Learning Policy Institute

TO CONDUCT INDEPENDENT, HIGH-QUALITY RESEARCH TO IMPROVE LEARNING FOR EACH AND EVERY CHILD.

AS COVID-19 CONTINUED, LPI PROVIDED POLICYMAKERS AND PRACTITIONERS WITH EVIDENCE-BASED POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RESTARTING SCHOOLS SAFELY AND FOR REIMAGINING EDUCATION WITH EQUITY AS THE FOCUS. WE LAUNCHED A NEW RESOURCES FOR REOPENING SCHOOLS WEBSITE WITH CURATED PUBLIC HEALTH RESEARCH, FACT SHEETS, DATA TOOLS, AND GUIDANCE FOR CHILD CARE AND EARLY LEARNING PROGRAMS AND K-12 SCHOOLS. WE ALSO PRODUCED BRIEFS ON THE INNOVATIVE APPROACHES TO SAFE SCHOOL REOPENING IN MARIN COUNTY, CA; NEW YORK CITY; SAN DIEGO COUNTY, CA; AND TULSA, OK. IN COLLABORATION WITH THE SPENCER FOUNDATION, WE PRODUCED A REPORT, SUMMER LEARNING AND BEYOND: OPPORTUNITIES FOR CREATING EQUITY, TO SUPPORT SCHOOLS AND DISTRICTS IN DEVELOPING SYSTEMS THAT ARE EQUITABLE, RIGOROUS, AND MEANINGFUL IN THE PANDEMIC AND POST-PANDEMIC WORLD. THIS REPORT SYNTHESIZES CUTTING-EDGE RESEARCH ON THE SCIENCE OF LEARNING TO PROVIDE GUIDELINES FOR HOW WE CAN ADDRESS WHOLE CHILD LEARNING AND AVOID RETURNING TO THE "OLD NORMAL." IN THE AREA OF EDUCATOR QUALITY, LPI CONTINUED ITS WORK LEADING THE EDUCATOR PREPARATION LABORATORY, WHICH LAUNCHED IN 2019 IN PARTNERSHIP WITH BANK STREET GRADUATE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION. THE LAB WORKS TO CHANGE THE LANDSCAPE OF TEACHER AND LEADER PREPARATION BY SUPPORTING AND GUIDING THE COLLABORATION OF PREPARATION PROGRAMS, SCHOOL DISTRICTS, AND STATE POLICYMAKERS, INCLUDING BY ENGAGING MEMBERS AND THEIR PARTNER DISTRICTS IN DESIGN-BASED ACTION RESEARCH ON PROBLEMS OF PRACTICE. LPI PRODUCED A NEW REPORT ON HOW TEACHER WORKPLACE CONDITIONS CAN INFLUENCE THE OVERALL QUALITY OF TEACHING, TEACHER RETENTION, AND SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT IN NORTH CAROLINA. WE ALSO IDENTIFIED A SET OF POLICY STRATEGIES TO IMPROVE AND ADVANCE THE PREPARATION OF A WELL-QUALIFIED AND EQUITABLY DISTRIBUTED TEACHER WORKFORCE IN WEST VIRGINIA. IN CALIFORNIA, WE CONDUCTED AN ANALYSIS OF HOW THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC IMPACTED THE TEACHER WORKFORCE, SHEDDING LIGHT ON SUSTAINABLE STRATEGIES INCLUDING HIGH-RETENTION PATHWAYS AND FINANCIAL SUPPORTS.IN THE AREA OF EARLY CHILDHOOD LEARNING, LPI CONTINUED TO CONDUCT RESEARCH TO INFORM POLICYMAKERS' EFFORTS TO PROVIDE UNIVERSAL ACCESS TO HIGH-QUALITY EARLY LEARNING. DESPITE THE LONG-TERM BENEFITS OF EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION (ECE) AND WIDESPREAD PUBLIC SUPPORT FOR ECE PROGRAMS, MANY CHILDREN LACK ACCESS TO INTEGRATED, INCLUSIVE EARLY LEARNING EXPERIENCES BEFORE KINDERGARTEN. TO INFORM EFFORTS TO BUILD A HIGH-QUALITY, EQUITABLE ECE SYSTEM, LPI PRODUCED A BRIEF ON WHAT IT WILL TAKE TO BUILD A NATIONAL EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION SYSTEM THAT WORKS AND REPORTS AND BRIEFS ON THE ELEMENTS OF EARLY EDUCATION PROGRAMS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO STRONG ACADEMIC AND SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL OUTCOMES FOR CHILDREN. MOREOVER, TO CLARIFY WHAT IS KNOWN ABOUT COVID-19 TRANSMISSION IN EARLY EDUCATION PROGRAMS, LPI RESEARCHERS SYNTHESIZED STUDIES FROM AROUND THE WORLD THAT EXPLORE TRANSMISSION RATES AND MITIGATION STRATEGIES IN THESE PROGRAMS. IN THE AREA OF EQUITABLE RESOURCES AND ACCESS, LPI UNDERTOOK A NUMBER OF PROJECTS FOCUSING ON EQUITABLE ACCESS TO HIGH-QUALITY SCHOOLING. WE PUBLISHED A REPORT ON ADVANCING INTEGRATION AND EQUITY THROUGH MAGNET SCHOOLS, DRAWING UPON RESEARCH FINDINGS TO IDENTIFY THE COMPONENTS FOUND IN MAGNET SCHOOLS THAT ARE BOTH DIVERSE AND EDUCATIONALLY EFFECTIVE. ANOTHER PROJECT HIGHLIGHTED THE FACT THAT EQUITABLE ACCESS TO ADVANCED COURSES REMAINS OUT OF REACH FOR MANY STUDENTS, PARTICULARLY STUDENTS OF COLOR AND STUDENTS FROM LOW-INCOME FAMILIES. IN NORTH CAROLINA, WE EXAMINED THE CONDITIONS IN AND AROUND HIGH-POVERTY SCHOOLS AND OFFERED EVIDENCE-BASED RECOMMENDATIONS TO PROVIDE STUDENTS WITH THE RESOURCES AND OPPORTUNITIES THEY NEED. IN THE AREA OF WHOLE CHILD EDUCATION, LPI PUBLISHED A MAJOR REPORT ON HOW TO PUT THE SCIENCE OF LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT INTO ACTION IN SCHOOLS. THE REPORT OUTLINES HOW SCHOOLS CAN UTILIZE THE SCIENCE OF LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT TO RESHAPE SYSTEMS, STRUCTURES, AND PRACTICES TO IMPROVE STUDENT OUTCOMES. RELATED REPORTS FOCUSED ON BUILDING A POSITIVE SCHOOL CLIMATE AND RESTORATIVE PRACTICES SO THAT SCHOOLS ARE SPACES WHERE YOUNG PEOPLE ARE KNOWN, SUPPORTED, AND CAN THRIVE. TO ILLUSTRATE THESE PRACTICES, WE PUBLISHED CASES OF SCHOOLS SUCCESSFULLY INTEGRATING THE SCIENCE OF LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT INTO CLASSROOM LIFE. LPI HAS ALSO CONTINUED ITS WORK INVESTIGATING AND LAYING OUT THE EVIDENCE-BASED PRINCIPLES OF HIGH-QUALITY COMMUNITY SCHOOLS, WHICH HAVE PROVEN TO BE A SUCCESSFUL APPROACH FOR ADVANCING WHOLE CHILD EDUCATION, ALIGNED WITH THE SCIENCE OF LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT.