An advisory committee studying options for LA Unified’s academic calendar are considering six different plans, and one them is a radically different approach that would shorten the summer break to five weeks and increase the winter break to seven weeks. In addition, the plan would potentially add a 20-day “winter intersession” for some students to...

Hundreds of LA Unified employees and parents filed into the Edward R. Roybal Learning Center‘s downtown auditorium yesterday for a “Back to School at LAUSD” forum, hosted by Superintendent Ramon Cortines and other key district leaders. The event wasn’t called to unveil a specific agenda, but more for an open panel discussion on issues facing the...

Students from LA Unified’s independent charter schools outperformed their counterparts at traditional schools on the recent Smarter Balanced standardized tests in the number meeting and exceeding standards, according to a new analysis by the California Charter Schools Association (CCSA). The charter group found that the charter students scored nine percentage points higher in English language...

* UPDATED A group of education experts and organizations supporting the state’s two largest teacher unions’ appeal of the Vergara lawsuit have filed amici curiae, or “friend of the court” briefs with the California Court of Appeals while former California Governors Pete Wilson and Arnold Schwarzenegger weighed in with their own briefs opposing the unions....

While LA Unified may still be struggling to integrate its iPads and other digital devices into the classroom, its police department has found a few useful things to do with theirs. Members of the Los Angeles School Police Department, working collaboratively with Haystax Technology, developed a school safety assessment tool that specially trained officers are using...

Among all the subgroups of LA Unified students who took the state’s new Smarter Balanced standardized tests, English language-learners (ELL) produced especially disappointing results, finishing behind the state average for ELLs and near the bottom compared with the state’s 11 other large districts. LA Unified has the most English learners of any district in the...

A group of of education chiefs from around the nation, as well as some teachers, parents, student groups and business organizations, lended their official support to the Vergara lawsuit today by filing several amicus curiae or “friend of the court” briefs. The briefs, which the group Students Matter reported were to be filed today, are documents submitted by...

There wasn’t a lot of good news for LA Unified in the Smarter Balanced test results, which show that the district performed well under the statewide average. Among the poor news was the continuation of a drastic achievement gap between the district’s white students and its black and Latino students. However, if there is one piece...

* UPDATED This one is sure to spark some discussion around LA Unified water coolers tomorrow: Independent charter schools in the district scored almost even with traditional and affiliated charters on the new California Assessment of Student Progress and Performance (CAASPP) tests. The results of the new Common Core-aligned tests, which were released today, show that...

Three young boys who were brothers and students at LA Unified were found stabbed to death inside an SUV in south Los Angeles today. A man believed to be their father was taken to a hospital suffering from critical stab wounds, and police reported that a man was in custody on suspicion of committing the...