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...
Cops rush to reports of students attempting suicide and overdosing on drugs, bullying, sexual assault and unwanted touching. They surveil high schoolers leaving campuses for lunch. They break up fights between parents over spots in elementary school pickup queues. They...
The appearance of Moms for Liberty in Clark County is bringing new attention to otherwise low-profile school board races. Tuesday’s primary will be a test of whether the group can translate the waves it makes in school board meeting public...
The wealth gap in California is wider than in most other states, and studies show that providing financial literacy education in school can result in a higher rate of fiscally responsible actions, including avoiding high risk loans, beginning a retirement...
California high school students may have an additional course added to the eight that are needed to graduate. These courses, such as the ethnic studies requirement passed in 2021, all entered the school curriculum at the direction of the State...
A conversation with Michelle D. Young, Dean of the Berkeley School of Education. Dean Young discusses the significance of leadership development and effective learning experiences for school leaders, particularly emphasizing the need for equity-oriented and culturally responsive leadership. Highlighting the...
An underused, little-known public school choice program allowing students to enroll in other districts that open their borders has been reauthorized six times in the past 30 years. Under a bill winding its way through the Legislature, it would become...
