Education Lab | The Seattle Times

Shelly Kerby manages the drinking water quality program for Seattle Public Schools. After flushing the water system at Emerson Elementary School in South Seattle, Kerby collects water samples from each fixture in the hallways and classrooms before shipping the vials off to a lab for testing of lead, copper and other contaminants. Since 2004, the Seattle Public Schools has tested every source of drinking water in every school every three years.
Photographed on November 21, 2018. 208524

Washington bill curbing lead in school drinking water heads for Inslee’s signature

Washington schools will soon have to test their taps for lead and will be required to fix or replace faucets with concentrations higher than 5 parts per billion. The measure cleared a final legislative hurdle Sunday and now heads to Gov. Jay Inslee's desk.

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About Education Lab

Education Lab is a project of the Seattle Times that spotlights promising approaches to persistent challenges in public education. Our team reports on issues like improving school discipline, parent education, math instruction and more. Our goal? To connect parents, students and educators to drive innovative solutions.

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Washington students are facing a mental health crisis. Are schools ready to handle it?

Equity

Shelly Kerby manages the drinking water quality program for Seattle Public Schools. After flushing the water system at Emerson Elementary School in South Seattle, Kerby collects water samples from each fixture in the hallways and classrooms before shipping the vials off to a lab for testing of lead, copper and other contaminants. Since 2004, the Seattle Public Schools has tested every source of drinking water in every school every three years.
Photographed on November 21, 2018. 208524

Washington bill curbing lead in school drinking water heads for Inslee’s signature

Teacher Diversity

Illustration by Jennifer Luxton / The Seattle Times

Why are 89% of Washington teachers white?

Higher Education

Professor Ed Taylor, with box of cranes, the University of Washington’s vice provost and dean of undergraduate academic affairs, seen on campus Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2020 in Seattle. Taylor designed a UW course on 2020, which culminates in creating a time capsule, which will include the paper cranes he folded off screen during meetings and a box local high school students made. 216017

The UW turned 2020 into a course. You’re invited to check it out. WATCH

Special Education

Everyone is struggling with remote learning — but it's been harder on these students

It’s hard to say exactly how foster youth are faring through the COVID-19 pandemic, but a new report offers an early glimpse. One major insight: The shift to distance learning was especially hard on foster youth.

Tools & Resources

Could you go to college tuition-free in Washington? Here’s how to find out

New law may make it easier for people to become teachers in Washington state

Special Education Glossary, Part 1

Special Education Glossary, Part 2

Three ways you can advocate for students with disabilities and special education in Washington state

Guest Essays

Student voices are essential. Apply today for a chance to express yourself in The Seattle Times.

Ignite Education Lab 2019

Speakers, from left, Noah Matisse, Kimberly Harden, Victoria Mott, Ricky Robertson, Tracy Castro-Gill, Kari O’Driscoll, Ryan Healy, Gillian Elliott, Raul Sanchez, Imani Razat, emcee Nathan Gibbs-Bowling, and Shannon Hitch are pictured during the Ignite Education Lab event at Seattle University, Monday, March 11, 2019 in Seattle.

Watch: 11 stories about teaching, learning and growth

Education Lab Interesting Questions

FILE – In this Jan. 7, 2021, file photo, the Legislative Building is shown partially shrouded in fog at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. Washington state’s richest residents, including Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, would pay a wealth tax on certain financial assets worth more than $1 billion under a proposed bill whose sponsor says she is seeking a fair and equitable tax code. Under the bill, starting Jan. 1, 2022, for taxes due in 2023, a 1% tax would be levied not on income, but on “extraordinary” assets ranging from cash, publicly traded options, futures contracts, and stocks and bonds. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)

Washington Legislature approves ban on Native American school mascots

Education Lab en español

Washington State Governor Jay Inslee speaks to students in Kelsey Voight’s second grade classroom at Phantom Lake Elementary School in Bellevue Tuesday, March 2, 2021.

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Ed Lab en español | Lo que es necesario saber sobre el regreso a las aulas en Washington después de un año de aprendizaje remoto

Discipline

Illinois stopped secluding and restraining students at school. Will other states follow suit?

Illinois lawmakers want federal officials to crack down on states that allow staff to seclude or restrain children at school.