Linda Darling-HammondLisa FlookChanna Cook-HarveyBrigid BarronDavid Osher
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Applied Developmental Science by Linda Darling-Hammond, Lisa Flook, Channa Cook-Harvey, Brigid Barron & David Osher | Our understanding of human development and learning has grown rapidly in recent years, providing insight into how to shape more effective educational practices. This article draws from several branches of educational research about well-vetted strategies to support the kinds of relationships and learning opportunities that promote children’s well-being, healthy development.
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Research on early learning programs in the 1960s and 1970s revealed enormous benefits for children that lasted into adulthood, sparking investment in preschool programs, but two evaluations of large preschool programs that yielded mixed results created confusion about the wisdom of such investments. A review of rigorous and more recent research into the impact of preschool clarifies that students who attend high-quality preschool programs reap benefits that can last throughout their lives.
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Research on early learning programs in the 1960s and 1970s revealed longlasting benefits, sparking investment in preschool programs. However, recent evaluations of two large preschool programs found mixed results, creating confusion about whether preschool programs can support student success. This report reviews these two studies and others in depth, and finds that when participants are compared to very similar students who did not attend preschool, the benefits of participation are typically found to be substantial.
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In late December, 2018, the Trump administration rescinded Obama-era guidance on school discipline that has helped improve school safety and student achievement across the country. In advance of that decision, Linda Darling-Hammond and Chris Edley cautioned against this move in a commentary in The Hill. They explained that after states adopted the guidance, suspensions and expulsions—which are given at much higher rates to students of color—were reduced significantly as were school-based firearms incidents.
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Historically, U.S. schools have been rated based largely on student performance on an annual summative test. With the passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), state accountability systems now feature additional measures of student and school success, including academic growth. These factors are critical if we are to create accountability systems that recognize the contributions that schools make to student progress, while reducing bias against educators and schools serving students in diverse, high-poverty communities.
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The cost for failing to properly invest in a high-quality public education for all children has grave implications for both the students and society at large. A new report shares essential state-level strategies and examples to help policymakers develop equitable and effective school finance systems.
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Creating equitable and adequate school finance systems is a challenging-but-achievable task. It's also an essential one, as the cost of failing to properly invest in high-quality public education for all children impacts not just students but society at large. This new study shares essential state-level strategies and examples to help policymakers develop equitable and effective school finance systems.
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Under the Every School Succeeds Act (ESSA), states are able to use 5-, 6-, and even 7-year graduation rates in their accountability systems. This expanded measure of student success creates new opportunities for students who need extra time to earn a diploma, often the most vulnerable in our schools, including English Learners, students with special needs, and homeless and transitional youth.
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Thanks to the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), states are beginning to develop accountability systems that are focused on multiple measures of student success, including one key driver of inequity—the overuse of suspension, particularly for students of color, as a discipline tactic.
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Grassroots organizing and movement building to combat the school-to-prison pipeline has focused on ending zero-tolerance and exclusionary discipline policies and implementing more humane alternatives, such as restorative justice. This movement is winning policy victories through the combination of research-based evidence and the personal stories of parents and students who are directly impacted by injustice, and by building broader alliances to bring more resources and clout to their efforts.
