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This brief examines the use of student test scores in teacher evaluations in CA. It argues that current evaluation methods are not effective, and that alternative methods of measuring teacher effectiveness, such as peer evaluations and student surveys, should be explored. The brief also discusses the potential consequences of over-reliance on test scores, such as teaching to the test and neglecting non-tested subjects. It concludes that teacher evaluations should be designed to provide useful feedback for professional development, rather than being used solely for accountability purposes.
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The brief discusses California's current school funding system and how it needs to be reformed to ensure equity and adequacy for all students. The current system is inadequate, unfair, and difficult to understand. The brief recommends a new system that is transparent, flexible, and based on student needs. The new system should also be aligned with state and local priorities, and provide incentives for districts to improve student outcomes. Finally, the brief emphasizes the importance of engaging stakeholders and building public support for the new funding system.
Investing in Education Facilities and Stronger Communities
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California is midway through one of the grandest public infrastructure projects ever attempted. Over the coming decade school officials will complete an $82 billion effort, building new schools and renovating old facilities, supported by taxpayers and private investors. But are state officials and local planners building schools mindfully to advance educational quality and lift local communities?
Research Center Celebrates a Quarter Century as Leader in Legislative Policy Analysis
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The call for improved education persists annually within PACE, emphasizing the perpetual need for progress. Even with strides made, the organization does not consider its mission accomplished. Guided by three core principles—allocating resources to disadvantaged schools, granting autonomy to local districts, and rigorous evaluation of educational efficacy—PACE remains dedicated to fostering lasting policy reform and enhanced educational performance across California's system. Leveraging experience from Michigan State's Education Policy Center, PACE's leadership continues to drive the...
School Finance and Governance in California
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Getting Down to Facts is an extensive investigation of CA's public education system commissioned by a bipartisan group of CA leaders. The project aimed to describe California's school finance and governance systems, identify obstacles hindering resource utilization, and estimate costs to achieve student outcome goals. The project resulted in 23 reports by scholars, which highlight that the current school finance and governance systems fail to help students achieve state performance goals, particularly those from low-income families. The reports provide a framework for assessing reform options.
The Case of California
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This article highlights the lack of systematic evaluations of the relationship between educational governance and student outcomes. The authors provide a framework for evaluating the effectiveness of governance systems, drawing from previous research and interviews with stakeholders in California's educational system. The aim is to guide potential policy changes and inform future studies of educational governance.
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PACE is bringing back its publication, Conditions of Education in California, to keep the focus on the long-term education reforms required by California. Six policy scholars have contributed to this edition, providing baseline data on school performance and recommendations for policy changes to support long-term improvement. PACE plans to continue regular publication of this report to track progress towards a more effective educational system in California.
Continuous Improvement in California’s Education System
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This policy brief emphasizes the need for California's education system to become a continuously improving system that fosters innovation, measures the impact of policies and practices, and learns from experience. The authors identify key features of a continuously improving system, including clear goals, reliable data, change-supportive capacity, flexible decision-making, and aligned incentives. They explain how each of these features supports continuous improvement and highlight the differences between the current education system and a continuously improving one.
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California faces significant challenges in closing the achievement gap between different student groups, including wide disparities based on race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. While progress has been made, the gaps persist. This report summarizes what is being learned from state initiatives to reduce these disparities, addresses obstacles limiting effectiveness, and provides options for policymakers to address this urgent issue.
The Influence of State Policy and Community
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Findings show that charter schools in the US perform similarly or worse than public schools due to disparities in resources. State regulation leads to fewer uncredentialed teachers, and more state spending equals more equal teacher salaries. Local context and the type of students served have the greatest impact on resource variance. Charter schools serving Black students rely on less experienced and uncredentialed teachers. Conversion charter schools pay more and have less uncredentialed and part-time teachers than start-up schools, which has implications for unequal student achievement.
How to Judge No Child Left Behind?
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This report analyzes the effects of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) on student performance using three barometers: the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), state data, and fourth-grade test scores. The authors find that earlier test score growth has largely faded since NCLB's enactment in 2002, and progress made in narrowing achievement gaps in the 1990s has largely disappeared in the post-NCLB era. The report suggests that policymakers need to reconsider the efficacy of NCLB and consider alternative approaches to school reform.
Acquisition, Deployment, and Barriers
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This report examines the fiscal and labor resources of California principals and how they acquire and utilize them to improve student performance. The authors seek to understand the background characteristics and educational goals of California principals, as well as the types of monetary, human, and informational resources they acquire and how they allocate these resources within their schools. The report also explores the support and constraints that principals experience from various actors as they attempt to acquire and deploy resources to raise student performance.

California Preschool Directors Speak on Policy Options
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This report discusses the potential of integrating academic and occupational content through Career-Technical Education (CTE)/multiple pathways to improve California's high schools. This approach can enhance student motivation and engagement in school, improve employment and earnings after graduation, and provide more opportunities for students. They suggest building on existing practices in career academies, restructured high schools, and community colleges, but note that additional funding, technical assistance, and professional development will be necessary to support this approach.
What Are Their Effects, and What Are Their Implications for School Finance?
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The report explores the impact of teacher sorting, or the tendency for high-achieving students to be assigned to more effective teachers, on student achievement. It finds that teacher sorting has a significant positive effect on student achievement in both math and English language arts. The effects are particularly strong for students who start out low-achieving. The report argues that policies aimed at reducing teacher sorting, such as random assignment of students to teachers, may be counterproductive for student achievement.
Rekindling Reform
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This report discusses key education policy challenges in California, including funding, teacher quality, achievement gaps, and school accountability. The report highlights the need for equitable funding and effective teacher training and retention programs to address these issues. It also emphasizes the importance of holding schools accountable for student achievement and providing targeted support to struggling schools. The report concludes by calling for sustained attention to these critical education issues to ensure that all California students have access to a high-quality education.
District Efforts to Raise Achievement across Diverse Communities in California
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This paper examines the effectiveness of California's class-size reduction policy in elementary schools, finding that it improved student achievement in reading and math, particularly for low-income and minority students. However, it also concludes that the policy was expensive and had other trade-offs, such as limiting teacher collaboration and reducing funding for other important educational programs. The report suggests that policymakers consider more cost-effective and comprehensive approaches to improving student outcomes.
California's High Priority School Grants Program
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The report examines the effectiveness of a large-scale performance-based incentive program in California schools. Results show that the program had a small but positive impact on student test scores in math and English, with larger effects in schools with high levels of poverty. However, the authors caution that incentive programs may have unintended consequences and should be implemented with care.

Issues, Evidence, and Resources
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This brief provides an overview of California's existing network of preschool centers and the potential impact of Proposition 82, which would provide funding for half-day preschool programs for 70% of the state's four-year-olds. PACE, an independent research center, aims to clarify evidence informing education policy options. A 2005 PACE review focused on enrollment patterns and policy options for improving access and quality of local preschools.
Spinning Out the Implications of the Improved School Finance
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Despite the belief that increased spending leads to better educational outcomes, real expenditures per pupil have doubled since the late 1960s, yet problems in schools persist. An improved school finance approach focuses on effective resources in schools and classrooms that improve valued outcomes, rather than just increasing spending. Clarifying why funding is often wasted and developing new models of connections between revenues, resources, and the results of schooling is essential.
The Reliability of How States Track Achievement
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This paper analyzes the impact of the No Child Left Behind Act on the state's funding system and notes that it exacerbated inequities by penalizing schools that did not meet annual progress targets without providing sufficient resources to help them improve. The authors suggest that a more equitable funding system based on student needs and costs would better serve all students, including those who are struggling to meet academic standards.
Full Report
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The Teaching and California's Future initiative provides policymakers with data on the teacher workforce and labor market. The initiative's annual report details teacher development policies and their impact on teacher quality and distribution. The goal is to help policymakers make informed decisions about strengthening the state's teacher workforce.
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The quality of teaching and the need to expand California's ranks of excellent teachers demand urgent public discussion. We must attract the best and brightest to teaching, prepare them effectively, and support and retain them. Solutions require bipartisan leadership, not spin. This report presents the latest research and projections, highlighting that while some numbers are improving, we're likely to face severe shortages again soon and the pipeline for recruiting, preparing, and training teachers has substantial problems.
PACE Research and Policy Options
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PACE researchers are studying the effects of early care and education in California and nationwide, working with the Language Minority Research Institute. We also are illuminating policy alternatives and evidence that advocates might consider. Here is an infographic listing related and relevant publications.
Ideals, Evidence, and Policy Options
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Many California children benefit from preschooling, but enrollment rates are lower for poor and working-class families. Quality is uneven, and policy makers must address key questions regarding expanding and improving preschooling, including who should benefit and who should pay, who should operate it, how to improve quality, and how to structure it for diverse families. Evidence can inform policy options, which stem from differing ideals about preschooling. Nationwide evidence is considered in this review.
How Do We Assure an Adequate Education for All?
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California ranks 44th in the nation in education spending, spending only 86.1% of the national average per pupil in 2001-02. The recession of the early 2000s resulted in dramatic budget deficits for the state and substantial reductions to the expected level of school funding. Research suggests using the concept of adequacy to estimate the costs of providing an educational program that will enable all—or almost all—children to meet the state's high proficiency standards and offers recommendations for finding additional resources needed to adequately fund California's schools.