Several high-profile commencement speakers have resigned in the wake of student protests this graduation season. iStockphoto hide caption

Student-teacher ratio is one component of high-quality preschool. Barnaby Wasson/Flickr hide caption

Two of the students who participated in the Multnomah Education Service District's Special Needs Prom this past weekend. Lucy Ohlsen/OPB hide caption

Proust and algebra may not sound like brain protection, but higher levels of education correlate with cognitive reserve. iStockphoto hide caption

In a British study of nearly 6,000 students, obesity — or perhaps dealing with the stigma associated with obesity — seemed to reduce academic performance. iStockphoto hide caption

They'll need new prep books. Mario Tama/Getty Images hide caption

A drawing of the scientific theory of evolution, which states that living things evolve over time. Martin Wimmer/iStockphoto hide caption

A graphic released with the 2012 PISA results shows the annualized change in performance in average math scores between 2003 and 2012. The chart includes only nations that have comparable data from both 2003 and 2012. PISA hide caption

Hazel Avery, 86, holds her iPad for the first time. The Connecting to Community program, with funding from the AARP Foundation, teaches low-income seniors how to increase social engagement online. The Washington, D.C., program chose seniors with no previous computer experience. Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post/Getty Images hide caption

A screenshot of the iPad game If, which aims to teach kids how to navigate interpersonal challenges and failures. NPR hide caption

Can science inspire the same level of passion as religion? Mauricio Lima/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

Young students in a Bridge International Academy school in Nairobi, in September. On the surface, there's little to distinguish these schools from others in the developing world. But Bridge's model relies on teachers reading lessons from tablets. Frederic Courbet for NPR hide caption