New York Instances Opinion columnists, editorials and op-eds. At 3:15 pm Monday by way of Friday I walk into my quiet third grade classroom and do a quick visible sweep of the ground in search of that stray crayon underneath the desk or the scrap paper in the corner in order that the custodian will have the ability to vacuum on the finish of the day and I really feel as if I helped him in some small method. What I no longer discover on the floor of my classroom is the small pieces to the learning facilities that I lovingly and tediously put collectively for many of my summers.

• 24 p.c of students in each grades eight and 12 carried out on the proficient degree...