On this week’s podcast, Morgan Polikoff, Associate Professor of Education at USC, joins Mike Petrilli and David Griffith to discuss his new book, Beyond Standards: The Fragmentation of Education Governance and the Promise of Curriculum Reform. On the Research Minute...

Strict school discipline increases the chances of adult arrests. The research confirms the school-to-prison pipeline, a term used to highlight the link between exclusionary school discipline and incarceration. Black and Hispanic individuals, who are more likely to be suspended or...

Distance learning and the coronavirus have taken an undeniable toll on students who have suffered from isolation, learning loss and trauma during the past year and a half. West Contra Costa Unified and many districts across California are planning a...

As we reopen schools and return to classrooms with a new infusion of desperately needed funding, I hope we all realize that “back to normal” won’t work for all students. Let’s take advantage of this exciting opportunity to reimagine and...

California will require that all teachers and school staff be vaccinated or tested weekly for COVID-19, becoming the first state to impose such measures ahead of the new school year. The move comes as students return to classrooms around the...

The pandemic altered our understanding of how schools could and should operate as well. Now, as we return for a new school year and districts are poised to receive a major infusion of federal and state funding, we have an...

Thanks to unprecedented funding from the American Rescue Plan and other federal, state, and local resources, school districts across the country are leveraging several evidence-informed strategies to accelerate learning and provide students with needed supports and services. Local initiatives include...

With the sweeping passage of bills aiming to ban truthful teaching of America’s history and legacy of racism, educators across the USA are grappling with the spectre of being fired over something as simple as assigning a children’s book about...

In the past year, students, families, and educators have experienced trauma from the COVID-19 pandemic, which has further exposed and exacerbated educational inequity, from unequal access to tech for distance learning to structural barriers to basic resources—like nutrition, housing, and...

When schools across the country closed their doors and began remote instruction last spring, most of us in education braced for the worst. We weren’t wrong. The academic, social and health challenges that besieged K-12 students during the pandemic are...

Research supports ‘restorative restart’ for schools. A new report from PACE lays out 14 “restorative actions” educators should take in the 2021-22 school year to welcome students back and begin the foundational work for creating change within school systems.“Restorative Restart...

It is not uncommon for unions to vote that they have “no confidence” in their leaders. That just happened, for example, within the Sacramento County Public Defender’s office. There is a growing constituency coming to the defense of Jorge Aguilar...

In preparing for the next school year, California state policymakers must set clear statewide expectations for teaching, learning, and student support, regardless of whether instruction is online or in person. This spring, local school districts scrambled to adapt to COVID-19...

Before schools nationwide moved millions of students from classroom seats to screens, educators at Highline Public Schools in South King County wanted to expand online learning. Back then, Highline saw an opportunity: Online education might be good for students who...

Adapting in a Time of Crisis. Labor-management collaboration is not an absence of conflict or disagreement. It is the ability to work together, lifting up diverse experiences and perspectives, and persevering until we address the issue at hand. Even in...

Turnaround for Children was featured in the report, “Restorative Restart: The Path Towards Reimagining and Rebuilding Schools. ”Developed by Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE), the report notes the impact of COVID-19 on all students, but particularly students of color...

Summer learning provides a renewed opportunity to invite stakeholders to the table, including teachers, parents, and community partners, to collaborate as key designers of a balanced approach to student learning. A blend of academics, social interaction, and enrichment is key...

More than eight out of every 10 California public school campuses have already reopened. It looks increasingly likely that in the fall, the state will require schools to offer full-time, in-person instruction. Headlines like these make this next fact easy to...

This week a new EdWeek podcast discusses the merits of creating a $500 college savings account for all low-income public school students, and poses this question to PACE faculty director Christopher Edley, Jr., the incoming dean of UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of...

As public parks and schools continue to open across California, this summer will feel different than last. Now is the time to expand outdoor learning programs and, in anticipation for fall, build school communities that heal. There are plenty of...

The year of distance learning has been tough on all students. And though academic loss might be front-of-mind for parents and teachers, experts say an over-emphasis on test scores at this point is a mistake. Learning loss matters and must...

The pandemic has exposed long-standing systemic inequities in education and has cost lives and livelihoods in families already vulnerable and on the edge. School staff have also experienced greater stress and burnout this year.   As schools complete the year...