In this article, we introduce the term "vulnerability to achievement stressors," which refers to differentially low achievement when shifts in the educational environment "stress" or threaten the capacity of an individual or a group of individuals to make academic progress. We also introduce a methodological framework for…

In this article, we introduce the term "vulnerability to achievement stressors," which refers to differentially low achievement when shifts in the educational environment "stress" or threaten the capacity of an individual or a group of individuals to make academic progress. We also introduce a methodological framework for…

The Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning (CFTL) at WestEd led the Teacher Practice Networks (TPN) initiative for five years, with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Initial rounds of Gates funding supported 21 education improvement organizations in disseminating standards-based resources around the nation. Later rounds…

Policymakers have long sought to raise expectations for students through standards-based reform. I examine the extent to which the Common Core State Content Standards (CC) affected student achievement and the size of achievement gaps. I merge together data on preparation for and implementation of the CC with the National Assessment of Educational…

Over the last two decades, federal and state policy makers have launched a number of ambitious, large-scale education reform initiatives--No Child Left Behind, Race to the Top, the Common Core State Standards, and others--only to see them sputter and fail. In 2017, the authors convened a number of leading scholars to explore why those initiatives…

As an early Common Core booster, Michael Petrilli had hoped that by now--10 years after most states adopted the standards--the nation's schools would have logged tangible improvements in teaching and learning that resulted in higher student achievement. In this article, Petrilli reviews what Common Core is and discusses the work ahead that is…

Teachers play a crucial role in helping students develop the skills needed for success in school, career, and life. These skills--which are a focus in the Common Core State Standards (CCSS)--include higher-order thinking and complex literacy skills, such as reading, writing, and citing evidence from texts. Professional development (PD) can…

Education standards do not flop spectacularly. Their failure gives rise to nothing like the black-and-white films of early aeronautical experiments: no missiles exploding on launch pads or planes tumbling from the sky. But 10 years after 46 of the 50 states adopted the Common Core standards, the lack of evidence that they have improved student…

The 10th anniversary of Common Core's launch offers the opportunity to take stock of the impact these nearly national standards have had on student learning, as well as their future prospects. In this article, Morgan Polikoff shares his view that the standards movement in general, and Common Core in particular, have achieved all they are going to…

A standards-based model of reform has dominated public education for 30 years. Under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), it will continue to dominate education policy. Is that model working? State boards of education share an intrinsic interest in this question. While there are many ways to investigate it, one approach that shows promise treats…

When CME Group Foundation (CME) was formed in 2007 with an endowment from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Trust, its founders set out to engage in grantmaking that would improve education from cradle to career and strengthen the region's economy. During its first decade, nearly a quarter of CME's grants targeted early childhood education with an…

The Common Core State Standards, released in 2010, were rapidly adopted by more than 40 states. Champions maintained that these rigorous standards would transform American education, but the initiative went on to encounter a bumpy path. A decade on, what are we to make of this ambitious effort? What kind of impact, if any, has it had on the…

Wide and persistent gaps in math achievement separate English learners from their English-proficient peers. The consequences of these gaps are severe and long lasting. Without a solid foundation in math, students are less likely to access and excel in college preparatory math and science classes in high school. Without high-level math classes in…

What would it actually look like for district or state leaders to prioritize equity for English learners in standards implementation? Because the science and English Language Development (ELD) standards are relatively new--and the idea of coordinated implementation even more so--the authors turned to the data. The first goal was to see what data…

"Strategic Inquiry" is an innovative model for promoting teacher collaboration around identifying specific "learning gaps" that keep struggling students from succeeding. Gaps may include anything from the proper use of commas and conjunctions to concepts such as "slope" in math. The authors argue that addressing these…