K-12 Education

Parents, educators and now students are caught in the polarized debate over mask and vaccine mandates. Officials are worried communities might not recover.

A top state health official provided little new information on Monday. Public health experts say it might be time to take more steps towards normalcy at schools.

The omicron variant of COVID-19 has hit California’s teacher workforce so hard that many schools are weighing closure and in some cases forced to dip into emergency days. The quality of instruction is suffering, but some teachers say they still prefer this to remote instruction.

At least 40 California schools have tried to implement their own vaccine mandate ahead of the state mandate that will take effect next fall.

Without help from the state, California’s school districts could face a sudden drop in funding after two years of not being penalized for declining enrollment.

Back in 2014, San Francisco adopted one of the core ideas in the state’s proposed math framework. So far, the results aren’t completely promising.

In the push to help more students thrive in science, tech, engineering and math, California is working to change the way its schools teach math. But the suggested new framework has sparked widespread criticism.

While the state is the first to offer free breakfast and lunch to all students, California schools aren’t required to provide meals that adhere to students’ religious or cultural beliefs. This has an especially big impact on Muslim students.

Experts and educators expect long-term benefits for students, but some groups remain critical of the mandate as they continue to erroneously conflate the curriculum with critical race theory.

California’s recently issued COVID-19 vaccination mandate allows students and staff to opt out for religious or ideological reasons. While a small minority are expected to leave their schools over this mandate, a key lawmaker says he may push legislation to eliminate the personal belief exemption.