The K-12 Education team recognizes that no education reform effort can be successful without teachers. High-quality teaching is essential to all efforts to improve students’ learning and has the greatest impact for students who are mostly likely to start school behind their peers academically. For too long, teachers have been an afterthought, underpaid and undervalued. We are working to modernize and elevate the teaching profession so that teachers receive the training, pay, and respect they deserve, and every student has access to high-quality teachers.
See the K-12 Education team’s other core priority areas:
As the United States recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic and schools return to in-person learning in the fall, it is key that educators learn from the successes of the past year and avoid making the same mistakes.
A growing number of students are enrolling in alternative certification programs for teachers run by operators outside colleges.
The next presidential administration must take immediate, bold action to provide a quality education for every child.
General education teachers must be explicitly taught how to work with all students, including those with disabilities.
Enrollment in teacher preparation programs has seen declines, but identifying the problem is only the beginning.
Numerous studies underscore the effects of high-quality curricula on student achievement, but to achieve the intended goal of adopting such curricula, careful attention must be paid to the implementation process.
Black and Latinx students’ disparate experiences with student loan debt compared with their white counterparts may affect their choice to enter or stay in the teaching profession.
The time is now for policymakers to take a bold and comprehensive approach to K-12 education.
In states with the lowest teacher pay, teacher protests have been common, as has legislative action to increase salaries.
CAP analysis found that homework is generally aligned to Common Core State Standards, but additional policy changes would make it more valuable.
From teacher pay to school infrastructure to workforce readiness, new governors should move quickly to advance key education priorities in their states.
This report provides an analysis of the instructional materials used by the 30 largest school districts in the country.
Because teachers’ compensation should reflect the importance of their work, CAP proposes a $10,000 federal Teacher Tax Credit that would increase pay for eligible teachers in high-poverty schools.
Teachers across the country are underpaid and deserve a raise.
A progressive education policy agenda should focus on putting economic mobility and opportunity within reach for all.
