Supporting States & Districts to Implement Student-Centered & Deeper Learning Practices

In partnership with

At a Glance

Think critically. Communicate effectively. Solve complex problems. We help high schools, colleges, and employers engage underserved learners and improve these essential skills for life.

Capabilities

Design

Invest

Scale

Influence

Areas of Work

Ensuring Equity in Advancement
Preparing for the Future of Work

Topics

Experts Involved

Stephanie Malia Krauss

Senior Advisor
Adria Steinberg

Senior Advisor

Status

In progress

Locations

Sections

Framework

Research

Tools and Resources

Our Team

We want to increase the number of teachers developing and students experiencing performance assessments aligned with deeper learning competencies. We use a framework, resources, and expertise to support districts, states, and community colleges in implementing student-centered approaches that increase deeper learning outcomes for low-income and marginalized populations.

The Students at the Center framework defines a core set of research-backed principles that are known to drive powerful teaching and learning and designed to ensure that all students develop the sorts of high-level knowledge, skills, and dispositions they need to succeed in college, careers, and civic life. These four key principles of student-centered learning—drawn from the mind/brain sciences, learning theory, and research on youth development—are overlapping and complementary. In combination, and when guided by a coherent and rigorous set of educational goals, they provide a strong foundation for the pursuit of deeper learning.

Explore the Framework

JFF launched Students at the Center by commissioning teams of distinguished scholars to synthesize existing research on student motivation and engagement, cognitive development, school improvement, and efforts to take effective teaching practices to scale. The project has since commissioned its second set of white papers, analyzing research and describing policy strategies that promise to support deeper learning in the nation’s schools.

The papers are currently organized under the following topics:

Curricular Opportunities in the Digital Age Teachers at Work—Six Exemplars of Everyday Practice The Role of Digital Technologies in Deeper Learning Deeper Teaching

A New Era for Educational Assessment Assessing Learning

The Past and the Promise: Today's Competency Education Movement Equity in Competency Education: Realizing the Potential, Overcoming the Obstacles

The Role of Digital Technologies in Deeper Learning Curricular Opportunities in the Digital Age

Literacy Practices for African-American Male Adolescents Latino/a and Black Students and Mathematics Equity in Competency Education: Realizing the Potential, Overcoming the Obstacles Deeper Learning for Students with Disabilities Equal Opportunity for Deeper Learning The Implications of Deeper Learning for Adolescent Immigrants and English Language Learners

Mind, Brain, and Education Motivation, Engagement, and Student Voice

Let's Get Real: Deeper Learning and the Power of the Workplace Civic Education and Deeper Learning The Why, What, Where, and How of Deeper Learning in American Secondary Schools

Personalization in Schools Changing School District Practices How School Districts Can Support Deeper Learning: The Need for Performance Alignment The Why, What, Where, and How of Deeper Learning in American Secondary Schools Effective Schools for Deeper Learning: An Exploratory Study

Students at the Center Hub

The Students at the Center Hub is a resource for educators, families, students, and communities wanting to learn more about research, best practices, supportive policies, and how to talk about student-centered approaches to learning. The Students at the Center Hub is managed by JFF and generously funded by the Nellie Mae Education Foundation.

Access the Students at the Center Hub