Washington and District of Columbia State Boards of Education Awarded Deeper Learning Stipends
For Immediate Release: September 15, 2017
Contact: Renee Rybak Lang, renee.lang@nasbe.org, 703-740-4841
Washington and District of Columbia State Boards of Education Awarded Deeper Learning Stipends
Alexandria, Va. – The National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) has awarded stipends to two state boards of education—the District of Columbia and Washington—to support these states in their work to identify, develop, and align policies to foster a comprehensive state education system centered on deeper learning. Each $9,000 grant will support policy efforts in these states through July 2018.
The U.S. knowledge economy demands that students not only master academic content but also think critically and solve problems, communicate and collaborate effectively, and exhibit self-awareness, learning-to-learn, and a growth mind-set. As highlighted in NASBE’s 2015 Education Leaders Report, Deeper Learning: Policies for a 21st Century Education, classrooms across the country have sought to build these competencies—referred to as deeper learning skills—for decades. But as states refocus their K-12 education systems on college, career, and civic readiness, there is renewed urgency around enabling all students to excel in these competencies rather than just a few.
Over the next year, two state boards of education will be working to provide significantly more students with deeper learning opportunities.
- The D.C. State Board of Education plans to use the grant funds to support its High School Graduation Requirements Task Force. The funds will enhance the Board’s ability to increase graduates’ college and career readiness, leverage deeper learning strategies to increase equity in D.C. schools, and consider rigorous alternative pathways to graduation that respect students’ different postsecondary goals.
- The Washington state board will extend its current membership in NASBE’s deeper learning state network for another year to build on its work in college and career readiness in two areas: 1) equity—closing gaps in the opportunity for meaningful deeper learning for underserved student populations—and 2) system alignment to harness the innovative work being done in different parts of their education system.
These two states will work with NASBE in developing and piloting a standards-based policy audit process for policymakers and practitioners. The purpose of this tool is to help align policies into a coherent, mutually reinforcing standards-based education system in which deeper learning permeates all components—curriculum, instructional materials, assessment, accountability, and professional learning.
NASBE is the only national organization giving voice and adding value to the nation’s state boards of education. A nonprofit organization founded in 1958, NASBE works to strengthen state leadership in educational policymaking, promote excellence in the education of all students, advocate equality of access to educational opportunity, and ensure continued citizen support for public education. Learn more at www.nasbe.org.
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