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Focus Area:
Innovation and the Future of Learning

At CRPE, we study how public education can evolve to meet the challenges and opportunities of a rapidly changing world. Our research on innovation and the future of learning examines how schools are rethinking teaching and learning models—from personalized and competency-based approaches to the use of technology and AI—to better prepare students for life beyond school. We investigate how these innovations take shape in real contexts, what barriers and enablers schools encounter, and how systems can support sustainable change. Across this work, we aim to understand how schools and communities can design learning environments that are more equitable, adaptable, and responsive to the diverse needs of students.

  • The Lens    

Learning Outside of School: Lessons from ReSchool Colorado’s First Year

Betheny Gross, Travis Pillow

The start of spring brings a source of stress for some parents; it’s time to figure out what their children will do over the summer.

  • Research Reports    

Expanding Access to Out-of-School Learning: Lessons from Year 1 at ReSchool Colorado

Betheny Gross, Michael DeArmond

This brief provides an initial, formative assessment of lessons learned in the first year of ReSchool Colorado’s initiatives to expand access to out-of-school learning opportunities for children in the Denver area.

  • The Lens    

Chicago’s mayor sees through the fog on school autonomy

Paul Hill

In politics, there is nothing like a hard knock to focus the mind. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel tells how this happened for him.

  • The Lens    

How a proposal for flexible funding can help families close the enrichment gap

Travis Pillow, Ashley Jochim

In education policy debates, we often talk about inequality as if it was primarily driven by learning that happens—or doesn’t happen—in schools.

  • The Lens    

Trust, Autonomy, Achievement Gap — 3 Areas Where Ferebee’s Work in Indianapolis Could Help Him Succeed as D.C. Chancellor

Sean Gill, Shannon Murtagh

It’s perhaps no surprise that Mayor Muriel Bowser selected Lewis Ferebee to be the next chancellor of D.C. Public Schools. His work at Indianapolis Public Schools made him a rising star nationally.

  • Research Reports    

Thinking Forward: New Ideas for a New Era of Public Education

Robin Lake, Travis Pillow, Betheny Gross, Michael DeArmond, Tom Coyne

These essays rethink foundational aspects of the current education system and offer new ideas to shift the lens from schools to students. 

  • The Lens    

A New School Takes Root in New Orleans—And Races Against Time

Travis Pillow

Twenty-five years ago CRPE was founded on the idea of the school as the locus of change. Today we are reexamining our old assumptions in light of new technical possibilities, changes in the economy, and a recognition that even the most effective schools may need to develop new approaches to better serve students whose needs warrant more individualized learning pathways or supports.

  • The Lens    

States Don’t Need to Wait on a Congressional Investigation to Improve Online Charter School Oversight

Robin Lake

Once again, virtual charter schools are coming under heavy scrutiny. Last week, the Center for American Progress published a report that called for banning for-profit online charter school operators.

  • Research Reports    

The Uncertain Future of Teaching

Michael DeArmond, Christine Campbell, Paul Hill

This essay explores the need for new models that expand who works with students and differentiate teaching roles to a far greater degree.

  • Research Reports    

Mind the Gap: Will All Students Benefit From 21st Century Learning?

Tricia Maas, Ashley Jochim, Betheny Gross

CRPE researchers find inequities in current 21st century learning approaches and recommend strategies to deliver better learning opportunities for all students.

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