Tennessee Performance Pay Debate Overshadowed by Evaluation Concerns

(Teacher Gina Feldblum, far left, at a teacher town hall in Knoxville.)

When Tennessee received $500 million in federal Race to the Top money, part of it was earmarked for a teacher merit pay system. The U-S Department of Education also gave Tennessee another, separate grant for merit pay programs. So far, the state's handed five school districts more than 20-million dollars to fund performance pay programs. From the Southern Education Desk, Christine Jessel has the story of one of those districts...

Freedom School Hopes to Write New Chapter for At-Risk Students: Part One of a Series

Students can lose up to two months' worth of skills over the summer, especially in reading and math. It's called "summer learning loss." Students back in class at low-income schools may be even further behind. But from the Southern Education Desk, Christine Jessel reports with help from a child welfare organization, some of these kids didn't miss a beat.

Oak Ridge: In the Shadow of the Atom

In August of 1945, residents of Oak Ridge, Tennessee learned that they were part of the most important secret in the history of science. Sixty years later, Oak Ridge is still a city of nuclear secrets. Oak Ridge: In the Shadow of the Atom is a half-hour documentary that examines the ways in which atomic science has shaped the cultural and societal landscape of Oak Ridge.