INITIATIVE

Getting Down To Facts II

Getting Down to Facts II

Getting Down To Facts II is a research initiative that provides in-depth analysis of California’s education system as of 2018 and looks at what is working well and where improvement is still needed. Over one hundred researchers from the nation’s leading academic institutions focused on four aspects of California education—student success, governance systems, personnel issues, and school finance. These studies resulted in 36 methodologically rigorous technical reports that span these four areas. Nineteen research briefs synthesize the main findings from the technical reports for a broader readership. Taken together, these research products help to build a common understanding of the performance of California’s PreK–12 school system and the opportunities for improvement. While this research is not intended to advocate specific policies, the findings provide evidence to inform the policy decisions that can ensure California continues to move in the right direction on behalf of all students in the state.

Recent Initiative Publications
Views from the 2019 PACE/USC Rossier Poll
With a new Governor, State Superintendent, and Legislators in Sacramento and a diminished federal role in education, there is an opportunity for California’s leaders to take stock of recent educational reforms and make necessary improvements.…
Education Equity in California
A Review of Getting Down to Facts II Findings
This brief focuses on implications for equity in the research findings of Getting Down to Facts II (GDFTII). Policymakers changed education funding and governance with the 2014 enactment of the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), Gov. Jerry Brown’…
GDTFII Brief Pension
In 2014, the California Legislature passed Assembly Bill 1469, a law that requires teachers and school districts, along with the state government, to substantially increase their respective contributions to the California State Teachers’ Retirement…
GDTFII Brief Adequacy
California’s Current Policies and Funding Levels
California policymakers have established the expectation that all public school students should have access to a broad course of study, in classes where instruction is consistent with the state’s content standards. Further, the state holds schools…