California

News, analysis, and opinion about K-12 education in California
AI Reading BS
Ashley Gutierrez for Education Week
Artificial Intelligence Video These Students Are Using AI to Visualize Their Reading Comprehension
Students learn how to write AI prompts while demonstrating reading comprehension in this middle school classroom.
Jaclyn Borowski & Kaylee Domzalski, November 13, 2025
2:40
Pennsylvania Sen. Lindsey Williams, D-Allegheny, is pictured during a confirmation hearing for acting
Pennsylvania state Sen. Lindsey Williams, a Democrat, is pictured during an education committee hearing on Aug. 12, 2025. Williams is preparing legislation that would create a state-level office of civil rights to investigate potential civil rights violations in schools. Williams is introducing the measure in response to the U.S. Department of Education's slashing of its own office for civil rights.
Courtesy of Pennsylvania Senate Democratic Caucus
Federal Trump’s Ed. Dept. Slashed Civil Rights Enforcement. How States Are Responding
Could a shift in civil rights enforcement be the next example of "returning education to the states?"
Brooke Schultz, November 7, 2025
6 min read
Student Nina Dong, second from left, helps classmates with a project examining the Titanic passenger dataset in Clay Dagler's machine learning class at Franklin High School in Elk Grove, Calif., on March 7, 2025.
Student Nina Dong, second from left, helps classmates with a project examining the Titanic passenger dataset in Clay Dagler's machine learning class at Franklin High School in Elk Grove, Calif., on March 7, 2025.
Max Whittaker for Education Week
Artificial Intelligence Video These Students are Learning the Math That Makes AI Tick
Rather than study how to use AI, students in this machine learning class work with the math that makes the AI work.
Alyson Klein & Kaylee Domzalski, October 30, 2025
1 min read
Second grade students raise their hands in Dalia Gerardo's classroom at West Elementary, in Russellville, Ala., on Dec. 9, 2022.
Second grade students raise their hands in Dalia Gerardo's classroom at West Elementary, in Russellville, Ala., on Dec. 9, 2022. Gerardo is a bilingual educator. Experts say Hispanic educators with bilingual certification can boost English learners' academic performance.
Tamika Moore for Education Week
English Learners Why Bilingual Hispanic Teachers Make a Big Difference for English Learners
A new study found benefits from hiring teachers of color with language certifications.
Ileana Najarro, October 14, 2025
3 min read
Worshippers pray at the Karya Siddhi Hanuman Temple in Frisco, Texas, on Oct. 22, 2022. Worshippers celebrated Dhanteras, which is the first night of the Hindu holiday Diwali.
Worshippers pray at the Karya Siddhi Hanuman Temple in Frisco, Texas, on Oct. 22, 2022, the first night of the Hindu holiday Diwali. More districts are putting Diwali and other non-Christian holidays on school calendars as populations of Asian students increase.
Andy Jacobsohn/AP
Families & the Community As Schools Grow More Culturally Diverse, Calendar Planning Gets More Complicated
Districts have added holidays like Diwali to their calendars to reflect demographic shifts in enrollment.
Evie Blad, October 14, 2025
6 min read
Kanette Yatsattie, 8, left, and classmate Jeremy Candelaria, 10, hang out by a board depicting the race to for best attendance at the school, Oct. 1, 2024, at Algodones Elementary School in Algodones, N.M.
Kanette Yatsattie, 8, left, and classmate Jeremy Candelaria, 10, hang out by a board depicting the race to for best attendance at the school on Oct. 1, 2024, at Algodones Elementary School in Algodones, N.M. New Mexico passed a law in 2019 that shifts schools from punishing truancy to preventing chronic absenteeism, only referring truancy cases to the courts in extreme cases. California is the latest state to change its truancy law, undoing potential criminal penalties like fines or jail time for parents.
Roberto E. Rosales/AP
Families & the Community Should Parents Face Criminal Penalties for Their Children's Poor Attendance?
Schools shift from a punitive approach with penalties for truancy to a greater emphasis on prevention.
Evie Blad, October 7, 2025
7 min read
Conceptual illustration of classroom conversations and fragmented education elements coming together to form a cohesive picture of a book of classroom knowledge.
Sonia Pulido for Education Week
Teaching Opinion Teachers on When Their Administrators Get It Wrong
At times, administrators make decisions without considering the consequences.
Larry Ferlazzo, October 3, 2025
6 min read
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Brenda Amparan leads her first graders in Spanish at Pueblo Elementary School in Scottsdale, Ariz., on Sept. 16, 2025.
Brenda Amparan leads her first graders in Spanish at Pueblo Elementary School in Scottsdale, Ariz., on Sept. 16, 2025. Dual-language programs benefit all students, but there is an accessibility issue for English learners.
Courtney Pedroza for Education Week
English Learners Who Are Dual-Language Immersion Programs Really For?
The answer is all students, but English learners face accessibility barriers.
Jennifer Vilcarino, September 22, 2025
8 min read
Rear view of mixed race teen schoolgirl using a laptop while having online video lesson with teacher, sitting at home.
iStock/Getty
Student Achievement High-Dosage Tutoring for 100K Kids: How a District Settled a Learning Loss Case
The nation's second-largest district agreed to tutoring and other measures to settle a case brought by parents during the pandemic.
Evie Blad, September 12, 2025
4 min read
A sign on a post in Los Angeles reads ''CAUTION ICE'' on Sept. 8, 2025. Immigration enforcement has drawn closer to schools in Los Angeles and beyond.
A sign on a post in Los Angeles reads ''CAUTION ICE'' on Sept. 8, 2025. Immigration enforcement has drawn closer to schools in Los Angeles and beyond.
J.W. Hendricks/NurPhoto via AP
School & District Management Schools Brace as Fears of Immigration Enforcement Rise Among Families
Educators and advocates report immigration arrests inching closer to schools.
Ileana Najarro, September 9, 2025
5 min read
Transitional kindergarten teacher Amy Weisberg helps a young student at Topanga Charter Elementary School in the Topanga district of Los Angeles on Sept. 11, 2012. A California law requires public schools to add a grade level this fall designed to give the very youngest students a boost when they enroll in kindergarten, but charter schools say the law does not apply to them, pitting them against the state Department of Education.
Transitional kindergarten teacher Amy Weisberg helps a young student at Topanga Charter Elementary School in the Topanga district of Los Angeles on Sept. 11, 2012. California will require public schools that offer kindergarten to add free, inclusive prekindergarten this school year.
Nick Ut/AP
Early Childhood Q&A How a State's Transitional Kindergarten Expansion Has Gone So Far
California is gearing up to help more 4-year-olds get ready for kindergarten.
Elizabeth Heubeck, August 1, 2025
6 min read
Teaching Profession Video VIDEO: Veteran Educator Larry Ferlazzo Retires, Reflects on His Career
Ferlazzo will continue his Education Week opinion blog and plans to be a volunteer teacher to incarcerated youth this fall.
Lauren Santucci, July 10, 2025
2:09
AB Hernandez, a transgender student at Jurupa Valley High School, competes in the high jump at the California high school track-and-field championships in Clovis, Calif., May 31, 2025.
AB Hernandez, a transgender student at Jurupa Valley High School, competes in the high jump at the California high school track-and-field championships in Clovis, Calif., May 31, 2025.
Jae C. Hong/AP
Equity & Diversity Trump Sues California Over Law Letting Trans Athletes Compete in K-12 Sports
The Justice Department filed the lawsuit after California on Wednesday refused to repeal its state law.
Lia Russell, The Sacramento Bee, July 9, 2025
5 min read