(From NPQ) The Gates Foundation’s most recent initiative to help public schools involves a five-year commitment to put $1.7 billion into them. After trying and learning from various strategies over the past 17 years, the Foundation says this latest effort will “support [schools’] efforts to use data-driven continuous learning and evidence-based interventions to improve student achievement…about 60 percent of this will eventually support the development of new curricula and networks of schools that work together to identify local problems and solutions…and use data to drive continuous improvement.” The Foundation has been criticized in past years for its use of big data in education, and questions remain about its commitment to issues like poverty and its accountability for unsuccessful programs.
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