Here are Indiana’s most important education issues ahead of the 2018 legislative session

During the first week of 2018, Indiana lawmakers will ring in a new legislative session. Career and technical education, mandatory kindergarten and making up a shortfall in money for schools will likely become central debates.

But like anything in politics, there’s no telling exactly how things will play out — especially during a fast 10-week session where there’s no budget to consider (Indiana lawmakers only approve a budget every two years). Indiana is set to face a number of education issues next year, some that require lawmakers to get involved, such as whether to consolidate diplomas or give high-schoolers college entrance exams as their state test. But most of the goals for the state’s top political leaders focus on preparing students for jobs and giving them more access to computer science courses.

Here are some key players’ legislative wishlists:

The state also has a number of other education issues it’s grappling with, such as how to carry out the new graduation pathways plan that increases what high schoolers must do to graduate, how to make sure teachers have the necessary education to meet new dual credit teaching requirements, and how to plan for the new state test set to replace ISTEP in 2019.

Learn more about the background on those topics:

What education issues are topping your list as Indiana heads into 2018? Email reporter Shaina Cavazos at scavazos@chalkbeat.org to share.