This story was originally published by EdSource. Sign up for their daily newsletter. When students walk into Gina Gray’s English classroom in Middle College High School on any given testing day, she greets them with encouragement: “Tap into your genius. You have it,” Gray reminds the 11th graders. “Just do your best. … All we can ask...

This story was originally published on EdSource A new survey paints a difficult but optimistic picture of California’s youth.  About 94% of young people in the state said they experience regular mental health challenges — up from 87% in 2023, with one-third reporting their mental health as “fair” or “poor,” according to a new report by Blue Shield...

This story was originally published on EdSource. The Los Angeles Unified School District’s school board approved a new employment agreement for Superintendent Alberto Carvalho at Tuesday’s board meeting, weeks after unanimously reappointing him.  Carvalho said during the Sept. 17 meeting that he would not accept any salary increases or additional benefits, and the agreement approved by the board...

One in four young adults across the U.S. is functionally illiterate – yet more than half earned high school diplomas, according to recently released data. The number of 16-to-24 year olds reading at the lowest literacy levels increased from 16% in 2017 to 25% in 2023, according to data released in December from the National...

Recent federal changes have shifted toward English-first policies, devaluing multilingualism not only in communities but in schools. This narrowing perspective is increasingly influencing the education system and negatively affecting the more than 5 million English learners in classrooms by dismissing the true strength of speaking more than one language. For decades, ELs have been defined...

There’s a quiet crisis in America’s schools, and within it, an opportunity. Across the country, classrooms are struggling to find and keep teachers. This isn’t just a staffing issue; it’s a deeper reckoning with how we value public education and the people who carry it forward. The pandemic accelerated what was already happening: Fewer young...

In a win for the nation’s second-largest school district, Los Angeles Unified students bounced back from the pandemic, posting big gains on state reading and math tests.  L.A. Unified surpassed pre-pandemic math, reading and science levels on 2024-25 state test scores released Thursday and closed the gap with the rest of California, even as the...

This story was originally published on EdSource. On a sunny Tuesday morning, students, parents and community members walked atop the bluffs alongside charred foliage and barren lots, back to Marquez Charter Elementary — almost nine months after the Palisades fire ravaged the school site and surrounding region, sparing only three classrooms in its wake.  For...

This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. This fall, every high school in California was supposed to offer ethnic studies — a one-semester class focused on the struggles and triumphs of marginalized communities. But the class appears stalled, at least for now, after the state budget omitted funding for it...

As a new school year begins, many students — especially students of color, LGBTQ youth, and children in immigrant and mixed-status families — are carrying more than just the weight of academic expectations. They are navigating a world that feels increasingly unsafe, where political threats, discrimination and immigration enforcement have become part of their daily...