Reports

When used effectively, performance assessments support the development of students’ higher-order thinking skills, help improve teachers’ instructional practices, and ultimately allow students to demonstrate college and career readiness through a culminating assessment. This study examines the role districts can play in fostering their effective use and looks at lessons learned in three California districts.

National estimates show that during the 2015–16 school year, nearly 11.4 million days of instruction were lost due to out-of-school suspensions. Disciplinary actions that remove students from the classroom, coupled with lost instruction caused by COVID-19, have resulted in high rates of learning loss, particularly for students of color and students with disabilities. As students’ opportunities to learn continue to diminish, educational inequities persist.

The disruption to education caused by the pandemic presents an opportunity for policymakers and educators to seize the moment to reimagine schooling using safe, equitable, and student-centered approaches. This framework provides research, state and local examples, and policy recommendations for 10 key areas of education.

Early data from a unique college admissions pilot program at City University of New York (CUNY) provide promising evidence on how colleges can expand admissions, better determine which students are likely to thrive, and potentially increase equity.

Student poverty was a concern in the U.S. even before the COVID-19 pandemic, when 1 in 5 children already lived in low-income families. This study evaluates the shortcomings of commonly used child poverty measures, including the Free or Reduced-Price Lunch program, and proposes alternatives.

With nearly 1 in 5 principals leaving their schools each year, turnover is high and concerning. This report and brief by LPI and the National Association of Secondary School Principals look at the causes, impacts, and strategies for principal retention.

A severe special education teacher shortage threatens the ability to improve outcomes for students with disabilities, who often have the greatest needs but receive the least expert teachers. LPI researchers review the factors contributing to special education teacher turnover and provide evidence-based policy strategies aimed at resolving the shortage.

Access to fully certified and experienced teachers matters for student outcomes and achievement, yet many states have hired uncertified and inexperienced teachers to fill gaps created by persistent teacher shortages. These teachers are disproportionately found in schools with high enrollments of students of color, according to LPI analysis of the most recent U.S. Department of Education Civil Rights Data Collection, which has proposed cutting key data collection questions related to school funding and educator experience.

The first years of a child’s life provide a foundation for long-term health and well-being. As states consider policy proposals to update credential or degree requirements for early childhood educators, they can look to promising programs and state policies that recruit and prepare diverse cohorts of educators to teach in early childhood education programs. This report includes case studies of distinct approaches offering innovative, affordable pathways to preparation for diverse candidates.

A hallmark of deeper learning is students’ ability to apply their knowledge to new situations and complex problems. Big Picture Learning, Internationals Network for Public Schools, and New Tech Network have successfully instantiated, sustained, and spread deeper learning practices in ways that advance equity in schools across the nation. A deep look into their systems and structures reveals common threads, including rethinking structures and relationships in schools, collaboration, professional learning, leadership development, and continual improvement.