In March 2017, we traveled to Girdwood, AK to facilitate a two-day retreat sponsored by the Anchorage School District for school staff implementing a unique social and emotional learning (SEL) program. Over the past four years, we’ve been supporting the...
Read more >
There is an escalating debate about the role of social-emotional learning (SEL) in education. Proponents of SEL believe it’s correlated with positive outcomes for students, such as increases in student achievement and preparation for postsecondary education. Others think SEL crowds...
Read more >
As state K-12 education agencies simultaneously scramble to complete their required state plans under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) and wonder what the Trump Administration will mean for enforcement of the new law, an important opportunity might be slipping...
Read more >
I taught sixth grade in Austin Independent School District before working in education policy. It’s hard to be a sixth grader as it is, but some kids have even more trouble fitting in and making connections with others. I remember...
Read more >
Similar to many other states, California’s efforts to boost college completion rates, while commendable, require new innovations to strengthen results. We developed this brief alongside the College Futures Foundation to elevate proven practices and strategies that are resulting in more...
Read more >
In this publication, we highlight social-emotional learning (SEL) successes in three leading school districts—Anchorage School District (AK), Bridgeport Public Schools (CT) and Sacramento City Unified School District (CA). The publication is divided into two main parts. In the first part,...
Read more >
Back when we started teaching almost 15 years ago, “assessments,” in our minds, were things like spelling tests and exit tickets. We mostly created them ourselves and learned through trial and error how to write questions that would help us...
Read more >
A lot has changed since 2010, when states began adopting Common Core State Standards and aligned assessments. Each year has seen some states attempt to change or repeal entirely the new standards and assessments, making for a constantly shifting landscape....
Read more >
Think back to your days as a high school student. Did you take the SAT or ACT test? Did you take other standardized tests, maybe an end-of-course exam or graduation test? Was it more important to know how well you...
Read more >
What was it like inside a state that implemented a cascade of new education policies over the past five years? In “Inside the Schoolhouse: Untold Stories of Delaware’s Education Progress,” we dive deeply into the First State, whose teachers and...
Read more >