🎒 Axios PM: Schools scrap homework

⛳ Plus: Midday golf! | Wednesday, April 26, 2023

Open in app View in browser   Presented By Instagram   Axios PM By Mike Allen · Apr 26, 2023 🐪 Happy Wednesday! Today's PM — edited by Erica Pandey — is 626 words, a 2-min. read. Thanks to Sheryl Miller for the copy edit.     1 big thing: Schools scrap homework Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios   Schools are rethinking homework — and whether it's a fair way to grade students, Axios' Erica Pandey writes. 🖼️ The big picture: America's kids come from all sorts of backgrounds. Digital divide: 6% of school-age kids — that's millions of students — only have access to the internet at home through smartphones, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. The share rises to 14% when looking just at students from lower-income families. After-school responsibilities: 3.4 million kids under the age of 18 are caregivers for members of their families, AARP notes. Millions also work part-time jobs after school. Homework help: Some students lean on parents, siblings or tutors for help on assignments, while others don't have that option. All of these factors affect the time and effort students can give to assignments. And placing importance on homework favors those with a stable home life and more hands-on parents, The Wall Street Journal reports. 💼 Case in point: School districts in Nevada, Iowa, Virginia, California and other states are embracing "equitable grading," which minimizes the importance of daily homework and focuses on final projects and tests, The Journal notes. Students are also given multiple opportunities to complete final assignments and aren't necessarily penalized for missing deadlines or missing class. 🧠 Reality check: Some teachers say students are gaming the new system, according to The Journal. The emphasis on final assignments is leading some kids to ignore homework and classwork along the way and skip class frequently. What to watch: Schools deprioritizing homework mirrors colleges doing away with standardized test requirements. Institutions are increasingly considering how kids' performance can be impacted by factors outside of their control.     2. ⛽ Pump relief Data: AAA; Chart: Axios Visuals The annual switch to a pricier variety of gas known as summer blend is almost complete — meaning prices at the pump are likely peaking and could fall before beach season begins. It's counterintuitive. The switch to summer blend — a gas that burns cleaner to combat summer smog — happens in the spring, so gas prices typically peak in May, Axios' Kelly Tyko writes. Relief should be on the way to the pump before Memorial Day. Summer prices could average about $3.50 per gallon, 80 cents less per gallon than last summer, the U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates. Go deeper.     A message from Instagram Explore 30+ tools for parents and teens on Instagram     Here's how: By allowing parents to view who their teen follows and who follows them, manage daily time limits and be notified when their teen shares reported accounts, once Supervision is set up. Set up Family Center supervision tools with your teen today.     3. Catch me up Photo: Sue Ogrocki/AP 🗳️ Above: Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson formally announced his Republican campaign for president today in Bentonville, the town where he was born. Go deeper. 🐭 Disney is suing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, alleging the state's actions toward the company amount to a "targeted campaign" of government retaliation. The standoff began after Disney denounced Florida's Parental Rights in Education Act, which critics dubbed the "Don't Say Gay" law. Go deeper. 🇸🇩 Sudan's humanitarian crisis is worsening, the death toll is rising and the shortage of basic supplies is growing amid continued fighting between the Sudanese military and a powerful paramilitary group for control. Go deeper.     4. ⛳ 1 fun thing: Wednesday tee time Data: Stanford University and INRIX; Chart: Axios Visuals Golf is the official sport of remote work, Axios' Kendall Baker writes. State of play: The COVID-fueled golf boom has yet to go bust thanks in part to the incredible rise of midweek golf, according to a recent study from Stanford. 📈 Wednesday afternoons have seen the biggest transformation. 278% more golf trips were made at 4pm on a Wednesday in August 2022 vs. August 2019, per the study. 💬 The last word… from an anonymous California tech executive cited in the study: "I think my colleague was taking his Zoom call from the golf course. He was on mute and video off, but once when he was talking, I heard somebody talking about the fairway and strokes."     A message from Instagram Explore 30+ tools for parents and teens on Instagram     Once Family Center supervision tools are set up, teens can send a notification to their parents whenever they report another account on Instagram. The result: Teens can ask for support when they need it. Set up Family Center supervision tools with your teen today.   Are you a fan of this email format? Your essential communications — to staff, clients and other stakeholders — can have the same style. Axios HQ, a powerful platform, will help you do it.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Axios, 3100 Clarendon B‌lvd, Arlington VA 22201   You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios. 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