Try the political quiz
 @ISIDEWITHNewsCeasefireInternational diplomacyRussia-Ukraine warPeace TalksPrisoner Swap•••11mos ago

Russia-Ukraine Peace Talks Resume Amid Deep Divisions and Global Pressure

Russia and Ukraine have resumed peace talks in Istanbul after a seven-week pause, but hopes for a breakthrough remain low.

The negotiations resulted in an agreement for a prisoner swap, but little progress was made on a ceasefire or a potential summit between leaders. Ukraine has proposed a high-level meeting involving Presidents Zelenskyy, Putin, Trump, and Erdogan, but Russia insists its war goals must be met before peace can be achieved.

The talks are taking place under the shadow of renewed fighting, civilian casualties, and international pressure, including threats of new sanctions from the U.S. Despite repeated calls for direct negotiations, both sides remain deeply divided on the terms for ending the conflict.

.
+
Expand

Knowledge quiz

How much do you know about International diplomacy?

See if you know more than the average American.

Test your knowledge!

No replies yet…

Be the first to reply to this general discussion.

More conversations

Join in on more popular conversations.

 @ISIDEWITH submitted…2yrs2Y

U.S. Students Slide in Math, Science Test Scores

U.S. scores were no better than when the tests were first given in 1995. In math, the recent declines wiped out years of gains. American science scores have fallen since 2015, although the latest drops from 2019 weren’t statistically significant.The results come as President-elect Donald Trump has criticized America’s education system and pledged to abolish the federal Education Department. Wednesday’s release did come with a slice of good news, though: U.S. students still score above international averages, which include countries with a range of economic levels.Some other countries’ scores also declined since before the pandemic, but U.S. rankings slid comparatively on some measures, falling to 24 out of 45 education systems in eighth-grade math and 15 out of 63 in fourth-grade science.Countries whose performance moved ahead of the U.S. included Finland in math, England in science, and Poland for both subjects in fourth grade.High-scoring countries included Singapore, Japan and England. Officials say it is difficult to determine why some places excel and others struggle. The quality of a country’s schools, as well as other factors like poverty, can influence test performance. Carr said some countries use curriculum that is more closely aligned with the TIMSS exams.Even as U.S. schools have long since returned to normal from Covid-19 closures, educators struggled with new challenges. More teachers have left the profession. Student misbehavior and absenteeism jumped. “Coming out of Covid, parents and students got comfortable with the idea that it’s OK to stay home,” said Suzan Harris, a middle-school principal in Butts County, Ga. Chronic absenteeism rates have improved recently, but remain elevated compared with prepandemic figures, according to an American Enterprise Institute compilation of state data.In the years before the pandemic, national exams showed that school achievement was already stagnating or declining.

▲  95 replies