Policy

Great Start California: Advancing the California Department of Education’s P-3 Vision

This report aims to activate organizational and system change within California’s state education agencies — the California Department of Education (CDE) and Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) — that will inspire leaders at every level to embrace P-3 as fundamentally different from the status quo and to galvanize new and stronger partnerships among early care …

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Transitions to Kindergarten in Colorado: A Roadmap

This Roadmap provides a system-level vision for the state of Colorado to plan and provide support to families, early care and education (ECE) providers, PreK-12 educators, and other professionals to ensure all children experience successful transitions to kindergarten. The document highlights strategies at both state and local levels, and for both “sending” (ECE) and “receiving” …

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Transition to Kindergarten: Findings from Recent Research

This brief provides a review of recent research (2016-2021) on transitions to kindergarten. It focuses on [a] transition practices that children and families may experience directly; and [b] the policy levers that state and local policymakers can enact to support effective transitions to kindergarten. This brief was prepared for Education Commission of the States as …

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School-based PreK, Kindergarten, and the Early Grades: Fall Re-Entry Planning in a Pandemic

As states and school districts navigate plans for Fall 2020, we are hosting a series of conversations with education decisionmakers in state education agencies (SEAs) and school districts. We believe better and smarter ideas emerge when colleagues have the space for open discussion and deliberation. This resource provides a summary of our conversations to date and …

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PreK-3 Alignment: Challenges and Opportunities in California

What types of PreK-3rd grade alignment efforts are school districts making? What challenges are they encountering? In what ways does state policy facilitate or hinder alignment efforts? A new study by Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE) examined these questions. The authors interviewed representatives from 25 districts that have preschools on one or more of …

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Using Local, State, and Federal Dollars to Improve Pre-K to K Transitions

This report discusses why transitions from PreK to K matter, highlighting effective transition and alignment practices, explaining funding streams that can support transition planning and activities, and sharing state and local examples. The authors conclude with action steps for states, school districts, and elementary schools to consider to ensure smooth transitions into kindergarten using federal, …

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North Carolina Should Focus on Early Childhood Learning in Order to Raise Achievement in Predominantly Disadvantaged School Districts

To raise achievement in predominantly disadvantaged school districts, the Program Evaluation Division (PED) of the North Carolina General Assembly recommended focusing on early childhood learning, defined as the years birth through 3rd grade. The PED summarized their work: “predominantly disadvantaged districts that perform well [average or better on standardized state tests] are already demonstrating above …

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Practical Guide for State Education Agencies to Promote Success of English Learners PreK-Grade 3

This report provides a series of recommendations to state education agencies and early childhood education partners that are aligned with the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) publication, Promoting the Educational Success for Children and Youth Learning English (2017). The report aims to support coherent, research-based policy by guiding thinking, discussion, data collection, …

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