Technical Reports
The Getting Down to Facts II project conducted research that resulted in 36 methodologically robust technical reports that span four aspects of California’s PreK-12 education system: student success, finance, governance, and personnel.
Displaying 1 - 36 of 36
Student Success
A Portrait of California Career Technical Education Pathway Completers
Sherrie Reed, Shaun Dougherty, Michal Kurlaender, Joanna Mathias. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
More than half of California's high schools offer career technical education programs, with students completing pathways at differing rates, by background characteristics.
A Portrait of Educational Outcomes in California
Sean Reardon, Chris Doss, Josh Gagné, Rebecca Gleit, Angela Johnson, Victoria Sosina. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
California's test scores, graduation rates and suspension rates have improved, but California still lags the nation both in average outcomes and in the equality of outcomes across student groups.
An Update to the 2014 CREDO Study Charter School Performance in California
Macke Raymond. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Students who were economically disadvantaged made significantly greater progress in charter schools than their peers in traditional public schools in 2014, but data to do the same analysis with current state tests were not available.
College Readiness in the Era of Common Core
Michal Kurlaender, Sherrie Reed, Kramer Cohen, Briana Ballis. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
California's 11th grade tests of language arts and math—which are good predictors of college success—indicate that less than 30 percent of 11th grade students are ready for college-level work in both areas.
Early Childhood Education in California
Deborah Stipek. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Much of the large achievement gaps in California are evident at school entry, in part due to an early education system that is underfunded, fragmented, and inefficient.
Setting the Stage: Trends in Student Demographics and Enrollment in California
Sarah Reber, Demetra Kalogrides. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Though socio-economic conditions for California public school children have improved overall, one in five California schoolchildren live in poverty.
State Policies to Advance English Learners’ Experiences and Outcomes in California’s Schools
Ilana Umansky. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
California's English Learner Roadmap sets out a path for improving instruction and outcomes that national research supports, but implementation will require additional investments.
Personnel
A System’s View of California’s Teacher Education Pipeline
Courtney A. Bell, Rachel S. White, Melissa E. White. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
At a high level, California's teacher education system is aligned with its professional teaching standards, but the broad choices allowed in institutions' program designs result in wide variations in teaching candidates' learning opportunities.
Assessing Equity in School Leadership in California
Jason Grissom, Brendan Bartanen. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
California principals in high-needs schools are less experienced, more likely to leave, and report lower salaries than their peers in other schools.
Can Teacher Evaluation Programs Improve Teaching?
Virginia Lovison, Eric Taylor. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Evidence from a variety of programs in California points to both the promises and challenges for local school districts that are responsible for choosing teacher evaluation procedures.
Investments in Student Health and Mental Health in California’s Public Schools
Randall Reback. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Access to school-based health care and mental health services is important for student success, but fewer than 20% of elementary schools offer physical health services and fewer than 40% provide any kind of mental health services.
Learning to Lead: Understanding California’s Learning System for School and District Leaders
Leib Sutcher, Anne Podolsky, Tara Kini, Patrick M. Shields. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Many California principals have experienced some high-quality preparation and professional development, but very few have had comprehensive training, although principals trained after 2013 seem better prepared.
Teacher Shortages in California: Status, Sources, and Potential Solutions
Linda Darling-Hammond, Leib Sutcher, Desiree Carver-Thomas. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
The number of emergency teaching credentials has more than doubled since 2012-13; enduring solutions will need to take into account growing demand, a decline in enrollments in teacher preparation programs, and teacher turnover.
Teacher Staffing Challenges in California: Exploring the Factors that Influence Teacher Staffing and Distribution
Dan Goldhaber, Katharine O. Strunk, Nate Brown, Andrea Chambers, Natsumi Naito, Malcolm Wolff. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Staffing classrooms has become more challenging across California in recent years, but it is particularly challenging in some subjects and for disadvantaged and rural schools.
Teaching English Learners in California: How Teacher Credential Requirements in California Address their Needs
Lucrecia Santibañez, Christine Snyder. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
English learners are more likely than other California students to be taught by early career teachers whose preparation and induction may not be sufficient.
Finance
Adequacy and State Funding Formulas: What Can California Learn From the Research and National Context?
Jennifer Imazeki. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Despite recent improvements in K-12 funding, California spends less than many states with similarly high costs of living and, as a result, our schools have fewer resources than schools in other states, particularly the number of adults per student.
District Dollars 2: California School District Finances, 2004-5 through 2016-17
Paul Bruno. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Per-pupil spending in California has consistently been well below the national average, even with recent increases.
Financing School Facilities in California: A Ten-Year Perspective
Eric Brunner, Jeffrey Vincent. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
School construction and modernization costs California billions every year, but the state's current policies do not provide enough funds to meet local needs and create disparities that advantage wealthier communities.
Money and Freedom: The Impact Of California’s School Finance Reform On Academic Achievement And The Composition Of District Spending
Rucker Johnson, Sean Tanner. (2018). .
Early evidence on the Local Control Funding Formula shows that money targeted to districts with the greatest student need has led to improvements in student outcomes.
Pensions and California Public Schools
Cory Koedel, Gabriel E. Gassmann. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Pension costs are increasing and will meaningfully reduce local operating expenditures for districts unless the system is changed.
Revisiting Finance and Governance Issues in Special Education
Paul Warren, Laura Hill. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Special Education costs are rising, but state support and funding for Special Education has not; as a result, special education finance is a particular concern for district leaders.
What Does It Cost to Educate California’s Students? A Professional Judgment Approach
Jesse Levin, Iliana Brodziak de los Reyes, Drew Atchison, Karen Manship, Melissa Arellanes, Lynn Hu. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Experts estimate that it would take a 38% increase in spending to provide the services needed to give all California students opportunities to succeed in college and career.
Governance
Aims and Purposes of a State Schooling System: The Case of California
Harry Brighouse, Kailey Mullane. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
California's educational goals fit into a larger discourse about the need for children to develop their capacity not just for academic achievement, but for broader outcomes such as intellectual, social emotional, and civic development.
Building a System of Support for School Improvement
David Plank, Jennifer O’Day, Benjamin Cottingham. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
California's fledgling System of Support —which brings together the Collaborative for Educational Excellence, the Department of Education, and 58 County Offices of Education—is not yet fully addressing the needs of local schools and districts.
Charter School Authorizing in California
Kirsten Slungaard Mumma, Martin R. West. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Charter school authorization in California is highly decentralized, with little accountability, in contrast to charter school policies in many other states.
Federal Policy Meets the “California Way”
Jeffrey R. Henig, Melissa Arnold Lyon. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
The state’s efforts to improve education can be supported or thrown off course by federal policies, making it important for state leaders to strategically manage relations with Washington, D.C., and potential allies in other states.
Frontlines Perspectives on Instructional Support in the Common Core Era
Susan Moffitt, Matthew J. Lyddon, Michaela Krug O’Neill, Kelly B. Smith, Marie Schenk, Cadence Willse, David K. Cohen. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Most educators support the new standards and hope that the state continues to "stays the course;" they seek high-quality materials and opportunities to improve their instruction.
In Need of Improvement? Assessing the California Dashboard after One Year
Morgan Polikoff, Shira Korn, Russell McFall. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
The California School Dashboard is a bold and promising experiment in school accountability but it also has weaknesses, in both data and presentation.
In the Era of the Local Control Funding Formula: The Shifting Role of California’s Chief Business Officers
Jason Willis, Kelsey Krausen, Erika Byun, Ruthie Caparas. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Chief Business Officers are positive about the Local Control Funding Formula and have seen improvements in how districts make financial decisions, but they remain concerned about inadequate base funding and rising costs.
Insights on Standards Implementation in California’s Schools
Neal Finkelstein, Reino Makkonen, Rebecca Perry, Francesca Delgado, Clay Willis, Pam Spycher, Kim Austin. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Surveys show teachers and principals are positive about the opportunities they've had to learn California's new standards, but teachers want more time to work together to adapt their teaching practice.
Making California Data More Useful for Educational Improvement
Meredith Phillips, Sarah Reber, Jesse Rothstein. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
California has a patchwork of data systems that, if integrated and made more accessible, could be leveraged to answer important questions to help improve student services and outcomes; significant improvements to data usefulness could be made at relatively low cost if California policymakers had the political will to do so.
State Structures for Instructional Support in California
Susan Moffitt, Matthew J. Lyddon, Domingo Morel, Michaela Krug O’Neill, Kelly B. Smith, Cadence Willse, David K. Cohen. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
School districts need support in order to fulfill new responsibilities, and California's extensive system of agencies and professional networks could be instrumental in providing that support, yet coherence and capacity among these multiple actors is inconsistent.
Taking stock of stakeholder engagement in California’s Local Control Funding Formula: What can we learn from the past four years to guide next steps?
Julie A. Marsh, Michelle Hall, Taylor Allbright, Laura Tobben, Laura Mulfinger,, Kate Kennedy, Eupha Jeanne Daramola. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
New state policies emphasizing local control call for democratic involvement in school district goal setting and budgeting; districts that engage with their stakeholders more deeply are more strategic in targeting funds to high-need students.
The Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF): What Have We Learned After Four Years of Implementation?
Julia E. Koppich, Daniel C. Humphrey. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
The combination of increased resources and flexibility can improve student outcomes, but many districts do not have the capacity to allocate resources effectively and the state's new System of Support does not yet provide the help needed.
Towards a Common Vision of Continuous Improvement for California
Alicia Grunow, Heather Hough, Sandra Park, Jason Willis, Kelsey Krausen. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
"Continuous Improvement" as an approach is a dramatic departure from business as usual, and requires a significant investment in capacity building and data infrastructure.
Using Data for Improvement: Learning from the CORE Data Collaborative
Heather Hough, Erika Byun, Laura Mulfinger. (2018). Getting Down to Facts II.
Timely, accessible, and meaningful data is essential for schools and districts to improve outcomes for students, but California lags far behind other states in supporting an infrastructure for data-driven decisionmaking.
