This brief draws on Getting Down to Facts III to recommend three priorities for strengthening California’s education system: clear student goals, reliable instructional support for every district, and stronger, more affordable teacher preparation. It calls for aligned policy and funding, reduced compliance burdens, sustained support for improving teaching, and expanded four-year preparation pathways to help promising reforms reach more classrooms.

This brief analyzes the 2018 update of the California School Dashboard, examining improvements and areas for continued enhancement. Using data from the 2019 PACE/USC Rossier poll, the author characterizes use of and support for the Dashboard, finding low use, equity gaps, but high support and preference for the new Dashboard.