Experts on state takeovers of schools cite a critical factor: There has to be school-based autonomy. If that is the secret sauce, I ask why Georgia doesn’t apply it to every school in the state rather than just those eligible for state takeover. In a guest column, a parent says the issue isn’t how old children are when they start kindergarten, but what they find when they get there — and increasingly, she says, they are finding less playtime. Readers share their views on a proposal to lift the burden of passing the Georgia High School Graduation Test from 8,000 Georgians who failed it.

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Carleigh Knight (left) and her sister, Natalie Rogovin, look at Christmas ornaments while shopping at Kudzu Antiques + Modern in Decatur on Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (Natrice Miller/AJC)

Credit: Natrice Miller