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The Great Divide
Race, class, and opportunity in our schools.

Living like sailors, Boston students return from two week schooner trip to Maine

Eighteen students from the Boston International Newcomers Academy, all of whom are immigrants, sailed from Massachusetts to Maine on the schooner Denis Sullivan operated by the nonprofit World Ocean School.

Salem Academy Charter School teacher arrested in underage sex sting
Darren Benedick, 42, a gym and health teacher, pleaded not guilty to charges of child enticement and disseminating obscene material to a minor during his arraignment Wednesday in Newburyport District Court. He is due back in court Friday.

Counselor sexually ‘groomed’ teenager from El Salvador while he was a student in Boston, lawsuit alleges
“These allegations dating back to 2012 involving one of our former contractors are deeply troubling," a spokesman for the Boston Public Schools said.

Principal out at Providence’s Newcomer Academy after DOJ slams school for violating students’ rights

The high school for immigrants with interrupted schooling and little English proficiency is in hot water with the federal government for failing to properly provide English language development classes.

As district leaders hesitate, Cambridge School Committee pushes on middle school algebra

A district official said at a recent meeting that the plan for universal eighth-grade Algebra 1 by 2025 is not feasible.

Schools are teaching math word problems all wrong. But some educators have found a better way.

In Central Falls, R.I., teachers are trying new strategies that move away from focusing on “key words,” the traditional, simplistic approach that often leads younger students astray

About The Great Divide

The Great Divide is a reporting effort dedicated to investigating race, class, and inequality in Boston-area schools. It is jointly funded by the Globe and the Barr Foundation, a Boston-based foundation that has prioritized student success in high school and beyond. The Globe maintains editorial control and independence over the project.

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July 3: Racial discrimination complaints mount in Metco program as families seek legal actionJune 26: Boston Public Schools student homelessness hits all-time highJune 20: Broken Promises, Unfulfilled HopeJune 12: Anxiety-fueled school refusal leading to chronic absenteeismClick here to see past issues

Education Headlines

In Winchester, a ‘climate of deep mistrust’ stymies early literacy instruction, new report finds

Winchester commissioned the report earlier this year in response to mounting community pressure for a review following a Globe investigation into how Boston’s suburban districts are teaching children to read.

NH EDUCATION

Credentials reinstated for N.H. teacher who was fired for lying to drive student to abortion appointment

The teacher, who was fired by a private school and subsequently hired by a public school, is contesting the New Hampshire Department of Education’s revocation of her license

THE GREAT DIVIDE

Racial discrimination complaints mount in Metco program as families seek legal action

As racial tensions have intensified nationwide, the amount of discrimination Metco children have experienced from their classmates and educators has become more prevalent, parents and advocates say, prompting some parents to seek legal recourse.

NH EDUCATION

Fired teacher accuses top N.H. education official of ‘misleading narrative’ about student’s abortion

The student was over 18, and the teacher didn’t seek to influence her decision on whether to undergo an abortion, according to a newly filed lawsuit.

David Murphy appointed as interim Cambridge schools superintendent

David Murphy was the district's chief operations officer and will serve for up to a year as interim superintendent.

Inflation is costing Mass. students hundreds of millions. Now, Gateway Cities and advocates are calling on the state to increase school aid.

Inflation is costing Massachusetts districts more than $460 million in state aid, the progressive think tank MassBudget calculated.

What led to Boston’s busing crisis? This graphic novel explains.

Massachusetts was the first state to abolish segregating public schools on the basis of skin color or race. But de facto segregation remained the norm 100 years later, when Black families sued for better education, and got busing instead.

NH EDUCATION

Teacher in N.H. fired for secretly helping pregnant student access abortion services

The teacher, who has since secured a position at a public school in the state, admitted she lied about having food poisoning when she called in sick from work and drove the student to a medical facility, according to records.