, 2006 -
The Transfer Student Nightmare: Getting Credit Where Credit Is Due
New York Times
April 22, 2006 -
Lost, Alone and Not a Freshman
New York Times
April 22, 2006 -
Bet On It
Boston Globe Magazine
March 11, 2006
2000 - 2005
-
Flunking Out
Story on what happens when school districts are labeled as failures under No Child Left Behind.
CommonWealth
May 31, 2004 -
Multiple Choice: Charter Schools Become Formidable Competitors for Students and Dollars
CommonWealth
November 30, 2003 -
Closing the Gender Gap: Wrestler Nikki Darrow Beats Boys-And She Is Not Alone.
Cover story
Boston Globe Magazine
September 27, 2003 -
Making the Grade: In the Hudson Schools, a Surprising Story of Ed Reform
Cover story.
Boston Globe Magazine
April 20, 2002 -
The day our world changed
Essay/story on how September 11 changed the daily experience of parenting.
Working Mother
October 31, 2001 -
Go Figure; Why We Put Price Tags On Things We Should Value
Washington Post
July 28, 2001 -
Tag Team
Story on parents working split shifts to cover the home front.
Working Mother
June 30, 2001 -
It’s About Time
Fifth anniversary issue piece on idea that went nowhere: Longer school days.
CommonWealth
February 28, 2001 -
$25 for your baby’s life…
Story on why some states do – and others don’t – offer newborn screening that can alert parents to dangerous, but hidden conditions.
Good Housekeeping
January 31, 2001 -
Every day I would eat less and less
Eating disorders among teenage boys.
Good Housekeeping
July 31, 2000 -
Blown Away: Buffeted by the 24/7 Wired-and-Working Culture, Many Americans Feel They are Losing Their Grip
Cover story
Boston Globe Magazine
June 24, 2000 -
Campus Politics: Bulger Remakes UMass Image – And His Own
Cover story
CommonWealth
May 31, 2000
1994 - 1999
-
The New Urbanism Comes to New England
Cover story
CommonWealth
August 31, 1998 -
Alone Together
Cover story. Story on six months inside a cancer support group.
Boston Globe Magazine
July 25, 1998 -
The Gender Factor: In our efforts to give girls a boost in school are we creating new problems – for girls as well as boys?
Cover story.
Boston Globe Magazine
November 8, 1997 -
Our Parents’ Keepers
Cover story.
Boston Globe Magazine
July 5, 1997 -
The Crusade For Civility
Cover story.
Boston Globe Magazine
May 3, 1997 -
The New Retirement
Cover story.
Boston Globe Magazine
February 15, 1997 -
Inspired Choices: What Makes People Enter The Clergy at Mid-Life?
Cover story.
Boston Globe Magazine
December 21, 1996 -
The Gift
PDF Cover story: Story on 21-year-old with cystic fibrosis who receives a double-lung living donor transplant to get a shot at survival.
Boston Globe Magazine
November 16, 1996 -
They’ve Got Your Number
Cover story. Inside telemarketing.
Boston Globe Magazine
August 3, 1996 -
High Tech Baby Boom
Cover story. The egg donation quandary.
Boston Globe Magazine
May 11, 1996 -
Too Busy To Play: Are We Overscheduling Our Children?
Cover story.
Boston Globe Magazine
February 10, 1996 -
The Word Factory
nside Merriam-Webster, the nation’s largest and oldest dictionary publisher. Reprint version for The Washington Post.
Boston Globe Magazine
January 13, 1996 -
Getting From A to B
The struggle for adults who can’t read.
Boston Globe Magazine
November 25, 1995 -
The Connection Gap: Why Americans Feel So Alone
Cover story. Reprint, The Detroit Free Press, Nov. 19, 1995.
Boston Globe Magazine
September 23, 1995 -
Coming to America
Boston Globe Magazine
July 29, 1995 -
A Nation of Sleepyheads
Cover story.
Boston Globe Magazine
May 13, 1995 -
Boys and Eating Disorders
Family Health (Reference Section), online
Good Housekeeping
December 31, 1994 -
Four Score and More
Cover story.
Boston Globe Magazine
November 26, 1994