WestEd

🎧 Tune into Leading Voices Episode 26: How Education Leaders Can Identify Trustworthy Research for Stronger Decision-Making with Kirk Walters, Vice President of WestEd's Center for Teaching and Learning: https://bit.ly/3VYgEpp In this episode, Walters shares practical guidance for evaluating the quality and relevance of education research. He offers strategies for building a culture of evidence-based decision-making that supports effective implementation and better outcomes for students. Are you an education leader seeking support in navigating research when time is limited? Learn more about how we can help you through rigorous research and evaluation studies and see examples of our impact: https://bit.ly/4eg1vpK

New Leading Together webinar series featuring experts from the Center for Economic Mobility at WestEd 👋 Sign up for the FIRST webinar on 10/21 at 12pm PT/3pm ET! Kathy Booth, Rachel Antrobus, Ed.D., Randal Tillery, John Brauer, Meghan R. McBride, Ed.D., and Debi Pezzuto will lead engaging 30-minute discussions on strengthening pathways to economic mobility through education and industry partnerships. Register today to explore more ways to support your thriving communities! ⬇️

SEA, LEA, and charter school leaders, are you ready to strengthen your fiscal practices and build proactive systems for navigating federal requirements? There's still time to register for our Federal Finance In-Person Training, October 27–29, in Scottsdale, Arizona! WestEd funding and fiscal implementation experts will provide practical strategies and real-time updates to help leaders anticipate the implications of changes in their current environment and operations. Here’s what previous participants had to say about their experience in this training: “Being in a job that requires so much finance knowledge can be overwhelming. Y’all do a great job of presenting and explaining. I learn every time I attend one of your sessions.” — Patricia Keaney, Director of Special Education, Pascagoula-Gautier School District, MS “I enjoyed the length, lightness, and attentiveness of the presenters and appreciated the interactive polls, quizzes, and explanations provided to participants.” —Jean Marie Ball, Assistant Comptroller for Elizabeth Board of Education, NJ Learn more and sign up today! https://bit.ly/4s0vKp9

Regular attendance is a strong predictor of academic success, but when attendance strategies are predominantly compliance-driven, they often fall short of addressing the barriers keeping students out of school. In this brief from WestEd's Western Educational Equity Assistance Center, Rebeca Cerna and Laura Buckner offer a different approach: human-centered leadership grounded in empathy, flexibility, and collaboration. The brief organizes guidance around three levels of action: • Individual: leaders examine their own mindsets about absences • Collective: staff, students, and families learn from shared data together • Systems: leaders adapt policies and routines for the students least well served by current approaches Each section includes reflection questions and "Try It Out" activities you can use right away. ⬇️ Let us know in the comments: What's one thing your school or district has done that changed how you think about attendance?

Where to find WestEd through the end of October 🎃 The next two weeks are full of in-person and virtual events, and we’re looking forward to sharing sound evidence and scalable solutions across communities and for all learners! Here's a roundup of conferences, events, and professional learning opportunities: • October 20, 12pm PT/3pm ET: Register for "Improving Math Outcomes for Adult Learners: Instructional Practices and Resources," a 30-minute Leading Together webinar for adult education leaders and practitioners (virtual): https://lnkd.in/gtKQWNqa • October 20, 12pm PT/3pm ET: Hear how rural California counties are building school behavioral health systems in this BHSSA Evaluation webinar (virtual): https://lnkd.in/ec47mJq6 • October 20, 12pm PT/3pm ET: California charter school leaders, join the STACS "Continuous Learning Network: Building Peer-to-Peer Connection" webinar (virtual): https://lnkd.in/eX4TaGJF • October 20, 12pm PT/ 3pm ET: Register for REL West's webinar introducing the Toolkit for Teaching K–3 Reading Comprehension (virtual): https://lnkd.in/emFMC4Hh • October 21, 12pm PT/3pm ET: "Strategies for Improving the ROI of Higher Education," the first 30-minute Leading Together webinar in a series with experts from the Center for Economic Mobility at WestEd (virtual): https://lnkd.in/ercPepgG • October 22, 11am PT/2pm ET: Join "Quality Math Talk for Grades 6–8" with WestEd's Dr. Haiwen Chu and Lindsey Tropf, Founder and CEO, Immersed Games (virtual): https://lnkd.in/gj7QcpEB • October 26–28: Meet our math experts at the NCSM Annual Conference in Denver, Colorado: https://lnkd.in/ejsgwjii • October 27–29: Visit WestEd at the CA Assessment Conference in Riverside, California: https://lnkd.in/eN9av9_N • October 27–29: Connect with WestEd at the ZERO TO THREE LEARN Conference in Portland, Oregon: https://lnkd.in/e2ma9dQe • October 27–29: Register for our Federal Finance Training in Scottsdale, Arizona: https://lnkd.in/e4Wr53C4 • October 28–31: Join WestEd researchers at the NCTM Annual Meeting & Exposition in Denver, Colorado: https://lnkd.in/gCSeNFGK Click through to view the full session lineups and speakers for each event. 📆 Which events are you planning to join? Let us know in the comments!

When calculus is the only advanced math option, too many students never find a pathway that fits their goals. States that create multiple, well-supported math pathways give more students the chance to succeed in math that is relevant to their futures. We’re proud to announce that the State of Math Pathways 2026 report is now live, the result of a partnership between WestEd and the Charles A. Dana Center at The University of Texas at Austin. This report is the most comprehensive national assessment yet of how states are building coherent math pathways from high school through postsecondary education and into careers, with 29 structural indicators assessed across all 50 states and D.C., plus a deeper six-state data pilot. 🤝 Key takeaway: states with clear governance, shared accountability, and formal cross-sector partnerships are making meaningful progress toward aligned pathways. 📑 Explore the full report and interactive dashboard: https://lnkd.in/eUzrMuVY 🌟 Thank you to our partners at the Charles A. Dana Center and to the WestEd team Quay Dorsey, Valentin Pedroza, Theodora Koumoutsakis, MA, Farnel Maxime, Mari Mendoza, Nisha Bala, Kathy Booth, Ann Edwards, and Angela Knotts, whose research, evaluation, and data visualization work made this all possible.

How can state leaders and adult educators help expand adult learners' access to effective math learning opportunities? Join WestEd for this 30-minute Leading Together webinar on October 20 at 12 p.m. PT/3 p.m. ET to explore the Adult Numeracy in the Digital Era (ANDE) course, a no-cost open educational resource for adult learners, including those working toward a GED. WestEd experts Dr. Ashli-Ann Douglas, Bryan Matlen, and Brent Jackson will share evaluation findings and success stories, and discuss: • What ANDE is and how the course works • What the research shows about its impact on adult learners' math knowledge • How programs can implement ANDE across different adult education settings 📌 Register today: https://bit.ly/4i6wF5f

Chronic absenteeism fell from 60 to 28 percent at one New Mexico school. Principal Julie Maestas shares what's changing in classrooms. In this new In Their Words story, Maestas describes how Rio Grande Preparatory Institute is strengthening instruction and elevating student voices. She also discusses how WestEd's Quality Teaching for English Learners (QTEL) professional learning is supporting deeper learning through discussion, collaboration, and stronger professional learning communities. Swipe through for her reflections on raising expectations, moving beyond one-time training, and changing school culture. 📖 🎧 Read or listen to "A New Mexico School's Shift to Stronger Instruction and Deeper Learning" at WestEd.org: bit.ly/4je4ySL

Adult numeracy is one of the least researched areas in education, even as about one third of U.S. adults (34%) have limited math skills, per NCES 2023 data. To help build the evidence base, WestEd partnered with the Pennsylvania Department of Education to pilot Adult Numeracy in the Digital Era (ANDE), a research-driven course that combines technology with structured instruction rather than relying on digital tools alone. 💡 The findings are encouraging: early evidence from the pilot suggests that a research-based, technology-enabled math course can improve adult learners' math achievement. Stronger outcomes were also linked to instructors' sustained professional learning and to learners having opportunities to discuss their thinking. Learn more about building foundational math skills for adult learners in this new blog by Ashli-Ann Douglas, Bryan Matlen, and Ann Edwards: https://bit.ly/47PqOv6 Access ANDE Open Educational Resource materials: https://bit.ly/4rWKtma

Adopting a new math curriculum often means learning it while teaching it, in real time. ⏳ In the third post of our five-part series on high-quality instructional materials (HQIM), WestEd researchers Sarah Rainier, Maggie Hannan, and Rebecca Perry spoke with teachers and instructional coaches in an urban school district about their experience using Illustrative Mathematics, a curriculum that emphasizes problem-solving and student discourse. Here are some lessons learned for putting new materials into practice: ✅ Classroom community and instruction are connected. Establishing "norms that encourage students to share incomplete ideas and build on one another's thinking" can lead to richer discussion. ✅ Start small with routines, then build. Low-stakes, curriculum-embedded routines like "notice and wonder" help teachers build confidence before tackling everything at once. ✅ Give teachers room to learn incrementally. Coaching, co-planning, modeling, and opportunities to try new instructional approaches all help. ✅ Instructional shifts may require shifts in mindset. Implementing new materials can change not only classroom routines, but also how educators think about teaching, learning, and students' roles. Whether you're a teacher, coach, or leader launching a new high-quality curriculum, these insights can help you support the people at the heart of implementation. Read the full post: https://bit.ly/3VEPzrb