Rick Miller

October 18, 2023

Flat test scores leave California far behind pre-Covid levels of achievement

California students are still lagging compared to pre-pandemic levels despite a full year of in-person instruction in the 2021-22 school year, according to state tests given in the spring of 2023.

John Fensterwald And Daniel J. Willis

Testing and Accountability

October 24, 2022

2022 California standardized test results wipe out years of steady progress

Smarter Balanced scores fell sharply in both math and English language arts, indicating it could take years for students to fully recover from the pandemic.

John Fensterwald And Daniel J. Willis

Math and Science

April 5, 2022

Student math scores touch off ‘five-alarm fire’ in California

The pandemic compounded the challenge of teaching math at grade level when many California students may be three or four years behind.

March 26, 2021

What 3-foot social distance means for reopening of California schools

Some districts will pivot quickly and return to full in-person instruction now; others say they can now start planning for the fall.

Diana Lambert And John Fensterwald

Distance Learning

November 30, 2020

Early data on learning loss show big drop in math, but not reading skills

The impact from school closures last spring proved worrisome but not as dire as projected by the assessment organization NWEA.

April 22, 2020

As schools brace for more challenges, federal help is urgently needed

Increasing costs due to the pandemic combined with existing financial challenges will hit California schools hard.

June 5, 2019

There’s value but also limitations to students’ grading their own interpersonal skills, study finds

California districts should use insights from surveys of students' habits of mind but not rate schools by the results, a PACE research project concludes.

November 26, 2018

Measuring growth in test scores is key to understanding student progress

School communities need actionable data and a complete picture of progress to support meaningful changes for students.

Steve Martinez and Rick Miller

State Education Policy

August 28, 2018

Gates Foundation's new school initiative awards big grants to California nonprofits

Foundation is funding school and district networks to heighten middle and high school success for low-income African American and Latino students. Six California-based organizations will receive $40 million out of $92 million awarded nationwide.

John Fensterwald And Louis Freedberg

Commentary

January 16, 2018

School district networks use improvement science to get results

Districts seek to narrow achievement gaps, especially at the middle-school level.

Rick Miller

Commentary

January 27, 2017

The Power of Two: embracing both proficiency and growth

To measure achievement, CORE Districts take into account both the number of students meeting standards and how much academic growth students are making each year.