How would instruction and student learning improve if educators made the time to really understand and practice a new curriculum before implementing it in classrooms with students? In Orange County, California, educators are finding out by testing an approach of preimplementation professional learning for a full year before applying a new…

This article addressed California's proposed math curriculum framework which has ignited a ferocious debate, touching off a revival of the 1990s math wars and attracting national media attention. Early drafts of the new framework faced a firestorm of criticism, with opponents charging that the guidelines sacrificed accelerated learning for high…

What would it look like to engage in more humanizing assessment practices, practices that support the positive development of students' identity, agency, and belonging? In a Southern California school district, a group of teachers have been working toward doing exactly that. One of the first things the teachers did was to recognize that the…

High schools in California--and around the country--increasingly offer computer science (CS) and often would like to expand CS offerings further. However, these expansions pose a number of challenges for administrators and policymakers, especially if they are going to happen effectively and equitably. We consider four of the most pressing…

More than fifteen years ago, the Hewlett Foundation commissioned the researchers at SRI International to create the first comprehensive, statewide study of arts education in California. The resulting report, 2007's "An Unfinished Canvas," revealed the degree to which California was failing to provide standards-based courses in arts…

Increasingly, companies are dropping four-year degree requirements in job postings, favoring skill-based requirements--such as communication and writing--instead. These types of nonacademic "soft skills" are viewed as essential for employment--employers consistently cite these abilities as among the most valuable in job applicants, yet…

To build educational capacity for the rapidly evolving science and profession of geocomputation, the American Association of Geographers piloted an Encoding Geography research-practice partnership (RPP) composed of geography and computer science educators and researchers. This commentary describes the process, known as Collective Impact, that was…

Farm to school education connects learning to the real world by helping students foster a deeper appreciation for local agriculture and healthy eating habits. Students experience and understand how nature supports life and the food they eat. Farm to school can take many forms, from classroom lessons to field trips in the school garden. Many…

An active-learning concurrent preparatory general chemistry course was adopted to replace a prerequisite course that lacked effectiveness in improving student outcomes. Our previous study showed that the concurrent course increased final exam performance and retention in a cohort of students. This paper studies the course modality impact of the…

Issues in society such as immigration and racial inequality threaten to derail classroom discussions. Likewise, issues in higher education such as general education (GE) reform threaten to obstruct faculty committee discussions. We want students to engage in classroom discussions through a comprehensive exploration of issues, ideas, and events…

What does it take to develop an asynchronous curriculum for social work students, with attention to precision, policy accuracy, and community accountability? We attempt to answer the question by documenting our process of community collaboration and partnership to develop a gamified case study on the Indian Child Welfare Act. The curriculum was…

During the COVID-19 pandemic, an adult noncredit program in the California Community College system partnered with Ease Learning to help convert face-to-face courses to an online modality. Subsequent data revealed a misalignment in the courses' Student Learning Outcomes and Instructional Objectives which became a barrier to student success. Wile's…

In this article, Dan Lyndon-Cohen makes the case that history departments should move from diversifying the curriculum to decolonising it. After reflecting on some examples of how he made the content of his lessons more representative, he explores how the influence of writers such as Michel-Rolph Trouillot and Emma Dabiri inspired him to find…

This work outlines a model for creating momentum for active learning at the departmental level through a Community of Practice. This approach focuses on empowering members of the community by providing easy access to active learning tasks, pacing guide, and teaching tips for the course.

A sociocultural context of interruption and instability illuminated our teacher candidates' funds of knowledge and identity (e.g., Esteban-Guitart & Moll, 2014) during the global pandemic of 2020. Their expertise, skills, and self-understandings strengthened both the mentor-teacher candidate relationship and student engagement. Teacher…