LA School Report

Parents have launched a petition at 20th Street Elementary to take over the school, force major changes and win the right to replace its staff and teachers, the Los Angeles Times reported today. If a majority of parents sign the petition, it will be the latest effort in the state to use the so-called “Parent...

By Diane Ravitch | The New York Review of Books Fifty years ago, Congress passed a federal education law to help poor children get a good public education: the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965. Revised many times, it is still the basis for federal education policy today. When it was last reauthorized...

Los Angeles Unified considers killing preschool program A proposal to eliminate a popular LA Unified preschool program for low-income families drew the ire of more than 100 people Thursday. KPCC The Snap2School application rewards students who get to class on time Snap2School works by rewarding attendance with prizes such as tickets to amusement parks, free...

Later today, an LA Unified committee will discuss the importance and feasibility of sustaining a program aimed at helping children in their first years of life as they approach kindergarten. While experts regard this time as critical to child development, money the district has used to fund such efforts are sunsetting: The proposed budget calls...

By Jeffery Fleishman | Los Angeles Times In a studio where wall-length mirrors laid bare imperfections, a young ballerina floated in deceptive grace. “Balance,” said her teacher. “Open shoulders, round the arms.” The dancer wiped the sweat away. Music cued, a slipper scraped like a whisper across the floor. She spun in pirouettes, again and...

Literacy gap between Latino and white toddlers starts early, study shows Latino toddlers whose language comprehension is roughly similar to white peers at 9 months old fall significantly behind by the time they are 2, according to a study. Los Angeles Times Woodland Hills school could be reopened as high school science lab El Camino...

A quarter of women living in Los Angeles do not hold a high school diploma, almost twice the number of women nationally, according to a new study focusing on issues affecting the women and girls of LA. The report, called the Status of Women and Girls in Los Angeles, was produced by Mount Saint Mary’s...

By Neil Irwin | The New York Times Suppose you accept the persuasive data that inequality has been rising in the United States and most advanced nations in recent decades. But suppose you don’t want to fight inequality through politically polarizing steps like higher taxes on the wealthy or a more generous social welfare system....