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 @ISIDEWITHNewsNATOTrade policyDefense Cooperation11mos ago

Franco-German Alliance Faces Strain Amid Trade and Defense Disputes

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron met in Berlin to address growing tensions between their countries over defense cooperation and trade policy, particularly in the face of looming US-EU trade conflicts.

While both leaders emphasized the importance of their partnership and presented a united front, significant disagreements remain, especially regarding tariffs, NATO strategy, and the joint fighter jet project. They set an August deadline to resolve the fighter jet dispute, highlighting the urgency of their negotiations. The talks come as Europe seeks to strengthen its position globally, but the so-called 'Franco-German engine' is showing signs of sputtering.

Despite warmer personal relations, the leaders face tough challenges in aligning their countries' interests.

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 @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.

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