Episode Details

Christy Wolfe, director of K–12 policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center, joins the Education Gadfly Show to discuss a new report on the American workforce—and what it means for K–12 education. As policymakers call for a clearer national talent strategy, which ideas echo past reforms, what’s genuinely new, and should school improvement efforts shift from individual schools to districts?

Then, on the Research Minute, Amber Northern looks at what happens when schools lock up student phones—and the results may surprise you.

Recommended content:

• A Nation at Risk to a Nation at Work —Bipartisan Policy Center
• Reimagining School Improvement: What are Portfolio Districts? —Christy Wolfe and Robin Chait, Bipartisan Policy Center
• State takeovers are back —Michael J. Petrilli, SCHOOLED
• Reformers: Yes, states should intervene in failing districts —Michael J. Petrilli, SCHOOLED
• The Effects of School Phone Bans: National Evidence from Lockable Pouches —Hunt Allcott, E. Jason Baron, Thomas Dee, Angela L. Duckworth, Matthew Gentzkow and Brian Jacob, NBER (2026)

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