PACE co-founder Michael W. Kirst, former president of the California Board of Education (1977–1981 and 2011–2019), highlights in a new PACE commentary findings from his Learning Policy Institute report Standards-Based Education Reforms: Looking Back to Looking Forward, which analyzes the evolution of standards-based reforms in the United States. Kirst issues a call to action: California needs a strategic and tactical roadmap to improve instructional capacity in classrooms statewide. The commentary offers four recommendations: return the CDE to its former role of providing technical assistance on how to implement subject matter standards; strengthen COEs for effective capacity building; reorient the district role to focus on instructional capacity; and design the roadmap for targeted district support. Without a unified strategy, California risks more uneven progress. A comprehensive, coordinated approach is essential to equipping educators with the tools they need to deliver equitable, standards-aligned instruction to all students.
With president-elect Donald Trump putting together his cabinet at a record pace, one of his most recent picks is for secretary of Education. Linda McMahon, who led the Small Business Administration during Trump's first term, has been chosen--but has minimal...
Across the nation, school board meetings have become increasingly contentious in recent years, with parents and community members expressing frustration and anger over a variety of issues. From critical race theory (CRT) to book bans, these meetings have become a...
Education has never been a top priority of President-elect Donald Trump’s, but that doesn’t mean schools — or students — will be immune from Trump’s agenda in the next four years, education experts say. Trump may slash school funding, cut civil...
The re-election of former President Donald Trump is certain to bring a period of conflict,tension and litigation between his White House and California’s political and education leaders whose policies and values the president-elect castigates. It also could potentially have major...
Oakland mom Azlinah Tambu vividly remembers the moment that would transform her from the law-abiding, neighborhood school mom into a trespassing activist threatened with jail time. For months, Tambu, whose two children were then in elementary school, and others had...
A Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) commentary by UCLA Luskin Professor of Social Welfare Laura Wray-Lake highlights the first time that 16- and 17-year-olds will be allowed to vote in school board elections in two California cities. Oakland and...
A commentary by PACE co-founder Michael W. Kirst, former president of the California Board of Education (1977–1981 and 2011–2019), highlights findings from his Learning Policy Institute report Standards-Based Education Reforms: Looking Back to Looking Forward, which analyzes the evolution of standards-based reforms in the United States. Kirst issues a call to action: California needs a strategic and tactical roadmap to improve instructional capacity in classrooms statewide. The commentary offers four recommendations towards creating this roadmap: 1. Return the California Department of Education (CDE) to Its Former Role: Providing Technical Assistance on How to Implement Subject Matter Standards. 2. Strengthen County Offices of Education for Effective Capacity Building. 3. Reorient the District Role to Focus on Instructional Capacity. 4. Design the Roadmap for Targeted District Support.
San Francisco must do everything it can to avert a state takeover of its schools. That’s the stark message brought by Carl A. Cohn, the only outside educator to be brought in to help the team of city administrators set...
As the San Francisco Unified School District deliberates over a tentative list of school closures, it will have to account for the fact that the district’s enrollment has declined for several years—and could fall much further. But San Francisco’s public...
A recent report from Policy Analysis for California Education aims to provide education leaders with a better understanding of artificial intelligence (AI) and how it can be used in education by exploring its potential strengths and limitations. Generative AI in...
Falling enrollments and gloomy economics point to the inevitable: Many school districts in California will close schools over the next decade. So far, they have been mainly elementary and middle schools, but high schools, spared until now, won’t escape, a...
The rise of AI promises new solutions to long-standing challenges. It also introduces some challenges of its own. In addition to concerns over privacy, bias and reliability, AI is driving a flood of new products in a broad range of...
From Oceanside to Cajon Valley to Chula Vista, school board candidates across San Diego County are making the fight for and against what’s been described as “parental rights” part of their platforms. The loose term has evolved since it gained...
A bill that could lead to changes in the way California public schools are funded—and send more money to most of them—has been sent to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk for his signature. California is one of seven states that fund...
A bill that could lead to changes in the way California public schools are funded—and send more money to most of them—is headed to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk for his signature. California is one of seven states that fund schools...
Former President Donald J. Trump is set to speak Friday evening to a gathering of Moms for Liberty, a conservative activist group whose priorities mirror much of his own education platform. Like Mr. Trump, they have called for stricter classroom...
As the presidential election heats up heading into the fall, experts say local school board races are becoming more politicized and partisan, eliciting various responses from states and districts. Julie Marsh, a professor of education at the University of Southern...
Despite post-COVID challenges and economic uncertainties, education leaders and state lawmakers have made enduring commitments to building educational equity and improving academic outcomes for all students. Nonetheless, for many school districts even with new policies and initiatives, and dedicated funding...
California school boards are facing significant backlash from voters, after a conservative push to advance far-right educational policies. School boards meetings have turned into parental battlegrounds, with discrimination and political back-and-forth taking precedent over real educational issues. For more on...
There was a lot of conversation during the pandemic about how school districts’ scramble to deliver content fully virtually could fundamentally change K-12 learning. But did that become a reality? While most public school educators were eager to return to...
Shrinking enrollment and vanishing pandemic aid have delivered a financial gut punch to many school districts across the country. The looming reality of comprehensive school reorganization efforts, notably through closures and consolidations, has ignited passionate debates about fairness, equity, and...
Public data posted by the California Department of Education has been incomplete, often outdated and occasionally inaccurate, forcing legislators to pass laws based on old data, researchers to delay inquiries and journalists to grapple with inaccurate information. Californians, living in...
In the coming days, Gov. Gavin Newsom is expected to confirm his commitment to place a state school construction bond on the November ballot. What he hasn’t committed to yet — but must decide in the next 10 days —...
With declining enrollment and the expiration of federal COVID-19 relief funds, many California schools are facing financial challenges, said Marsh, who researches K-12 policy and governance. California is also facing a state budget deficit that could affect some districts more...
