California’s families are losing faith in public education — not because they do not believe in public schools, but because too often they feel unheard, shut out and forced to navigate a system that is fragmented, confusing and disconnected from...
The first sign was the empty desks that slowly started to appear. Then there were fewer kindergartners in San Francisco. Shrinking graduating classes in San Jose. An Oakland elementary school that lost so many students it was forced to close...
School closures—commonly touted as a financially responsible strategy to right-size cash-strapped districts—often do not improve districts’ financial standing, according to a new study out of California. Even worse: Any money actually saved from closing a school building is largely offset...
The dominant narrative about American schools is one of decline: Math and reading achievement at historic lows, the nation caught in a long-term “learning recession.” But that’s a narrative based on standardized test scores. Assessing the effectiveness of American schools...
It’s not often you see over 900 diverse organizations across California all agree on something. But when a problem affecting our kids’ education has existed for over a century with little progress towards fixing it, it brings people together to...
For Stanford Graduate School of Education (GSE) Professor Susanna Loeb, the work of bringing an incoming governor up to speed on the state’s education system begins with a listening tour. “There are a billion different things you could look at...
Stanford University on Thursday released a sweeping research project that takes a 360-degree, immersive look at all aspects and operations of public education in California, from preschool through high school, from special education to teacher certification, enrollment decline to high...
California K-12 schools have come a long way over the past 20 years, but according to an exhaustive overview of the state’s school system, further progress may require tinkering with a long-entrenched form of school governance: local control. That’s among...
A bill moving through the state legislature would require independent evaluations of any new education initiative that costs at least $500 million a year or $1 billion in one-time spending. The proposed requirement is part of a larger bill that...
Education is not a central issue in California’s crowded governor’s race, but the candidates addressing it offer sharply different visions, from expanding school funding and free college, to stricter teacher accountability and restrictions on transgender students in sports. Lupita Cortez...
A new research paper released by the Center for Studies in Higher Education (CSHE) at the University of California, Berkeley, reveals that the common narrative of American educational stagnancy is misleading. The study, titled "Broadening Our Perspective Concerning America's Education...
This has been a disruptive year for education research. Last February, roughly $1 billion in federal funding was canceled. Amid efforts to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, most staff at the Institute of Education Sciences (IES), which supports education...
Dozens of Bay Area school districts have announced layoffs, budget cuts or school closures this year to repair gaping budget deficits ranging from $6 million to over $100 million. Last month, Oakland Unified School District voted to lay off more...
California’s public school system, which purports to educate nearly 6 million students ranging from 4-year-olds in transitional kindergarten to near-adults preparing to graduate from high school, is in a world of hurt.Its students perform poorly in national tests of academic...
President Donald Trump has revived a longstanding Republican Party call to abolish the U.S. Department of Education. While the Cabinet-level department needs an act of Congress to be eliminated, the Trump administration is using its hiring and firing power to...
In a report that I authored for the Learning Policy Institute, I examined the long, winding, and often perilous journey of state reading policies and found that even well-designed policies frequently fail to translate into meaningful classroom implementation. Teachers and...
With California struggling to lower student absences since the pandemic, state educational leaders have pledged to reduce chronic absenteeism by 50% over the next five years. California State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, along with officials from across the...
As California wrestles with a statewide literacy crisis, a bill poised to hit Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk could fundamentally change the way students learn to read in California. The bill, AB 1454, would move the state one step closer to...
The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the vital role school systems play in daily life, from learning and socialization to nutrition programs, transportation, and mental health. In the absence of in-person instruction, countless new stressors impacted families, teachers, and administrators who were...
Since 2009, nearly every U.S. state has adopted specific standards and teaching frameworks for literacy and math. Yet, despite these efforts, the implementation of these standards in classrooms has often fallen short. As I reflect on my six decades in...
Some of the biggest names in education research—who often oppose each other in scholarly and policy debates — are now united in their desire to fight the cuts to data and scientific studies at the U.S. Department of Education. The...
The school year is nearing to a close, but many parents are already looking forward to next year’s enrollment. California has a lot of options for schools, from public, to charter, to private. You can choose to stay in your...
This commentary examines California’s opportunity to articulate a coherent and forward-looking vision for public education that extends beyond academic standards and performance metrics. While the state has adopted important frameworks over the years, it lacks a unifying definition of student success that addresses the full range of skills and competencies young people need to thrive in a changing world. The commentary traces past efforts to define such a vision and highlights emerging work—such as local and statewide “Portrait of a Graduate” initiatives—as steps toward greater coherence. It considers how aligning policies such as graduation requirements, accountability metrics, and educator development can support this vision, and emphasizes the importance of engaging student voice to ensure it is both relevant and actionable. The piece concludes with recommendations for state leaders to move from vision-setting to implementation in ways that support whole child outcomes.
In recent weeks, Education Week Opinion has received scores of submissions from individuals in the K-12 field reacting to the current state of education in the United States and, in particular, the actions of the Trump administration. As the federal...
