Utah Leading through Effective, Actionable, and Dynamic (ULEAD) Education is required to report on successful K-12 practices in Utah and other states and propose policy changes to remove barriers to implementation successful practices. Notably, successful and innovative practices across topic areas rely on additional staff expertise and time,…

Utah Leading through Effective, Actionable, and Dynamic (ULEAD) Education is required to report on successful K-12 practices in Utah and other states and propose policy changes to remove barriers to implementation successful practices. These practices should result from ULEAD's innovative research reports and repository development. There have…

In 2020, Kentucky embarked on a journey to transform teaching and learning in the state through its "United We Learn" initiative. As a result of that work, Kentucky learning communities are making significant strides toward innovative deeper learning practices. In Aurora Institute's glossary, the term "deeper learning"…

The number of English learners (ELs) in Alabama has increased significantly in recent years. English learners include U.S.-born children whose first language is not English, newcomers to the U.S., and other students developing English proficiency. These children are in Alabama schools, acquiring academic English instruction that promotes mastery…

Continuous improvement is a holistic and research-based approach to education grounded in the belief that every system is designed to achieve the results it gets; therefore, change must be systemwide, not piecemeal. California is a national leader in the continuous improvement movement that is spreading throughout local school districts as well as…

The transition to kindergarten is an important time in the young life of a preschooler. Research has shown that the quality of children's kindergarten transition processes has implications for their future academic and social outcomes, and the level of family engagement in kindergarten. Research further indicates that children living in families…

TransferBOOST (Bachelor's Opportunity Options that are Straightforward and Transparent) is a multi-year state-level initiative developed to provide students with affordable, quality, well-supported two- to four-year pathways. For every 100 students who enroll in community colleges, 31 students transfer to a four-year institution. Of those, only 15…

A quality rating and improvement system (QRIS) is a voluntary state assessment system that uses multidimensional data on early childhood education programs to rate program quality, support quality improvement efforts, and provide information to families about the quality of available early childhood education programs. QRISs have two components:…

In 2012, the Credit When It's Due (CWID) initiative was launched by the Funders Collaborative to "encourage partnerships of community colleges and universities to significantly expand programs that award associate degrees to transfer students when the student completes the requirements for the associate degree while pursuing a bachelor's…

This resource was prepared in response to a request for information about what States with Race to the Top -- Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC) grants are doing to support coaching as a professional development strategy. This information will be helpful to other States as they explore ways to support early childhood educators in improving their…

The role of the public school principal has expanded dramatically in recent decades. The expanded role means they are now significant multipliers of effective teaching and have a real opportunity to affect student achievement. Most states have spent recent years working to improve teacher effectiveness, recognizing its importance in improving…

Among all the factors that influence the success of preschool programs, none is more important than the quality of the teaching workforce. The design and delivery of effective approaches to professional development (PD) are central to the support of the early childhood education workforce. In this article, we provide a model outlining the PD…

This document compiles information from multiple sources to offer readers a snapshot of Preschool Development and Expansion Grant (PDG) states' progress towards implementing a full comprehensive assessment system, as well as the tools they are using for each of the components.

In 1995, the Montana Office of Public Instruction supported the Class 7 Indian language and culture specialist license to allow experts in Indigenous languages/cultures identified and certified by their respective tribal nations, to teach in K-12 public schools. This article uses the example of a Class 7 certification process on the Northern…

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) builds upon recent state efforts to reinvigorate the commitment of education to prepare students, not just for college and career, but also for citizenship and full participation in democratic life. This report outlines how ESSA strengthens opportunities for states to expand and support civic learning and…