Education Lab

Education Lab

Seattle-area youth created this guide to connect teens to multicultural mental health care

In Washington state, you can start seeking mental health care at age 13, without parental consent. Seattle-area teens put together this guide to help youth seek multicultural support.

Top Education Lab Stories

Reading Remedies

A student reading a book in a first grade classroom. After months of remote and hybrid learning, reading scores nationwide have declined, especially among low-income and young students.
Education Lab

Reading scores were dropping before the pandemic. Remote classes made things worse

Kindergarten teacher Naomi Simpson works with students on breaking down words into sounds during an intervention time at Vitovsky Elementary on Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2021, in Midlothian, Texas. (Elias Valverde II/The Dallas Morning News)
Education Lab

Is Texas’ big reading push enough to make up pandemic losses? Here’s how one district helps students

A kindergarten student raises her hand during a reading lesson in Jennifer Lee’s class at Southwest Primary School in Hickory, N.C.
Education Lab

A new law in North Carolina aims to retrain an entire state’s elementary teachers in the science of reading

Kaadir, a rising kindergarten student, works with Reading Assist volunteer Jamilah Watson. With support from the state, the tutoring program has expanded to serve students in more than two dozen schools around the state.
Education Lab

In Delaware, educators are making early literacy a priority VIEW

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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Funding

Washington Board of Education sees gains, lags in schools meeting mandates

The Washington State Board of Education met this month under a new chairman, and heard concerns and support for an ethnic studies graduation requirement. The board also outlined its legislative priorities for the next session.

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

Equity

“Reading Remedies” is a special reporting series examining the challenges and solutions in K-12 literacy across the U.S. The series was produced by The Seattle Times in partnership with The Christian Science Monitor, The Hechinger Report, the Solutions Journalism Network and the Education Labs at AL.com, The Dallas Morning News, and The Fresno Bee.

Students in the U.S. are struggling to read. Experts share what they know can help WATCH

Higher Education

Highline Community College campus.

Most Washington state community colleges will require students to get COVID vaccines this fall

Special Education

Summer school in Seattle: ‘It’s hard for us to know if he is truly accessing education’

There are about 2,500 students and about 250 teachers on campuses this summer. But some parents say a lack of staffing and poor communication from Seattle Public Schools administrators made their children miss educational time.

Guest Essays

Pitch your idea for improving public education to The Seattle Times Student Voices project

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 en español

Seattle school district buses parked in the First Student bus lot at 13525 Lake City Way. The school district isn’t able to provide bus transportation for many of the kids who have gone back to in person school because of a shortage of drivers. 217087

Ed Lab En Español: La falta de servicio de autobús escolar en Seattle deja a decenas de estudiantes en casa VIEW

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.

Education Lab Interesting Questions

Black history tributes on a classroom wall at North Community High in Minneapolis, Nov. 22, 2021. In a citywide overhaul, this beloved majority-Black high school was rezoned to include more white students from a richer neighborhood. It has been hard for everyone. (Andrea Ellen Reed/The New York Times)

In Minneapolis schools, white families are asked to help do the integrating

Fund for Those in Need

Every dollar raised goes directly to 13 nonprofits, which help local children, families and older adults