More than 158,000 students are currently on waiting lists to get into charter schools in the state, according to an estimate released by the California Charter Schools Association. The number is a record high. “Evidence over the past five years argues that the public has never been more supportive of charter public schools than they...

The HBO show “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” took on the issue of standardized tests on Sunday, criticizing the pressure it creates for students, teachers and administrators. Oliver made no secret of where he stood, pointing out that some test booklets include instructions on what a teacher should do if an anxious student vomits...

By Eryn Brown and Teresa Watanabe Since state laws made it harder for California elementary school kids to get their hands on sugary drinks and junk food snacks on campus, researchers found, students’ risk of becoming overweight or obese fell slightly — but mostly if they came from higher-income neighborhoods. Examining body mass index measurements...

L.A. Unified will investigate food-service contracts at PUC charters The findings of a state investigation into PUC Schools showed an alleged conflict of interest in the awarding of millions of dollars in food contracts. Los Angeles Times Commentary: LA Unified must recommit to goal of college for all The goal of college access for all at...

LA Unified school board members will be busy this week in a series of committee meetings as a prelude to the board’s monthly meeting next week. The Successful School Climate Committee, chaired by Monica Garcia, will be gathering tomorrow to discuss the implementation of the Student Bill of Rights. The district passed the new set...

LA Unified is on the brink of cutting a highly-successful preschool program for some of the district’s poorest children at the same time that members of the California state assembly are trying to expand early education programs for all low-income pre-Kindergarten students. The district’s School Readiness Language Development Program (SRLDP) is just one of a...

By Patricia Levesque and Kevin Welner | New York Times It is much easier to correctly identify a problem than to come up with a workable solution. When No Child Left Behind was signed into law in 2002, the United States did indeed have a problem — one that was identified, at least partially, by...

LAUSD charter group gave food contract to an employee’s firm The probe involved Jacqueline Duvivier Castillo, who works for PUC Schools and is a part-owner in Better 4 You Meals. Los Angeles Times Democrat’s teacher tenure law gets killed The legislature is faced with changing longstanding California laws for evaluating, firing and laying off teachers....

A few hours on a Saturday afternoon at a Special Olympics event over 30 years ago changed the course of Teri Hayden’s life, and now it looks as if those few hours have changed the lives of hundreds of disabled student athletes at LA Unified. After several years of pitches and proposals from Hayden —...

* UPDATED The state’s two teachers unions — the California Teachers Association and the California Federation of Teachers — filed their appeal today in the landmark education case they lost last year, Vergara v. California. The lower court ruling declared unconstitutional state laws that govern teacher seniority, dismissal and layoffs. The unions called the lawsuit...