Anya Kamenetz is NPR's lead education blogger. She joined NPR in 2014, working as part of a new initiative to coordinate on-air and online coverage of learning.
Kamenetz is the author of several books about the future of education. Generation Debt(Riverhead, 2006), dealt with youth economics and politics; DIY U: Edupunks, Edupreneurs, and the Coming Transformation of Higher Education (Chelsea Green, 2010), investigated innovations to address the crises in cost, access, and quality in higher education. Her forthcoming book, The Test (PublicAffairs, 2015), is about the past, present and future of testing in American schools.
Anya Kamenetz appears in the following:
Parents are scrambling after schools suddenly cancel class over staffing and burnout
Tuesday, November 23, 2021
School districts around the country have been announcing extra days off this fall to address staff shortages and mental health. For some families, the unpredictable schedule feels like a betrayal.
Should schools require the COVID vaccine? Many experts say it's too soon
Friday, November 19, 2021
School vaccine mandates have been around for two centuries, but they've always brought pushback.
What the history of student vaccination mandates means for school COVID vaccine rules
Tuesday, November 16, 2021
School vaccine mandates go back 200 years. They've defeated many legal challenges. Will they work for COVID?
When can kids take off their masks in school? Here's what some experts say
Friday, November 12, 2021
With vaccines now available for children as young as 5, some school districts are easing up on their mask policies.
Education has been a key issue in recent elections, but that might change next year
Friday, November 05, 2021
Education issues took on an outsized role in this week's elections in Virginia and elsewhere. The question for politicians of all stripes is whether education will remain an important topic into 2022.
COMIC: If history is a guide, schools will start requiring COVID vaccines
Friday, November 05, 2021
The first vaccine required for school was for smallpox, over 200 years ago. And for decades, all states have required that kids be vaccinated against contagious diseases like polio to attend school.
Why education was a top voter priority this election
Thursday, November 04, 2021
This week's election results show education issues foremost in the minds of many voters, and suggest many parents may be seeking a course correction after 18 months of disruptions.
A look at the groups supporting school board protesters nationwide
Tuesday, October 26, 2021
Several organizations are offering toolkits, legal advice and other resources for parents with a range of grievances against their local elected school boards.
What it's like to be on the front lines of the school board culture war
Thursday, October 21, 2021
Karen Watkins ran for her local school board because she wanted to be involved in her children's education. Since her election in 2020, she's been yelled at, threatened and followed to her car.
1 in 3 working families is struggling to find the child care they desperately need
Tuesday, October 19, 2021
And more than 1 in 3 adults in households with children say they have experienced serious problems meeting both their work and family responsibilities, according to an NPR poll.
Kids are losing school days to quarantines. Here's a way to keep them in classrooms
Friday, October 08, 2021
Test-to-stay policies could help keep students in in-person school. But amid a national shortage, rapid tests can be hard to come by, and the practice isn't common.
Facebook's own data is not as conclusive as you think about teens and mental health
Wednesday, October 06, 2021
It's grabbed a lot of headlines, but the evidence on social media and teen mental health — including that Facebook and Instagram research — is far from a smoking gun.
Hearing about Facebook was billed as focusing on protecting kids online
Wednesday, October 06, 2021
It's grabbed a lot of headlines, but the evidence on social media and teen mental health — including that Facebook and Instagram research — is far from a smoking gun.
School boards are asking for federal help as they face threats and violence
Thursday, September 30, 2021
School board meetings, usually one of the most mundane examples of local democracy in action, have exploded with vitriol across the country in recent months, and many school leaders are scared.
It's Back-To-School Season In NYC. Here's How 3 Moms Are Handling It
Monday, September 13, 2021
School districts are once again making enormous changes at the last minute. New York City, the nation's largest district, is one of the few holdouts against offering a remote option.
Biden Dangles New Federal Funds For Schools That Defy Mask Mandate Bans
Thursday, September 09, 2021
On Thursday, the president announced a series of actions to encourage K-12 schools to mandate masks for all and require vaccines for employees.
Hurricane Ida's Impact On Students Could Be Worse Than Katrina, Expert Says
Friday, September 03, 2021
Many New Orleans area students had re-enrolled in other schools within two weeks after Hurricane Katrina. This time, one expert predicts "five or six weeks of essentially no learning happening."
National Survey Finds Severe And Desperate School Bus Driver Shortage
Wednesday, September 01, 2021
"In previous years, we've seen regionalized driver shortages, but nothing to the extent that we're seeing today," one researcher told NPR.
A Picture Book About Children At The Border Aims To Spark Family Conversations
Monday, April 12, 2021
The new children's book Hear My Voice/Escucha Mi Voz pulls from the author's interviews with migrant children detained in U.S. facilities in 2019.
Why So Many Asian Americans Are Learning Remotely
Friday, April 09, 2021
Multigenerational households and anti-Asian bullying may play a role.
