LA School Report

By Brent Walmsley I’d like to respond to the upcoming LAUSD board vote regarding a return of flavored milk at targeted LAUSD pilot schools to study if there will be a decrease in waste. At the moment, there is a lobby attempting to bring sugar-infused (flavored) milk back into schools. The arguments to do this have...

Science instruction is changing in California and 17 other states  In an unexpected response two weeks ago, the U.S. Department of Education rejected California’s application for a federal waiver from having to administer the California Standards Tests in science, a multiple choice test based on outdated science standards adopted nearly two decades ago. What makes...

When Principal James Lee learned that his students at Sylmar Charter High School had among the biggest jumps in state test scores in the local school district, he was thrilled but surprised, because they managed to pull it off despite a well-publicized lunchtime brawl that erupted on campus right in the middle of testing. He credits the...

Data obtained by LA School Report show how each LA Unified high school’s scores on the state standardized tests improved or declined over the past two years. The district overall showed a 3 percentage point increase in math scores and a 6 percentage point increase in English language arts test scores. The improvements came along with increases...

A misguided attack on charter schools  The N.A.A.C.P., the nation’s oldest civil rights organization, has struggled in recent years to win over younger African-Americans, who often see the group as out of touch. The N.A.A.C.P.’s board will reinforce that impression if it ratifies an ill-advised resolution — scheduled for a vote this weekend — that...

*UPDATED Five state teachers have been selected as California Teachers of the Year, including LA Unified’s Isela Lieber, a former English learner who now teaches English and English as a Second Language at James Monroe High School, state Superintendent Tom Torlakson announced Wednesday. Lieber is an immigrant from Ecuador who came to the U.S. with only...

U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. was joined by LA Unified Superintendent Michelle King and a number of education leaders at the USC Rossier School of Education Wednesday to announce the release of his department’s new teacher preparation regulations. The regulations call for more detailed information to be gathered on how new teachers are performing,...

Magnolia charters face closure over past use of teachers from Turkey Three Los Angeles charter schools could be shut down, largely because of their practice of bringing in teachers from Turkey, The Times has learned. The schools are part of a group of 10 campuses operated by locally based Magnolia Public Schools, which has relied heavily on using temporary work...

As part of College Awareness Month in October, LA Unified officials on Tuesday presented a new initiative designed to inspire and prepare the district’s students for college, starting at the pre-K and kindergarten level and continuing every year through 12th grade. “The Division of Instruction wanted to begin a dialogue of specific activities by grade level,...

Racism and stereotypes continue to plague LA Unified, and it’s up to leaders to change that, according to a UCLA professor who is holding seminars at some schools. Tyrone C. Howard, associate dean for equity and inclusion at UCLA’s graduate school of education and information studies, spoke to the Curriculum, Instruction and Educational Equity Committee...