Social and Professional Stagnation in China, Shorter School Weeks, and More

July 13, 2021

China’s leadership sees innovation and self-reliance as the way forward for economic and social development in the country. However, this drive toward innovation is encountering resistance in the form of a young generation of people who balk at a culture of overwork without the promise of real advancement, writes David Bandurski.

Four-day school weeks are becoming increasingly common in America and may become a fact of life in the post-pandemic era in many places. Paul Thompson and Emily Morton discuss emerging research on the shortened school week and assess its effectiveness as a school model.

North Nashville, Tennessee’s Jefferson Street was once a booming hub for the city’s Black middle class, but the construction of the I-40 highway decimated the commercial corridor and displaced business owners and residents. To restore the area’s middle class, local leaders must focus on more than tax abatements and flashy development projects, Andre Perry and Anthony Barr say.

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