Author: Alisha Kirby

Research finds transitionary periods are particularly difficult for foster youth

More than 30 percent of California’s approximately 30,000 school-aged youth in foster care regularly experience some of the highest rates of chronic absence and exclusionary discipline. A new brief from Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) details how changes in foster youth classification status impacted attendance and discipline rates in four of California’s CORE school districts — a group of several of the state’s larger school districts that test improvement theories at the school and district levels to provide the infrastructure for multi-district collaborations.

GAO report explores challenges and tips for exiting comprehensive support

The federal Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report on March 12 examining the national landscape of school improvement and strategies that helped schools exit comprehensive support and improvement (CSI) and the challenges they faced. Under Title I, Part A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, states are required to measure the performance of their public schools. They must also identify three categories of low-performing schools for support and improvement, including those that need CSI — representing the lowest-performing schools in the nation.

Survey findings show parents and students agree on many facets of AI-use, but split on several areas

Results from a recent Common Sense Media survey of children aged 12 to 17 and parents found that families are trying to balance the benefits and threats around artificial intelligence (AI), while young people are already using the technology more than their parents realize.

Research emphasizes professional development needs for assistant pre-K teachers

A new report from the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) explores state preschool policies related to assistant teacher qualification requirements, strategies to meet those requirements, compensation policies, and professional development (PD) supports available to, and required for, assistant teachers.

New research emphasizes the value of mid-year literacy screening in closing achievement gaps

A report released Feb. 25 by the curriculum and assessment company Amplify calls out the urgency of implementing data-driven instruction if local educational agencies want to improve literacy outcomes and close achievement gaps.

Research into California’s teacher workforce shows improvements and trouble areas

A new brief from the UCLA Center for the Transformation of Schools highlighted evolving trends in California’s teacher pipeline and workforce from 2019–20 through 2023–24. Researchers found that during this six-year time period, the number of experienced teachers decreased while the number of first-year teachers increased, suggesting both decreased teacher retention and increased recruitment post-COVID.