LPI Blog

An effective, stable, and diverse workforce provides the critical foundation for the other building blocks of high-quality early childhood education programs. In this LPI Blog, Senior Researcher and Policy Analyst Beth Meloy outlines key elements of a high-quality system to achieve this goal, including improvements to teacher preparation and supports for ongoing professional development.

Across the country, districts and schools continue to struggle to meet the growing demand for qualified teachers. Since 2012, when Recession-era layoffs ended, the teacher workforce has grown by about 400,000, as districts have sought to reclaim the positions they had previously cut and replace teachers who have left. But even with intensive recruiting both in and outside of the country, more than 100,000 classrooms are being staffed this year by instructors who are unqualified for their jobs.

High teacher turnover is costly for schools and districts and can undermine efforts to improve academic opportunities and outcomes. This blog post outlines the causes and impact of turnover and speaks to the need for schools and districts to understand their local costs and begin a conversation about how to improve retention and build a strong and stable teacher workforce.

On September 5, President Trump announced his plan to repeal the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Since it was implemented, the DACA program has ensured that nearly 800,000 children of immigrants—many of whom have no recollection of any country other than the U.S.—can safely attend school, earn degrees, and become contributing members of the country in which they were raised.

In this re-posting of a Q&A first published as part of the Hunt Institute’s blog, The Intersection, LPI President Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond describes the opportunity ESSA presents to advance educational equity in our nation’s schools and offers examples of how states are capitalizing on ESSA requirements to address longstanding disparities and better support marginalized youth.

School discipline can be a lose-lose proposition for both students and teachers but “empathic discipline,” a strategy combining discipline with rapport, can be used to good effect. Researchers are investigating how teachers can be supported in their use of this strategy and how it can be used to improve outcomes for "troubled" students.

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requires states to include at least one measure of school quality and student success in their accountability and improvement systems. In response, states are including measures related to social emotional learning (SEL), from chronic absenteeism to school climate surveys. This blog explores strategies for understanding and supporting SEL in schools and districts.

We at the Learning Policy Institute denounce the hatred that motivated recent events, while we mourn for those engaged in peaceful protest who were hurt by the senseless violence and for Heather Heyer, who lost her life. And we remember with respect and deep gratitude the many others over hundreds of years who courageously stood and often gave their lives in the cause of civil rights and social justice.

The National Writing Project’s College, Career, and Community Writers Program demonstrates the power of effective professional development. Through this program, experienced teachers share their knowledge, and the collective program knowledge and resources with new program participants, providing the type of leadership opportunity that research shows can be critical to the growth and satisfaction of veteran educators.

California’s complex early childhood education landscape is difficult for parents, caregivers, and providers to navigate. The system also remains underfunded, with a significant gap between the needs of California families and the availability of care. This blog draws on findings from LPI’s report, Understanding California’s Early Care and Education System, to make the case for a more coordinated and better resourced system for early learning.