Our policy briefs ask and address contemporary questions in education research. They might offer an in-depth exploration of a new policy, a short description of a proposed program, or simply highlight the ongoing research occurring right here in the PRiME Center.
You can access all of our policy briefs by topic and author below!
In this brief, we highlight poll results on public opinion regarding charter school expansion.
In this brief, we analyze the rapidly changing high school landscape in Saint Louis between 2011-2023.
In this brief, we analyze the newly released state test scores alongside national test score trends over the last five years.
In this brief, we explore the relationship between four-day school week policies and teacher shortages in Missouri.
In this brief, we analyze how varying school district leave benefits might affect the Missouri teacher pipeline - especially among early career female teachers.
In this brief, our partners at Saint Louis Research Practice Collaborative analyze student mobility in Saint Louis schools.
In this brief, we analyze variation in charter and magnet schools based on their curriculum, pedagogy, and student body focus. This is a first-of-its-kind analysis for Missouri.
In this policy brief, we describe Missouri’s current open enrollment policy and outline a current proposal, House Bill 253, being considered to further increase students’ ability to transfer to schools located in other districts. We also discuss key elements of interdistrict open enrollment policies that must be considered in policy design to ensure all students and schools benefit.
In this policy brief, we build on our previous brief, Missouri's School Accountability System, and take a deeper dive into two specific components of school accountability systems—school rating systems and accountability indicator weights. We discuss the weight of academic growth within performance indicators at the elementary and middle school level and consider the proposed changes to these areas under SB 341 and HB 558. We add evidence by examining school accountability systems in states with high growth and conclude by providing policy recommendations based on our findings.
In this policy brief, we describe Missouri’s current accountability system for traditional public and public charter schools—Missouri School Improvement Plan (MSIP) 6—and how it differs from the prior version known as MSIP 5. We add context by detailing federal school accountability system requirements under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which also impacts the work of schools in Missouri.
UPDATED: In this brief, we examine the relationship between changes in the elementary age population in St. Louis City, school closures, school choice, and access to public elementary school options across the city.
This brief examines Missouri’s 2022 NAEP results, which are the first look into NAEP performance after the pandemic. We focus on Missouri’s performance changes over time, gaps between student groups, and comparison to national trends.
This brief considers the demand and supply sides of private school choice in Missouri and how the opinions of voters, parents, and private school leaders diverge on the MOScholars Program.
This brief describes Missouri’s approach to reach its “Big Goal” to have 60% of its working-age adults attain a postsecondary certificate or degree by 2025.
In this brief, our partners at Saint Louis Research Practice Collaborative analyze student mobility in Saint Louis schools.