School board members facing death threats. Protesters disrupting meetings over vaccines and sex education. Activists demanding schools ban books and critical race theory. Welcome to the new front in America’s culture wars: local school boards. Often obscure and largely nonpartisan...

School districts may want to consider developing alternatives to traditional math-course sequences in order to better serve students and improve access to advanced math courses, according to a new report published by PACE.  Only half of all California high school...

Entering a contentious debate over reading, Gov. Gavin Newsom proposes that districts base literacy instruction on decades of research known as “the science of reading” as the next step to getting all children reading by third grade. In budget language...

When California children were stuck at home in distance learning during the COVID-19 pandemic and schools reopened unevenly across the state, raising equity concerns, frustrated parents demanded action from Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond. But unlike other states, where...

Tony Thurmond could be California’s last elected superintendent of public instruction if a constitutional amendment introduced Monday is approved. ACA-9, introduced by Assemblymember Kevin McCarty, D-Sacramento, would give the governor the power to appoint the superintendent of public instruction, although...

In collaboration with EdInsights and UC Davis, a new PACE report and related infographic as well as a webinar on Monday, March 6th, at 12pm (PST) examine ways to improve math course-taking for high school students in California public schools...

The California Department of Education is making another historic investment in its educational leaders by awarding up to $12 million in additional funding over three years to the 21st Century California School Leadership Academy (21CSLA) State Center, a project housed...

By directing funding to the state’s poorest schools and targeting racial disparities statewide, Gov. Gavin Newsom is proposing the biggest changes in a decade to the state system of funding and governing schools. His plan would be an implicit acknowledgment...

Most newcomer students enter school with very low or beginning English language proficiency (ELP), but their language skills can develop rapidly under the right conditions, according to the first in a new series of briefs by Policy Analysis for California...

Newcomer students’ first years in U.S. schools are a “window of opportunity” for English language development, according to a new policy brief from PACE. The brief summarizes key findings from the Bilingual Research Journal article “Understanding Newcomer English Learner Students’...

Say his name, and remember his name: Tyre Nichols. The harrowing episode involving Mr. Nichols – the incident in Memphis, Tenn., that horrified people in the United States and around the world – is the familiar, tragic episode: the brutal...

California’s public education performance needs improvement. The state ranks 40th in pre-K through 12th grade education, according to US News 2022 rankings. On average, 86% of California students graduate high school compared to 92% in Florida and 94% in Texas. ...

Lagging math scores, rising rates of depression and teacher shortages have all contributed to grim conditions for millions of children in California, although some signs of hope shine though the data, a new report from Children Now found. “Overall, things...

California’s system of 116 community colleges is closing in on the hiring of its new chancellor. Whoever takes the helm will immediately need to contend with declining enrollments, racial disparities in student outcomes and an uncertain fiscal future. And in...

Distance learning in the COVID-19 context provides a unique challenge in that, in many cases, neither families nor educators chose to engage in this model of instruction, it is an opportunity provided due to circumstances beyond our control. It is...

Advancing greater diversity in graduate education is an important topic in academia and one that UC Davis Graduate Studies is consistently pursuing, which is why Grad Studies recently hosted a virtual event, “Centering Equity in Graduate Education,” featuring newly appointed...

After years of ambitious and record-breaking investments in education, Gov. Gavin Newsom signaled a decline in funding for California’s K-12 schools and community colleges in his 2023-24 proposed budget. EdSource asked practitioners, observers, advocates, students and legislators...

While media attention has been focused on Washington, D.C., and the early moves of House Republicans (following Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s messy election to become speaker), I’ve been reflecting a lot on an issue that’s closer to home. It’s the trauma...

California Governor Gavin Newsom released his January budget proposal for the 2023-24 fiscal year Tuesday. The proposal accounts for a projected $22.5 billion “budget gap,” or deficit, a major change from the $100 billion surplus the state saw in its...

For generations, public schools have struggled to equitably prepare all students—particularly those furthest from economic and social opportunity—to learn and thrive. This is not because they don’t know how. The science of learning and development shows that all children—regardless of...

Community schools—an education reform strategy—have been described as another way of thinking and acting and a new way of “doing” school. This type of school transformation is complex, involves change that can be uncomfortable, and doesn’t happen overnight. Starting in...

When California’s schools reopened their classrooms at the beginning of this school year, educators were confronted by a critical question: Where did all the students go? Since the beginning of the pandemic, California public schools have lost more than 4%...

Michal Kurlaender, 49, of Davis, has been appointed to the Education Commission of the States. Kurlaender has been a Professor at the University of California, Davis since 2016, where she has served in several positions since 2004 including Associate Professor...

Within the first 18 months of the COVID-19 pandemic – which began to shut down much of the United States in March 2020 — California community college total enrollment decreased by 14%, according to a report from the UC Davis...