Pulse #34: What Actually Moved the Needle

We’re committed to hand-selecting the news school leaders need each week. What’s changing, what’s working, and what’s worth paying attention to.

This Week at a Glance:

District leaders looking back pointed to a clear set of practices that actually moved the needle. Progress came when leaders listened more closely to overlooked families and communities, framed remediation in ways that felt respectful and purposeful, and chose technology only after clearly defining the problem. Visual data helped bridge language and cultural gaps with families, and turnarounds held when shared goals were owned from the classroom through central office.

AI use by students and teachers has increased by more than 15 percentage points in the past two years, with over half now using it for schoolwork or instruction. Training and guidance have not scaled at the same pace, leaving many students without clear expectations and many teachers without consistent policy support. Parents and students remain far more concerned than district leaders about impacts on critical thinking and the risk of false cheating accusations.

Effective support for English learners depends on intentional, temporary scaffolds that help students access content and show what they know. Educators point to visuals, simplified texts, structured talk, modeling, extended time, and tools like sentence stems and word banks as high-impact supports. When used thoughtfully and gradually released, scaffolds build independence without watering down rigor.

The federal guarantee that undocumented students can attend public school remains in place, but several states tested its limits in 2025 as immigration politics intensified. Most efforts to charge tuition or require proof of legal status failed or were paused, while states like Illinois and Massachusetts moved to strengthen protections in law. Advocates are watching 2026 closely as political pressure continues despite a long record of courts upholding students’ rights.

Rural students graduate high school at higher rates than their urban peers, but they are less likely to attend college in the years that follow. Limited college recruiting, fewer counseling supports, and gaps in course offerings like physics and chemistry reduce access to four-year pathways. Geography, resources, and hesitation about leaving close-knit communities continue to shape postsecondary outcomes for rural students.

A New York City high school used an AI-powered math platform (Edia) to give students real-time feedback and homework support aligned to classroom instruction. Teachers reported stronger perseverance, clearer insight into student thinking, and better support for multilingual learners through built-in translation. Most students who used the tool consistently showed measurable growth on state algebra exams.

A first-grade teacher in Los Angeles is being recognized for creating a classroom where curiosity, risk-taking, and hands-on work drive learning. By tying lessons to local events and real community problems, students design, build, and test ideas that feel purposeful and personal. It’s a reminder that meaningful learning often looks a little messy—and that’s a good way to start the week.

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