Winners and finalists for the annual Broad Prize for Urban Education have consistently outperformed peer districts serving similar student populations. What makes the difference? These districts consistently demonstrate a learning loop that influences the district's ability to learn, which ultimately influences student opportunities to learn.…

Finalists for the Broad Prize for Urban Education demonstrate that identifying strategies that fit the local context is essential in creating success for students. Long Beach Unified School District in California and Broward County Public Schools in Florida demonstrate how districts can use different strategies to achieve the same goals.

Research tells us we can learn complex tasks most easily if they are taught in "small sequential steps." This column is about the small sequential steps that unlocked the powers of digital photography, of portraiture, and of student creativity. The strategies and ideas described in this article came as a result of working with…