How Creative Youth Development (CYD) Programs Support Student Success

Posted on September 19, 2018September 19, 2018 by coreeducation

Education Commission of the States recently released a new report exploring the design and impact of Creative Youth Development (CYD) programs and providing policy considerations regarding CYD for states looking for ways to narrow the achievement gap and support student success. In CYD programs, young people create original work through arts experiences and apply their Read more about How Creative Youth Development (CYD) Programs Support Student Success[…]

Dozens of Arts Programs Could Receive Funding Under Federal Education Law

Posted on December 6, 2017December 2, 2017 by coreeducation

A new literature review from the American Institutes for Research (AIR) explores research available on arts integration activities and finds 44 that could qualify for ESSA funding (10 studies met Tier I-III evidence standards for strong, moderate or promising evidence, while 34 met the Tier IV standard for having a research-based rationale). Interventions include those Read more about Dozens of Arts Programs Could Receive Funding Under Federal Education Law[…]

The Promise of Evidence-Based Policymaking

Posted on September 15, 2017September 8, 2017 by coreeducation

The Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking has issued its final report – The Promise of Evidence-Based Policymaking – which includes nearly two dozen bipartisan recommendations for how the federal government can use data and evidence to improve outcomes for all. Commission Chair Katharine Abraham, Commission Co-Chair Ron Haskins and the other Commissioners who spent 15 months carefully Read more about The Promise of Evidence-Based Policymaking[…]

Fully Developing the Potential of Academically Advanced Students

Posted on July 25, 2017July 21, 2017 by coreeducation

A new AEI paper by Jonathan Wai and Frank C. Worrell, “Fully Developing the Potential of Academically Advanced Students: Helping Them Will Help Society” argues that gifted students are often left out of education reform conversations. In the $59.8 billion 2015 federal education budget, one dollar was spent on gifted and talented education for every Read more about Fully Developing the Potential of Academically Advanced Students[…]

The Teacher Evaluation Revamp, In Hindsight

Posted on February 3, 2017January 27, 2017 by coreeducation

Chad Aldeman of Bellwether Partners recently provided a reflection on teacher evaluation reform during the Obama presidency in Education Next. Excerpts of his insightful piece appear below: When President Obama took office in 2009, his administration quickly seized on teacher evaluations as an important public-policy problem. Today, much of his legacy on K-12 education rests Read more about The Teacher Evaluation Revamp, In Hindsight[…]

U.S. Department of Education Announces Inaugural Education Innovation and Research Competition

Posted on December 20, 2016December 19, 2016 by coreeducation

The U.S. Department of Education announced the launch of the Education Innovation and Research (EIR) grant competition for 2017. EIR is a new grant program established in the Every Student Succeeds Act and is the successor of the Obama Administration’s Investing in Innovation grant program (i3), which invested $1.4 billion in 172 i3 projects across Read more about U.S. Department of Education Announces Inaugural Education Innovation and Research Competition[…]

Building the Educator Workforce Our Children Need Now

Posted on December 5, 2016December 2, 2016 by coreeducation

States are now deeply engaged in developing plans for their federal education spending for the next several years. Now is the time to rethink systems and strategies and to focus funds and efforts on what matters most for learning: great teachers and leaders for every student and school. Written collaboratively by all three partners of Read more about Building the Educator Workforce Our Children Need Now[…]

Education Department Encourages Support for Educators and Teaching Profession

Posted on November 3, 2016October 28, 2016 by coreeducation

The U.S. Department of Education has released non-regulatory guidance to help support the nation’s educators and elevate the teaching profession. The guidance encourages states and districts to prepare, train, and recruit high-quality teachers and principals to increase student academic achievement. With the enactment of Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), states and districts have the opportunity Read more about Education Department Encourages Support for Educators and Teaching Profession[…]

Maximizing ESSA Formula Funds: State Self-Assessments

Posted on August 12, 2016July 31, 2016 by coreeducation

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) offers new opportunities for states and school districts. In general, ESSA’s new rules do not take effect until July 1, 2017,which gives state education agencies (SEAs) an opportunity to assess whether their current policies and practices related to federal formula grant funds are aligned with state education objectives (such Read more about Maximizing ESSA Formula Funds: State Self-Assessments[…]

What ESSA Means for Teacher Effectiveness

Posted on December 15, 2015December 11, 2015 by coreeducation

As this blog reported, the reauthorized Elementary and Secondary Education Act was signed into law on December 10, 2015. The new law, deemed the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) is good for the next four years. SY2016-17 is a transition year, and the law will be in full effect in SY2017-18. We have previously provided Read more about What ESSA Means for Teacher Effectiveness[…]

Obama’s New Federal Financial Aid Rules Allow Earlier Applications

Posted on October 7, 2015October 22, 2015 by coreeducation

President Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan recently rolled out a new plan to make the FAFSA (the federal tax form needed to apply for federal student aid for college) quicker, easier, and more accessible to more students. Following is a brief outline, from the White House website, of some of the major changes: Earlier, Read more about Obama’s New Federal Financial Aid Rules Allow Earlier Applications[…]

The U.S. Needs a National Policy on Education

Posted on July 29, 2015July 23, 2015 by coreeducation

Christopher Cross has written an insightful piece for Teachers College Record, focusing on the need to establish a national policy on education so that there is a clear understanding of our national priority and appropriate roles for states and the federal government. An excerpt: We have no stated national commitment to education, no understanding about Read more about The U.S. Needs a National Policy on Education[…]

Never too Late: Why ESEA must fill the Missing Middle

Posted on June 8, 2015May 31, 2015 by coreeducation

When President George W. Bush signed the No Child Left Behind Act into law in 2002, the U.S. national high school graduation rate was 72.6 percent. Today, the national high school graduation rate has reached an all-time high of 81 percent and the number of low-graduation-rate high schools has declined considerably. While this progress is Read more about Never too Late: Why ESEA must fill the Missing Middle[…]

Moneyball for Education: Using Data, Evidence and Evaluation to Improve Federal Education Policy

Posted on March 30, 2015March 28, 2015 by coreeducation

A new policy paper by Rick Hess and Bethany Little for the American Enterprise Institute and Results for America wants to bring the thinking of baseball’s “Moneyball” to federal education policy. Key points: The ‘moneyball’ strategy, which used data to help improve success and cost-efficiency in baseball, should be applied to the US education system Read more about Moneyball for Education: Using Data, Evidence and Evaluation to Improve Federal Education Policy[…]

Update on OII’s FY 2015 Grant Competitions

Posted on March 2, 2015March 2, 2015 by coreeducation

For the current fiscal year, which ends on September 30, 2015, the Office of Innovation and Improvement (OII) will conduct 11 grant competitions in six program areas: Arts in Education, Charter Schools, Investing in Innovation, Opportunity Scholarship, Ready to Learn Television, and Supporting Effective Educator Development. Announcements of these competitions began last month and will Read more about Update on OII’s FY 2015 Grant Competitions[…]

2014 Investing in Innovation Competition

Posted on May 19, 2014 by coreeducation

The U.S. Department of Education recently announced the start of the 2014 grant competition for the Investing in Innovation (i3) program’s Scale-up and Validation categories. This competition will continue the Department’s investments in promising strategies that can help close achievement gaps and improve educational outcomes for our neediest students. The i3 program aims to develop Read more about 2014 Investing in Innovation Competition[…]