Federal policy initiatives such as the flexibility waivers for accountability are requiring that states transition away from the use of an alternate assessment based on modified achievement standards (AA-MAS). It is expected that those students who had participated in that assessment will instead participate in the state's general assessment (or a…

Across the country, effort is underway to restrict discussion, learning, and student support related to race and gender/sexual identity in educational settings, targeting schools with state legislation and politicians' orders; national conservative media and organizations; Board directives; and local actors wielding media-fueled talking points. To…

The stakes are incredibly high in California to provide access to a high-quality education in a safe environment for all students. As districts across the state resumed full-time instruction and began the task of pandemic recovery, members of the California Collaborative on District Reform convened three times in 2021-22 to continue and deepen…

In partnership with the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and 22 San Mateo County school districts, this report and research brief explore the ways in which local students experience housing instability, and how cross-sector strategies can better identify and serve these students. This study considers a rich set of school administrative data, which allow…

This study examines why the passing rates of African Americans on the CBEST are the lowest in California at 60%. Madkins (2011) identified licensure testing as a significant reason why African Americans cannot enter the teaching progression. According to Darling-Hammond et al. (2016), California has an ongoing credentialed teacher shortage. An…

This article examines neighborhood-level factors to help explain why adolescent birth rate trajectories differ in certain communities in California, with rates in some areas remaining elevated or increasing while rates in other areas with similar demographic characteristics declined. Researchers conducted in-depth interviews with 94 community…

Researchers of student veterans in higher education seek to understand how experiences during military service relate to veterans' roles as college students. Similarly, researchers of postsecondary student success assert that a more nuanced understanding of the student experience and student success requires attending to diverse populations. In…

Students with emotional and behavioral disabilities (EBD) show low academic growth and are most likely to be placed in restrictive learning environments. This research study explored correlations between class settings and the academic achievement of middle school students with EBD. The academic achievement measures are based upon California's…

The purpose of this evaluation was to examine the impact of i-Ready Personalized Instruction on reading achievement, as measured by SBA scores. We compared students in schools using i-Ready Personalized Instruction school-wide (Treatment students) to students who only received i-Ready Diagnostic assessments and who were in schools only partially…

Previous research points to digital attention training as a potential remedy for the growing levels of distraction and emotional distress that adolescents experience. However, no studies with a comparison group have been conducted in high school settings to assess the feasibility and efficacy of digital attention training. Using a two-group,…

As students return to full in-person learning in 2021-22, California public schools face considerable challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Record-high funding distributed through the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) will provide some of the resources that will be key to an equitable recovery. In order to examine how school districts…

The purpose of this study was to understand the impact, implementation and costs associated with a one-semester elective lab course in 9th grade, Accelerating Literacy for Adolescents (ALFA) Lab, which seeks to improve students' reading achievement, particularly for those from economically disadvantaged communities. This study used three cohorts…

As the nation transitions from responding to the height of the COVID-19 pandemic to navigating its ongoing impact on youth and their communities, K-12 students continue to experience mental health and wellbeing challenges. In the fall of 2021, Redwood City School District (RCSD) placed a full-time, district-employed mental health counselor in each…

In one of the most diverse states in the nation, it is not surprising that public college students in California are incredibly diverse--71% of the student body is racially/ethnically diverse, with nearly half (45%) of students identifying as Latinx and only about one in four (23%) identifying as white. Unfortunately, that diverse representation…

This 22nd edition of "Quality Counts" offers a fresh take on the annual top-to-bottom ranking of the nation's school systems on a state-by-state basis published by "Education Week". The first of three "Quality Counts" reports being rolled out over the course of the year, "Grading the States" aims to…