Reports

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Showing 11 - 20 of 47 resources

Report

Sharing the Wealth: How Regional Finance and Desegregation Plans Can Enhance Educational Equity

John Brittain

Larkin Willis

Peter W. Cookson, Jr.

Feb 28 2019
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In American public schools, most racial and ethnic segregation—and most financial inequity—occurs between, not within, school districts, which is why cooperative interdistrict approaches are often the most effective at addressing these problems. Looking at three regions—Boston, MA; Hartford, CT; and Omaha, NE—the authors examine interdistrict desegregation designs that use innovative funding strategies to foster equity, quality, and access. They share academic and social outcomes and identifies lessons for policymakers.

Topic Equitable Resources and Access
Report

The Federal Role and School Integration: Brown’s Promise and Present Challenges

Janel George

Linda Darling-Hammond

Feb 28 2019
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Public schools are increasingly segregated along both racial and socioeconomic lines and many of the most extremely segregated schools are also the most under-resourced, plagued by inexperienced educators, lack of access to quality curriculum, and lack of quality facilities or access to technology. Although integrated education is not a panacea, diverse learning environments benefit all students and the federal government plays a critical role in fostering school diversity.

Topics Equitable Resources and Access, Accountability and Improvement, The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)
Report

The Instructional Leadership Corps: Entrusting Professional Learning in the Hands of the Profession

Rachel A. Lotan

Dion Burns

Linda Darling-Hammond

Feb 21 2019
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Teacher leaders in California are collaborating to lead sustainable professional development for implementation of new student standards within their districts. This statewide effort, the Instructional Leadership Corps, has been in place for the last 4 years and participant feedback has been overwhelmingly positive about the experience. This study describes how teacher-led learning can motivate shifts in practice, enhance teachers’ professionalism and efficacy, and create supportive systems and strategic relationships that can sustain change.

Topics Deeper Learning: Curriculum, Instruction & Assessment, Educator Quality: Professional Learning
Report

The California Way: The Golden State’s Quest to Build an Equitable and Excellent Education System

Roberta C. Furger

Laura E. Hernández

Linda Darling-Hammond

Feb 21 2019
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In 2013, California adopted its Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), which has shifted billions of dollars to districts serving high-need students, created a multiple-measure accountability system, and provided all districts with broad flexibility to develop spending plans aligned to local priorities and needs. This report examines LCFF and related reforms—the decade-plus effort leading to their passage and the impact on culture, practice, opportunities, and outcomes—and explores next steps to sustain and deepen improvement. Read the report or brief >

Topics Accountability and Improvement, Deeper Learning, Equitable Resources and Access
Report

Untangling the Evidence on Preschool Effectiveness: Insights for Policymakers

Beth Meloy

Madelyn Gardner

Linda Darling-Hammond

Jan 31 2019
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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.

Topics Early Childhood Learning, Equitable Resources and Access
Report

Essential Building Blocks for State School Finance Systems and Promising State Practices

David Hinojosa

Dec 05 2018
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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.

Topics Equitable Resources and Access, Accountability and Improvement
Report

The Tapestry of American Public Education: How Can We Create a System of Schools Worth Choosing for All?

Peter W. Cookson, Jr.

Linda Darling-Hammond

Robert Rothman

Patrick M. Shields

Oct 25 2018
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Often forgotten in the policy debates on school choice are fundamental questions of whether and how choice influences access to high-quality schools, and whether, in our diverse democracy that requires common ground, choices promote or undermine integration. This report reviews research on a variety of school choice strategies and examines how public school choices can be managed to ensure all students have excellent schools to choose from and are chosen by excellent schools.

Topics Equitable Resources and Access, Accountability and Improvement
Report

Educating the Whole Child: Improving School Climate to Support Student Success

Linda Darling-Hammond

Channa Cook-Harvey

Sep 07 2018
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Each year in the United States, 46 million children are exposed to violence, crime, abuse, homelessness, or food insecurity—experiences that can affect attention, learning, and behavior. This report looks at neuroscience, science of learning, and child development research on whole child approaches to education that improve learning for all students, especially those living with trauma.

Topics Deeper Learning, Deeper Learning: School Organization & Design
Report

Making ESSA’s Equity Promise Real: State Strategies to Close the Opportunity Gap

Stephen Kostyo

Jessica Cardichon

Linda Darling-Hammond

Sep 05 2018
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Under the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), in addition to the required indicators of schools performance, states can select indicators to measure schools’ efforts to support students and provide equitable opportunities or to identify places where additional investments need to be made to improve education and support underserved students. This report documents how states are taking advantage of this opportunity to address disparities, make schools more inclusive, and help all students succeed.

Topics Accountability and Improvement, The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), Equitable Resources and Access
Report

Taking the Long View: State Efforts to Solve Teacher Shortages by Strengthening the Profession

Danny Espinoza

Ryan Saunders

Tara Kini

Linda Darling-Hammond

Aug 29 2018
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Most states have been struggling to address teacher shortages for several years, often filling the vacuum with underprepared teachers. Governors and legislators in many of these states are now working to turn the tide. A new report from the Learning Policy Institute focuses on six evidence-based policies that states are pursuing to address their teacher shortages that can help states build long-term sustainable systems to attract, develop, and retain a strong and stable teacher workforce.

Topics Educator Quality: Recruitment & Retention, Educator Quality

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Report

Closing the Opportunity Gap: How Positive Outlier Districts in California Are Pursuing Equitable Access to Deeper Learning

Sep 10 2019

This report examines the commonalities among seven diverse "positive outlier" school districts in which students are achieving at higher-than-predicted levels. The seven districts are among more than a hundred California school districts in which African American, Latino/a, and White students achieved at higher-than-predicted levels, controlling for their socioeconomic status.

teacher talking to a student in a classroom

Report

Preparing Teachers to Support Social and Emotional Learning

May 21 2019

Well-implemented programs designed to foster social and emotional learning (SEL) are associated with positive outcomes, ranging from better test scores and higher graduation rates to improved social behavior. This LPI study examines San Jose State University's successful teacher preparation program and a California school district's in-service program that incorporate SEL instruction in an effort to inform policymakers, practitioners, and teacher educators about the components of strong, SEL-focused teacher preparation and development systems.

Report

California’s Positive Outliers: Districts Beating the Odds

May 16 2019

LPI studied 156 California school districts of significant size in which students of color, as well as White students, consistently achieve at higher levels than students from similar racial, ethnic, and economic backgrounds. What are these "positive outliers" doing to raise achievement and support students of all backgrounds?

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