January 30, 2019

LA Unified, teachers still face challenges over contract and charter school moratorium

L.A. Unified's school board and UTLA have ratified a contract, but L.A. County Superintendent Debra Duardo is skeptical the district can pay for its promises, and the Legislature may not agree to a charter school moratorium.

John Fensterwald

January 29, 2019

Oakland school board votes to close first of up to two dozen schools amid opposition

The Oakland school board voted Monday to close the first of up to 24 schools in the next five years due to budget constraints and low enrollment.

Theresa Harrington

January 27, 2019

Gov. Newsom proposes to chip away at mountain of pension liability and ease school districts' burden

The state will absorb $700 million of school districts' additional payments to CalSTRS for the final two years of the higher payments required to restore the pension fund's financial health.

John Fensterwald

January 24, 2019

Planned school closures in Oakland Unified have parents, teachers and community members on edge

Oakland Unified faces a budget deficit, in part because students are choosing charter and private schools. The district enrolls only 58 percent of the nearly 63,000 school-age children who live in Oakland.

Theresa Harrington

January 22, 2019

Los Angeles teachers return to class after voting to end strike

Left unclear is precisely how the dozens of provisions agreed to would be paid for.

Louis Freedberg

January 18, 2019

Class-size conundrum at the heart of Los Angeles teachers strike

In most LAUSD middle schools, the largest core classes have 37 kids — and can sometimes be as large as 46.

Kyle Stokes LAist/KPCC

January 16, 2019

Beyond higher pay and smaller classes, charter debate is undercurrent of teachers strike in Los Angeles

Union leaders at Los Angeles Unified are concerned that the growth of charter schools has come at the expense of dollars for district schools and the teachers working in them.

Mikhail Zinshteyn

January 10, 2019

Windfall for California K-12 schools, more spending from early to higher ed in Newsom's first budget

Newsom would increase spending for education from early to higher ed, including a path to full-day preschool for every low-income child and full-day kindergarten for all 5-year olds. A surprise for K-12 districts — pension-cost relief — would free up money to spend as they want.

John Fensterwald And Zaidee Stavely

January 1, 2019

California education issues to watch in 2019 — and predictions of what will happen

Place your bets: curbs on charter schools, passage of universal preschool, more money for K-12, more teacher strikes and the resignation of Betsy DeVos; an untested governor and volatile president may affect the odds.

John Fensterwald, Yuxuan Xie, And Justin Allen

December 21, 2018

Teacher activism nationwide fueling protest movement in California

Teachers throughout the state are organizing as labor negotiations stall and school districts edge closer to strikes.

Diana Lambert

December 13, 2018

What California can learn from universal preschool in other states

Some states have successfully expanded both access and the quality of their preschool programs. Here’s what some early learning advocates and researchers say California could learn from them.

Zaidee Stavely

November 15, 2018

As economy booms, schools, community colleges can expect modest increase in Newsom’s first budget

The Legislative Analyst's Office projects that a 3.1 percent increase would cover little more than inflation, but early education advocates see potential opportunities elsewhere in the state budget.

John Fensterwald And Mikhail Zinshteyn

November 14, 2018

New California coalition agrees on next steps to improve schools, student achievement

The Alliance for Continuous Improvement releases a "GPS" guide that calls for improving on sweeping changes already in place: new education standards, a more equitable funding system and higher expectations for student success.

John Fensterwald

November 7, 2018

A cradle-to-career education system in California: What it might cost

Gavin Newsom has proposed a far-reaching education agenda - but at what price? A visual guide from EdSource

Yuxuan Xie And Karin Fischer

October 31, 2018

California needs a new master plan to close the education equity gap

State must invest new revenues in public education and modernize data system, author says.

John Affeldt