Charter advocates were partially successful three months ago in getting the U.S. Department of Education to ease what they saw as onerous new rules for a program that provides start-up funds to new schools. But that compromise hasn’t stopped advocates in two states and members of Congress from trying to remove the remaining changes to the $440...

The 21st century has launched an unprecedented focus on science and STEM education. In this age of pandemics, climate change, food shortages and other global issues, the country absolutely needs more scientists. However, it’s clear that scientific thinking isn’t just for scientists anymore. Basing decisions on evidence and separating fact from fiction are fast becoming...

With state data projecting at least 10% drops in student enrollment over the next decade in some California counties, superintendents are worried. “Some of them are scratching their heads, saying ‘This is something we didn’t expect, and it is hard to know if this is our new enrollment trend,’” said Suzanne Speck, executive vice president of Sacramento-based...

The students in classrooms today are the leaders of tomorrow’s workforce, but even before the pandemic, learners didn’t feel high schools were doing enough to prepare them for long-term career choices. Only 52% of students felt high school prepared them for the world of work, and over the past two years, the pandemic has made the journey...

L.A. Unified’s latest state test scores reveal dramatic decreases in student performance — and an even more striking decline for some ethnic groups and vulnerable students. The outcomes of the 2022 Smarter Balanced assessment showed just 28.47% of LAUSD students met state standards in math, while 41.67% met English standards in the 2021-22 school year...

Scorned by the bureaucracy of Los Angeles Unified School District and the tumultuous politics of reopening schools in the spring of 2021, Carrie Kangro moved her oldest son to a charter school in the midst of the pandemic. Kangro, unsure if LAUSD would reopen schools, made the move despite having a particular love for the...

Summer was over, and with students starting another school year, Mister Rogers had something to say.  The television host entered the set the way he always did: He changed his shoes, zipped his sweater and spoke directly into the camera. “I’ve just come from the neighborhood school,” he told his TV neighbors. “I’m trying to...

As the shady ransomware gang Vice Society took credit for a hack that sent Los Angeles school officials scrambling last week, cybersecurity experts noticed something peculiar.  Vice Society, an “intrusion, exfiltration and extortion” group that experts believe is based in Russia, has become notorious for waging cyber warfare against K-12 schools, leveraging the theft of...

Schools have been trying to return to normal after three years of closures, disruption and setbacks, so it’s no surprise that the pandemic has taken a toll on educators’ morale. Yet, thus far, public school educators nationally have not left their jobs at notably higher rates than before the pandemic began. Even so, poor morale...

California middle and high schools began the academic day later this year, implementing a state law other states are now considering. After long-standing research showed the devastating impact of early classes on teens’ health, California’s district middle schools will start no earlier than 8 am; and high schools will start no later than 8:30 am....