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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    

Bringing Data to the School Enrollment Game

Steven Hodas

The recent New York Times article on New York City’s high school admissions process describes how the incorporation of game theory into an algorithm for matching students with schools has substantially increased the rates at which students are matched to schools of their choosing.

  • The Lens    

inBloom and the Failure of Innovation 1.0

Steven Hodas

Michael Horn’s recent piece on the failure of inBloom captures why it was the very opposite of a disruptive innovation from a markets perspective, as well the fatal blind spots and judgment errors present from its inception.

  • The Lens    

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: An Insider’s Perspective on Urban District Innovation

Steven Hodas

Steven Hodas (@stevenhodas) is a veteran of both the New York City Department of Education and the edtech industry. In this blog series, School District Innovation: When Practice Collides with Policy, he provides insights into the challenges, struggles, and opportunities of large-district attempts to reform longstanding practices and change cultural norms.

  • The Lens    

Market-Based Accountability Won’t Be Enough

Robin Lake

This blog was first posted on 6/11/2014 at redefinED, as part of their series on the future of parental choice and accountability.

  • The Lens    

Keeping Personalized Learning Schools on Track

Larry Miller, Betheny Gross

This blog was originally published by the National Association of Charter School Authorizers, June 5, 2014 Charter schools are leading the nation in seeking new ways to personalize learning with a blend of teacher-led and technology-based instruction.

  • Research Reports    

Policy Barriers to School Improvement: What’s Real and What’s Imagined?

Larry Miller

This report examines federal, state, and district barriers that principals say hinder their ability to make innovative school improvements.

  • The Lens    

Innovation in Progress: Proceed with Caution

Tricia Maas

A new study released last week provides first glimpses at how blended learning is affecting student performance. The report, published by the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation and SRI International, is rich with information about blended-learning programs and implementation details, but the study’s new contribution to the field is that it presents an impact analysis of K–12 blended-learning programs.

  • Research Reports    

Is Personalized Learning Meeting Its Productivity Promise? Early Lessons from Pioneering Schools

Larry Miller, Betheny Gross, Robin Lake

This fiscal analysis finds that early difficulties forecasting enrollment and revenue can undermine implementation of personalized-learning models that blend computer-based and teacher-led instruction.

  • The Lens    

To Survive, Charters Cannot Ignore the Bottom Line

Marguerite Roza

by Marguerite Roza By now, most people in the education world have come to terms with the notion that resources are likely to be highly constrained in the years ahead.

  • The Lens    

Tech-Based Learning: The New Frontier for Charters?

Michael Horn

by Michael Horn When charter schools were created in the 1990s, they were intended to spur innovation in America’s K–12 school system.

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