A mother with two daughters, a father with two sons, both board presidents of high-performing school districts — at first glance, Sonja Shaw and Richard Barrera seem to have a lot in common. But the two candidates for state superintendent of public instruction have very different ideas about what is best for California’s schools. Shaw,...

Last month I led a two-day training with eight California county offices of education. We kicked off the work with a deceptively simple question: Where are your districts in their curriculum implementation journey? The answer: Most of their 221 districts they oversee were a lot earlier in the journey than expected. Years after adopting instructional...

This story is published in partnership with The Associated Press. It’s almost noon, and after playing on the playground, working with clay and washing their hands, the 2-year-olds are ready for lunch. The eight children and their Head Start teachers pray in English, thanking God for the meal. Then, the adults bring over several bowls. “Hoy tenemos arroz....

It’s clear what the next state superintendent will no longer do upon assuming office in January: run the California Department of Education. A new education commissioner appointed by the next governor will take on that responsibility under legislation Gov. Gavin Newsom signed in June. What’s unclear is what the next state superintendent will actually do....

Math learning begins while counting blocks on the living room floor, comparing ingredients while cooking dinner or gathering around a favorite board game. These joyful, everyday interactions build number sense, reasoning, confidence and problem-solving during one of the most important periods of a child’s brain development. It’s time to reinvigorate math education by acknowledging that...

This story was originally published by EdSource. Sign up for their daily newsletter. In the state’s largest school district, making meals available to all students — breakfast, lunch and sometimes, dinner — is a massive operation. From Pepperoni Pizza to Birria Bowls, to vegetarian and vegan offerings, students have a range of options to choose from....

A Sacramento charter school that the state auditor blasted last year for allegedly wrongly receiving $180 million is seeking a new home – and a new name – in Sutter County. Highlands Community Charter and Technical Schools, which serves adults at a half dozen campuses in Sacramento, is seeking to sever ties with its oversight...

My research team from the Understanding America Study at the University of Southern California recently asked parents of school-aged children to upload a snapshot of their kids’ school attendance record from last year as part of a broader survey. The study failed — during the pilot phase, only 17% successfully completed the task. We pulled...

As another school year gets underway, several states are considering whether to give students more time for recess, and some have already expanded the role of unstructured play in a child’s school day.  The momentum around recess has been building for years, with experts raising awareness about the importance of preserving time for daily play...

How long can one school year last? In Fairfax County, Virginia, this year, it will take 297 days between the start and end of the year to deliver 180 days of instruction. How is that possible? Well, weekends, obviously. And then two weeks of Winter Break, one week for Spring Break, and three days for...