While there are many different types of education data, policymakers and education leaders often place heavy emphasis on data from large-scale quantitative measures, such as annual state assessments. But data from these sources alone do not provide a complete picture of learning and are often not well suited to informing improvements at the local…

To improve access to high-quality early childhood education, California has made historic investments in Universal Prekindergarten (UPK), including the California State Preschool Program (CSPP). The state's UPK initiative elevates the importance of multilingualism and the early identification of disabilities in children. This report offers…

In 2024, the Future Directions for Mathematics Education Research, Policy, and Practice convening identified critical areas of need and opportunity for progress in mathematics teaching and learning. Amidst concerns about declining mathematical achievement and persistent disparities in access to high-quality mathematics education, the convening…

In 2019, the national Center to Improve Social and Emotional Learning and School Safety at WestEd (the Center) solicited ideas from state and local education agencies (SEAs and LEAs) regarding their most urgent and important needs to successfully support whole-person development. The concept of the "whole person" refers to a…

This brief informs California's LEA leaders about approaches to sustainably modernizing school facilities to advance educational and health equity for students and briefly explores associated funding strategies.

Ensuring equity in education, whereby all student groups attain comparable positive outcomes, is an ongoing challenge for policymakers and practitioners. While there is no single strategy for meeting this challenge, two broad approaches have gained traction among those committed to equity: social and emotional learning (SEL) and culturally…

This brief on including student voice, agency, and co-creation in education decision-making proceeds from the premise that successfully transforming education systems to be more student centered involves addressing four key elements: Individual Mindsets, Interpersonal Relationships, Community Culture, and Structural and Systemic Supports. The…

Equity work can be deeply personal and may include unlearning and shifting individual biases, beliefs, and practices. This paper builds on the premise that ongoing self-reflection in equity work is critical, as failing to attend to this internal work may result in education leaders reinforcing the very systems they are seeking to disrupt. And yet,…

The Center of Black Student Excellence is a transformative initiative within the Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD) dedicated to uplifting the educational experiences of Black students. It fosters a sense of belonging, pride, and agency, encouraging Black students and their families to pursue futures characterized by excellence and…

This guide aims to help education professionals reimagine and redefine school safety such that safety is not the absence of a negative but rather the existence of positive elements such as interconnection, belonging, voice, and agency. The guide is intended to support educators and education leaders to create systems of mutual care and shift the…

Educators in K-12 school systems are increasingly acknowledging the importance of serving the "whole person" as an essential foundation for achieving equitable outcomes. The guide is based on the idea that equitable outcomes are more likely to result when whole-person initiatives are implemented in an aligned and coherent way. If…

Despite long-standing efforts to address and eliminate disproportionality in special education, inequities remain and continue to negatively impact Black, Indigenous, and other students of color with Individualized Education Programs. This brief from the Western Educational Equity Assistance Center (WEEAC) supports state education agencies, local…

To support state education agency (SEA) leaders in establishing a statewide vision for serving the whole person, WestEd drafted and piloted the guide, "Serving the Whole Person: An Alignment and Coherence Guide for State Education Agencies," in collaboration with several SEAs. This case story describes Delaware Department of Education…

In math classrooms, actively engaging with the subject matter can be crucial to learning. However, not all students speak up, ask questions, or express their ideas. Aware of the importance of the equitable participation of all students, mathematics education experts developed an observation tool called Equity Quantified In Participation, or EQUIP.…

The four approaches of engaging in formative assessment, deeper learning, culturally responsive and sustaining education, and personalized learning share a common aspirational commitment--to provide student learning experiences rooted in: (1) developing identity; (2) prioritizing learner agency; (3) educating for equity; and (4) honoring and…