PACE is bringing back its publication, Conditions of Education in California, to keep the focus on the long-term education reforms required by California. Six policy scholars have contributed to this edition, providing baseline data on school performance and recommendations for policy changes to support long-term improvement. PACE plans to continue regular publication of this report to track progress towards a more effective educational system in California.

This report discusses key education policy challenges in California, including funding, teacher quality, achievement gaps, and school accountability. The report highlights the need for equitable funding and effective teacher training and retention programs to address these issues. It also emphasizes the importance of holding schools accountable for student achievement and providing targeted support to struggling schools. The report concludes by calling for sustained attention to these critical education issues to ensure that all California students have access to a high-quality education.

The Teaching and California's Future initiative provides policymakers with data on the teacher workforce and labor market. The initiative's annual report details teacher development policies and their impact on teacher quality and distribution. The goal is to help policymakers make informed decisions about strengthening the state's teacher workforce.

The quality of teaching and the need to expand California's ranks of excellent teachers demand urgent public discussion. We must attract the best and brightest to teaching, prepare them effectively, and support and retain them. Solutions require bipartisan leadership, not spin. This report presents the latest research and projections, highlighting that while some numbers are improving, we're likely to face severe shortages again soon and the pipeline for recruiting, preparing, and training teachers has substantial problems.

California's aging teacher workforce will lead to a significant demand for teachers, with shortages particularly in special education and secondary education. The number of underprepared teachers in low-performing schools serving minority, poor, and ELL students is disproportionate. Budget cuts have reduced funding for recruitment and professional development programs, and California's induction system needs refinement. Curriculum-based professional development programs have mainly targeted elementary school teachers, neglecting the training needs of secondary teachers.

This report argues that the state of California needs to prioritize better education for all children with a sustained long-term investment of resources and leadership. Despite political upheaval and fiscal problems, there is a consensus for better education. The authors suggest that the issue requires a response as intense and sustained as the state's response to natural disasters, and calls for a system of teacher development to ensure all teachers have the necessary knowledge and skills to meet academic standards.

This report presents findings from the third annual evaluation of Partnership Academy Programs in CA, a high school-based, state-funded program with a school-within-a-school administrative structure that enrolls at-risk students with academic potential. The program provides students with basic job skills in a promising labor-market field and support from local businesses, including curriculum development, guest speakers, field trips, mentors, and work experience positions. The evaluation addresses the quality of program implementation and the degree to which programs follow the academy model.

This report provides social indicators to evaluate the quality of life for children in California, covering physical and mental health, safety, sexual behavior, academic achievement, and the settings and systems that serve children. Despite most children being healthier and better schooled than in the past, recent polls indicate concern about child-rearing and the likelihood of an expanding educational underclass. The report aims to offer a portrait of the quality of California's children, address gaps in available data, and provide limited policy recommendations.

In the fall of 1985, ten academy programs were established by the State of California as replications of the Peninsula Academies. PACE evaluated these 10 academies in 1985–86. This report presents findings from a second evaluation covering the academies' 1986–87 school year.

The fourth edition of Conditions of Education in California has expanded its content to include a special features section on education reform processes, along with the previously included sections. The publication is based on compiled information from other sources and original data collection and analysis. The format has been altered to improve readability for a wide range of audiences.

In 1983, California's Senate Bill 813 aimed to improve the education system by proposing a large number of reforms. However, it lacked a cohesive strategy and proven philosophy. The bill's impact on school districts and schools was unknown, and this study aimed to assess whether selected schools could implement the reform components and whether they contributed to school improvement. The goal was to understand how schools reacted to state mandates and inducements for improvement.

California's education system faced a decline in the early 1980s, prompting reforms such as a common core curriculum, higher graduation requirements, and tougher academic standards. A Nation at Risk report further pushed for nationwide school changes. California's swift response led to the enactment of Senate Bill 813, a comprehensive education reform program with over 80 policy and program reforms. Several studies showed positive results, but the study in this report aims to determine how state-level education reforms improved local schools.

Continuing growth and sustained progress on educational reform characterize California's public schools, but the Gann spending limit, which potentially restricts state dollars for education, and projected shortages of highly qualified teachers dampen prospects for continued educational improvements. Indications of important educational progress in California, which PACE documented in Conditions of Education in California, 1985, continue on many fronts. This is particularly true when compared to the recent decade of serious decline in California's public school system.

This technical report provides an overview of California's educational system, intended for educators, public officials, journalists, and informed citizens. With over four million students and a $17 billion annual cost, the state's school system is vast and complex. The report offers comparisons of California's education system to itself in prior years and other states, revealing patterns of change and suggesting future trends. These trends serve as a guide for the many facts and figures presented in the report.

This study examines curricular changes in California high schools from 1982-85, as educational reforms aimed to enhance academic rigor. Findings show increased offerings in academic subjects like math, science, and advanced placement, and decreased offerings in areas such as industrial arts, home economics, and business education. The data aligns with statewide curricular changes, likely influenced by mandates for more extensive graduation requirements and alterations to university entrance requirements.

Comprehensive school guidance programs attempt to address a range of student needs on personal, social, career, and academic dimensions. Many guidance and counseling programs, however, have suffered cutbacks in recent years even though students continue to be in need of guidance, and students themselves have expressed a desire for assistance.

The first in a series of annual reports on education in California aims to assess school performance objectively. It summarizes data on demography, academic performance, curriculum, personnel, and finances. Highlighting California's 1983 education reform effort, the report provides a baseline for assessing future reforms, with successive reports addressing the same dimensions. It focuses on K-12 public schools but also includes some data on nonpublic and postsecondary education.