State Policy Framework
for Personalized Learning
The State Policy Framework for Personalized Learning establishes an end-state policy structure for those seeking to advance the growth of student-centered and competency-based approaches at the state level.
State policy plays a crucial role in driving school and district education practice, including the adoption of personalized, competency-based learning. When well designed, policy and implementation steps can support and advance the work being done in communities throughout a state. When designed poorly, it can act as a hindrance at best and an insurmountable barrier at worst. This third edition of the State Policy Framework is grounded in more than a decade of experience working in states and presents an “end-state” framework for a transformed state policy environment that would support and advance the growth of personalized, competency-based learning.
The framework is divided into eight policy conditions that our extensive field experience shows are necessary to support student-centered learning, including personalized, competency-based education. The conditions are:
Each condition includes several details, including:
- What an evolved state policy environment would look like
- Transformative policies requiring state-level policymakers to exercise formal authority
- Implementation actions that will help readers translate recommendations into action
- State examples that illustrate policy conditions in action
- Additional resources to support deeper exploration
While the eight conditions offer our collective vision of the ideal policy environment, KnowledgeWorks encourages states to consider their own unique realities when developing and implementing policy. Our work supporting nearly two dozen states to build meaningful policy systems suggests that doing so is key to ownership and sustainability.
Statewide Transformation
The State Policy Framework for Personalized Learning helps states and stakeholders define and navigate their pathways to statewide transformation of education systems. If you would prefer to view this as a PDF, you can download it using the link below.Past State Partners
We’ve partnered with states and communities across the U.S. to advance student-centered learning policies.
KnowledgeWorks facilitated a Utah working group focused on student-centered assessment and accountability.
Read more »
KnowledgeWorks created an opportunity analysis and strategy guide for Nevada to support personalized learning opportunities and provided legislative support.
Read more »
KnowledgeWorks created an opportunity analysis and strategy guide for the Association of Metropolitan School Districts to support the organization’s student-centered learning strategy.
Read more »
KnowledgeWorks created high-level policy recommendations to support student-centered personalized learning around educator preparation and higher education admissions.
Read more »
KnowledgeWorks conducted an opportunity analysis and created an innovation guide for Kentucky to support student-centered teaching and learning. The team has also worked with the KUWL Council since 2022 to reimagine the state’s accountability and assessment structures.
Read more »
Policy Conditions
SYSTEM PURPOSE
State policy champions a clear vision for the purpose of the state’s K-12 education system, emphasizing the importance of preparing students with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in a world that is constantly changing. The vision is operationalized through common learning frameworks and policies that integrate high-quality academic content with a focus on personalized, competency-based learning. The state’s vision is implemented through networks and resource creation.Why it matters
States play an important role in shaping the vision and purpose of their K-12 education systems by clarifying what success looks like and making sure systems are progressing toward that vision. A clear, unified statewide vision for K-12 education allows schools and districts to create student-centered education approaches. The state must reinforce this vision through guidance and support as well as an accountability system that emphasizes personalized, competency-based learning. This is essential to building the foundation and capacity needed for local systems to transform what education looks like.
Transformative policies
Student-centered Vision
The state collaboratively creates and communicates a strong vision for K-12 student-centered learning supporting school and district efforts to transform their systems in alignment with this vision. State strategic documents, including higher education and workforce plans, support the public-facing vision. The state’s public-facing federal plans (e.g., the state’s Every Student Succeeds Act plan, its Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act plan, and/or its Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act plan) incorporate this vision where it makes sense. State strategic documents, including rule-making and non-regulatory guidance, are aligned with the vision.
Model State-level Competency Frameworks
State policy directs the development of a model state-level framework and operationalizing documents that establish a foundation for personalized, competency-based learning. These documents articulate the knowledge, durable skills and dispositions students should attain as they progress through a student-centered K-12 system. The frameworks can often be a statewide Profile or Portrait of a Graduate and an aligned set of competencies. The state requires that the model frameworks are crafted in close collaboration with communities, businesses, industry and postsecondary partners. The state commits financial resources to develop these frameworks.
High-quality Academic Content
State policy requires students to master high-quality academic content and higher-level competencies. This is achieved by establishing high-quality academic standards and requirements that will define student proficiency.
Implementation actions
Implementation Leadership
An organization is charged by the state to support schools and districts while they are implementing the state’s vision for personalized, competency-based learning. The organization could take many forms; it could be a separately designated public entity, such as a university, a collection of regional district support organizations or a separate third-party entity, such as a nonprofit organization. The chosen organization creates the model resources detailed in the transformative policies above while providing guidance and technical assistance to schools and districts focused on implementation. It supports schools and districts that want to create their own resources, such as a portrait and aligned competencies.
Technical Assistance for Areas of Greatest Need
Technical assistance, resources and best practices are made available to districts serving historically underserved populations to ensure that they have the capacity to overcome barriers while co-designing personalized, competency-based systems with their communities that will ensure student proficiency in high-quality academic content. The state helps districts implement academic interventions where needed based on data on student performance.
Quality Implementation
Schools and districts receive the feedback and needed supports to effectively and equitably implement the state’s vision for system purpose, either by using the state’s model resources or developing their own.
Statewide Networks
Schools and districts have access to a formal statewide network focused on the state’s framework for personalized, competency-based learning. This network provides opportunities for cross-district collaboration, technical assistance, sharing best practices and locally developed resources.
State examples: UT, NV, WA, KY
Utah Portrait and Aligned Competencies
Utah has developed a detailed statewide Portrait of a Graduate and aligned competencies, which KnowledgeWorks helped create. The state has also crafted a number of tools to support school and district practice. These are featured prominently on the state’s website. The state has also defined the term “personalized, competency-based learning” in statute.
Nevada Future of Learning Network
The Nevada Future of Learning Network represents a collaboration between the Nevada Department of Education (NDE) and the broader community. The network connects educators, community partners, parents and students in the work of developing student-centered learning practices. One of the network’s key activities has been the development of the Portrait of a Nevada Learner, which serves as Nevada’s statewide vision for personalized, competency-based learning. NDE and the network have also developed a statewide phased action plan for advancing competency-based education statewide. KnowledgeWorks has supported this work through a comprehensive state policy analysis and strategy guide and has supported the Nevada Future of Learning Network in developing its Portrait.
Washington Mastery-Based Learning Collaborative
Washington’s Mastery-Based Learning Collaborative launched in 2021. This network has engaged at least 31 school districts in its first two cohorts. The collaborative grew out of legislation first passed in 2019, which established a definition of mastery-based learning, along with an accompanying working group. This working group also established a Profile of a Graduate to act as a statewide vision for this work. A full evaluation of the first three years of cohort 1 can be found here.
Kentucky Portrait Resources
Kentucky crafted a model statewide portrait in response to the dozens of districts across the state that had crafted local portraits and profiles. The state also has a dedicated Division of Innovation charged with supporting schools and districts implementing student-centered learning. The team has crafted an extensive guidance document to support schools and districts seeking to either adopt the statewide portrait or develop their own with aligning competencies. KnowledgeWorks has supported Kentucky by creating the Kentucky Innovation Guide to help districts envision how to undertake similar work in their communities.
POLICY FLEXIBILITY
State policy frees schools and districts from traditional structures, especially those that ground learning in time- and location-based requirements. Balancing broad flexibility for local transformation with guardrails allows the state to safeguard educational quality and equity. Ongoing feedback opportunities help state policymakers identify lingering policy challenges and propose solutions to support transformation. The state department of education and other aligned organizations actively encourage the use of flexibility and share best practices across the state to help them spread.Why it matters
Schools and districts implementing personalized, competency-based learning need to create structures that depart from the way they’ve traditionally run their schools. State policy environments should give schools and districts broad flexibility to build and sustain personalized, competency-based learning environments and practices. These structures should also contain reasonable quality assurance measures that ensure districts continue to fulfill their obligations under state and federal law while they work to transform education. A fully transformed policy environment would make the freedom to innovate the rule rather than the exception.
Transformative policies
Statutorily Protected Flexibility
Policy provides districts with broad flexibility in exploring alternative ways to structure learning. The state may still choose to establish requirements around things like calendars, start dates and instructional minutes; but where these exist, districts should be given leeway to determine how best to meet these requirements through student-centered means.
Statutorily Protected Innovation Opportunities
Schools and districts can easily obtain flexibility from statute or regulation through a state-approved mechanism to create student-centered learning environments. The right to request flexibility should be codified in state statute and should require the state to regularly collect and disseminate information on how it is being used. The specific mechanism could take several forms; some states could create waivers that allow flexibility to be given from state statute and regulation, while others embed such waivers in a pilot program or an innovation zone.
Regular State Policy Audit
Regular audits of state statute, regulation and department of education practice help identify barriers to education transformation, as well as opportunities to provide maximum flexibility for local innovation. These audits are required under state statute and/or regulation, require the involvement of a diverse group of education community members and require that the audit produce recommendations for change that the state can put into practice.
Proficiency-based Credit
Credit for learning is based on student demonstration of proficiency of clearly defined learning expectations, not seat time. State policy outlines the process districts must follow when awarding credit to ensure both quality and equity of implementation while delegating the responsibility for determining student proficiency to districts. State grading and reporting policies, where they exist, facilitate the use of proficiency-based credit.
Implementation actions
Supportive State Department Structures
The state department of education supports schools and districts in taking full advantage of flexibilities to innovate through their organization and staffing structures. Department leadership publicly supports personalized, competency-based approaches. Department staff see encouraging personalized, competency-based learning as a key part of their mission.
Innovation Intermediary
A regional or state-level organization is charged with providing professional support around school transformation, clarifying state policy and giving general technical assistance to schools and districts pursuing personalized, competency-based learning approaches. The organization should be funded at least in part by public dollars, which is important to support long-term sustainability.
Shared Best Practices
The state collects and shares examples of successful personalized, competency-based implementation with policymakers and the public. The state creates feedback loops to provide insights on state policy implementation. This, in turn, informs the creation of guidance or resources to support implementation. The state updates the guidance appropriately in response to feedback. It also takes deliberate steps to ensure historically underserved communities have meaningful input in the design and implementation of each of these steps.
North Dakota Waiver and Mastery Framework
North Dakota codified an innovative waiver program in statute, allowing the superintendent of public instruction to waive several chapters of state statute so long as the waiver is designed to improve overall education for students. The state separately established a procedure called a mastery framework, by which schools may award units of credit based on completion of the relevant portion of the North Dakota Learning Continuum. Districts operating under such a framework are also able to secure flexibility from the state’s instructional time requirements for high school. Districts are not required to seek approval prior to adopting a statewide framework. KnowledgeWorks supported the development of the mastery framework legislation and has long worked to support a statewide network there.
New Hampshire Definition of Instructional Time
New Hampshire was one of the first states in the country to decouple the term “instructional time” from seat time. The state defines “instructional time” as “the period of time during which pupils are actively working toward achieving educational objectives under the supervision of an educator or other staff member.”
Arizona Definition of Instructional Time
Arizona requires that students receive a minimum number of instructional time or hours. Statute also allows schools to deliver annual instructional time or hours through a variety of means, including mastery-based learning along with direct instruction, project-based learning and independent learning.
South Carolina Competency-Based Education Systems
South Carolina statute includes a waiver covering entire districts whereby a district seeking to implement competency-based education can be exempt from state laws, policies and regulations that hinder its implementation. Interested districts must submit a waiver to the state board and must meet other conditions, such as showing evidence of engaging the community. Statute also defines competency-based education, including alignment with the state’s Profile of a Graduate. Lastly, it requires the state higher education community to create policies so that students going into higher education have fair and equitable access to institutions of higher education and technical colleges. More information on flexibilities can be found here.
Montana Variances to Standards
Montana regulation contains a waiver opportunity called Variances to Standards. This opportunity allows local school boards to apply for a waiver from virtually any state regulation in its accreditation standards. The state also collects and publishes detailed information on local waivers, including what was requested and whether they were approved. KnowledgeWorks has supported Montana in building resources to help districts understand how to use flexibilities like Variances to Standards.
FLEXIBLE LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS
AND PATHWAYS
State policy allows all students to access and easily move between flexible student-centered pathways tailored to their needs and interests. This enables students to have a choice in when, where and how they demonstrate proficiency in key knowledge, skills and dispositions. These pathways include both traditional college- and career-ready opportunities, as well as a broader range of community-based learning experiences. The state establishes the resources and partnerships necessary to support statewide implementation.
Why it matters
To truly personalize learning, K-12 education systems need to give students a range of engaging learning experiences connected to local employers, community organizations and postsecondary partners. These pathway opportunities provide students the opportunity to explore topics and careers of interest while simultaneously giving them multiple ways of demonstrating proficiency in key knowledge, skills and dispositions. A system that combines federal- and state-supported college and career pathways and locally designed flexible learning environments is key.
Transformative policies
Equitable Access to Existing Pathways
State policy supports access to high-quality college and career pathways for all students. Pathway opportunities should include but are not limited to career and technical education, dual enrollment, work-based learning, internships and apprenticeships. State and federal funding is used to ensure all students can access these pathways. State policy includes flexibility to engage representatives from business and industry in these opportunities where appropriate, including as instructors. Policies also ensure that students can earn high-quality and valid credentials as informed by business, industry and postsecondary partners and that these credentials lead to positive employment outcomes where possible.
High School Graduation Requirements
State graduation requirements articulate the key knowledge, skills, and dispositions students must master to receive a diploma, as well as any experiences in which they must participate. Requirements allow students to demonstrate proficiency in personalized ways independent of the amount of time spent in a particular class. The requirements also support learners in exploring their individual interests and aspirations. Districts have broad flexibility to develop locally responsive learning pathways and to use methods such as performance tasks or portfolios to assess student proficiency in state requirements. Policy also allows districts to develop their own personalized graduation requirements beyond those required by the state.
Federal Funding
The state explicitly leverages federal workforce funding opportunities to support local expansion of personalized, competency-based pathways for students that connect to in-demand careers. Business and industry play a role in acknowledging these locally created transparent and accessible pathways as high-quality.
Innovative Learning Records
State policy encourages adopting new methods of capturing and recording learning, such as alternative transcripts or learning and employment records. In doing so, policy ensures that sensitive student information is protected. These methods of capturing learning are connected to postsecondary and workforce systems where appropriate. Statute clarifies that innovative transcripts should be treated as equivalent to traditional transcripts when students engage with postsecondary and workforce opportunities and that students using them are not disadvantaged in postsecondary applications, financial aid decisions or direct admissions policies.
Implementation actions
Pathway Guidance
The state collects and shares examples of high-quality, flexible learning pathways. It also provides guidance on how to effectively create locally designed learning environments aligned to state and/or local competency frameworks. This guidance emphasizes the importance of learner voice and choice in choosing and co-designing pathways.
Equitable Access
The state establishes statewide goals for student participation in pathways that reflect the demographics of the learning communities they serve. The state collects information to analyze patterns of access to pathway opportunities, particularly among historically underserved populations and helps districts identify areas for improvement when gaps are identified. These data can be disaggregated by student subgroups to identify and address inequities in pathways. The state’s goals could be articulated through formal policy or through non-policy means.
Navigational Resources
The state provides guidance and resources to help families and students navigate existing pathway opportunities and find those that work best for them. Navigation resources help students and families understand how pathway opportunities connect both to the workforce and postsecondary opportunities. The state may also support the creation of individual career and academic plans for students to help them take ownership of their pathways.
Innovative Learning Record Supports
The state provides support for schools and districts seeking to use innovative tools like proficiency-based transcripts to capture and report student learning. These supports may be provided directly by the state or through secondary providers such as intermediaries, regional professional development organizations or other external partners.
Postsecondary and Workforce Partnerships
The state works to make sure that K-12 education leaders partner directly with business and industry when designing and expanding flexible learning pathways. Partnerships should include co-creating credentials of value.
State examples: CO, RI, VT, NM
Colorado Menu of Options
Colorado defers high school graduation requirements to local school boards, so long as they meet with Colorado’s graduation guidelines. These guidelines include both 21st century essential skills and academic standards. The state has also established a variety of different ways that students can demonstrate what they know to graduate. Colorado’s Menu of College and Career-Ready Demonstrations includes traditional test-based assessments alongside capstones and performance assessments.
Rhode Island Graduation Requirements
Rhode Island’s graduation regulations offer students a range of pathways that can be used to meet credit requirements. The state defines credit broadly as demonstrating competency, not bound by seat time or instructional minute requirements. Starting with the class of 2028, students will need to complete a performance-based diploma assessment, which can include work-based learning, community service or project-based learning as a part of Rhode Island’s diploma requirements. The state also provides substantial guidance on its website.
Vermont Proficiency-based Graduation Requirements
Vermont has established proficiency-based graduation requirements that allow for locally developed graduation requirements that connect content knowledge and skills to state standards and a locally developed Portrait of a Graduate. The state also has a Portrait of a Graduate that can be used by local agencies. The state’s website includes significant guidance, including model proficiency-based learning hierarchies to help operationalize the graduation requirements for grades K-8.
New Mexico Flexibility
New Mexico changed its graduation requirements in 2024 to allow students entering high school in 2025 more flexibility. Notably, the state allows for department-approved work-based learning as well as career and technical education courses to qualify for core content in English, math and science. The modified requirements also require every district and charter school in the state to develop a graduate profile and that students in high school must align a plan that details their coursework to help them meet the high school graduation requirements.
ACCOUNTABILITY AND
IMPROVEMENT STRUCTURES
The state’s accountability and school improvement system support the growth and development of all schools based on indicators that align with the state’s vision for student-centered learning. The system reinforces a reciprocal relationship between the state and districts, integrating common statewide and locally created indicators to guide state and local accountability and improvement. The public can easily access these data through a dashboard. Communities most in need receive resources to develop and execute continuous improvement strategies.
Why it matters
Implementation of personalized, competency-based education requires systems that help districts respond to changing student and community needs and transform their schools accordingly. When well-designed, these systems provide transparency and real-time data on indicators that matter to educators, students and communities. All schools and districts, not just the lowest performing ones identified under federal law, need data and flexibility to test new approaches and adjust as needed. At the same time, they must be accountable for school and student performance on a diverse set of metrics. Most importantly, this system should focus on creating a positive partnership between the state and districts as they both work to make sure that public education meets the needs of students and communities.
Transformative policies
Reciprocal Accountability Structures
Developed in collaboration with communities, state policy establishes specific goals and outcomes for all schools and districts, not just those identified as low performing. Districts are given autonomy to explore and implement innovative approaches, including using personalized, competency-based strategies. Policy clarifies that the state is responsible for working in partnership with districts to evaluate progress toward their stated goals, including providing targeted financial and technical assistance resources to districts in response to identified local needs.
Holistic State Accountability Indicators
The state accountability system considers both input and output measures that collectively give a full picture of the conditions within the school and/or district, as well as how well they are serving students. These measures should include student proficiency of academic- and Portrait or Profile-aligned outcomes as well as building-level measures such as the degree of access to meaningful and diverse learning pathways, positive student-teacher relationships and student access to educators trained in student-centered learning techniques.
Local Accountability Policies
Policy supports the development of new local accountability approaches at the district level. It also includes a mechanism for incorporating locally developed school quality indicators into the state’s accountability system. This allows local leaders to engage their communities identifying measures and reporting mechanisms that align to local priorities such as labor market needs. Required state reports seamlessly integrate local and state measures so communities can develop a comprehensive picture of school quality across state and local reports.
Data Transparency
A public-facing dashboard includes state and local information on school and district strengths and needs. Information includes academic measures as well as information on school and district progress toward helping students attain the knowledge, skills and dispositions embodied in the state’s Portrait or Profile. The dashboard also includes opportunities to share local measures of quality. The state establishes regular feedback loops with districts to help them identify opportunities for improvement and better understand how the state can provide support.
Data Governance
State agencies involved in data collection make decisions together about how data will be governed and shared, ensuring data security and identifying and authorizing appropriate usage so that stakeholders have a comprehensive picture of system outcomes.
Student-centered School Improvement
State law related to school improvement prioritizes student-centered strategies such as personalized, competency-based education. Schools identified for improvement under federal law receive resources to implement these approaches, including coaching support. These approaches are explicitly integrated into legally required federal documents.
Implementation actions
Local Accountability Support
The state develops districts’ capacity to build local indicators of school quality. The state shares best practices related to local indicator development with districts. The state may also consider providing model systems (i.e., populated with high-quality/leverage local indicators) and the technology to support accurate integration of local data into public reporting systems.
Capacity for Improvement
School improvement systems build the capacity of districts, communities and stakeholders to analyze and respond to data on student learning in real time. The system also supports strategies that ensure all students benefit from high-quality, student-centered education practices. The state includes personnel, either through the state education agency, a third party or educator leaders from across the state, that conduct in-depth reviews and coaching of all schools and districts to help identify areas for improvement.
Supportive Technical Assistance
State and local leaders focused on school improvement are trained in personalized, competency-based models and practices and understand how to use them to drive improvement. The state builds district capacity to co-design personalized, competency-based learning strategies through regional professional development entities and/or coaching teams. The state may support these people with tools and guidance in research-based personalized learning practices to build district capacity, enabling co-designing personalized, competency-based learning strategies.
Research and Cycles of Improvement
The state regularly engages with districts to identify and share the impact that student-centered education approaches are having on a holistic set of student success measures. Rich impact data is updated frequently on a public-facing dashboard, and the de-identified raw data are available to the public.
State examples: KY, CO, MT
Kentucky Local Laboratories of Learning
Kentucky is piloting local accountability system creation through its local laboratories of learning (L3s). The L3s are working to design and pilot new local accountability systems that reflect the needs and priorities of the communities that they represent. The L3s include at least 18 districts from across Kentucky, with the work being directed by the state’s Division of Innovation.
Colorado Local Accountability Pilot
Colorado’s legislature provided funding and flexibility in 2019 to support local accountability and continuous improvement systems. The 2024 report to the legislature states that there are 10 grantees participating with a total yearly award of $450,000. The state’s website contains overviews of each locally developed accountability system.
Montana Accreditation
Montana’s accreditation standards require all school districts to establish a graduate profile, which the state defines as “a learner-centered model(s) based on a shared vision of learner attributes that students should have when they graduate.” Districts are required under regulation to develop an integrated strategic plan, which must describe the steps that will be taken to achieve the district’s graduate profile. The state also requires that educator professional development shall, among other things, be aligned with the district graduate profile and the goals outlined in the district-integrated strategic plan. The state provides resources and support to districts as they develop their profile.
Instrumental in Guiding Leaders
COMPREHENSIVE STATE ASSESSMENT SYSTEMS
The state partners with educators to develop a coherent system of aligned formative and summative assessments that advance a shared commitment to student-centered strategies such as personalized, competency-based learning. The system measures essential knowledge, skills and dispositions, drives deeper learning, enables students to demonstrate proficiency when they are ready to do so, provides real-time data to inform instruction and gives students a choice in how they demonstrate proficiency. The state supports implementation with resources, feedback loops and technical assistance.Why it matters
Assessments help determine what students know and still need to learn. Existing assessment systems are often limited in scope, focusing on academic skills alone. While important, this focus overlooks the critical higher-level skills and dispositions that students need for future success. A comprehensive assessment system supportive of personalized, competency-based education ensures that teachers have information to improve instruction in real-time. It also provides statewide stakeholders with the ability to understand whether the system is achieving its intended outcomes. An aligned system of coherent and innovative state assessments should also represent the demands of postsecondary and workforce stakeholders. This helps make sure that K-12 education can better prepare students for the future.
Transformative policies
Purpose of the State Assessment System
The state assessment system aligns to the state’s vision for student-centered learning. It rebalances the heavy focus on standardized assessments to emphasize more transformative and relevant assessment approaches that drive deeper learning. Federally required assessments help state policymakers allocate resources to districts and schools in need. These assessments are right-sized, meaning they meet the requirements of the law but do not go further. By contrast, transformative state-required assessments use deeper learning tasks such as performance assessments or portfolios that support meaningful instructional practices.
Assessment Content
The state assessment system measures proficiency in essential academic content as well as the attributes in the state’s Portrait or Profile across grade levels so students are prepared for graduation. The system includes both summative and formative assessments. The summative assessments measure achievement and progress toward proficiency. Formative assessments aligned to the summative assessment monitor student learning throughout the year and provide feedback that helps teachers make instructional adjustments. The state collects and makes summative assessment data available for schools and communities to help them understand student readiness.
Federal Flexibility
The state has considered partnering with the federal government to leverage funding through federal programs such as the Comprehensive Grants for State Assessments (CGSA) and, if necessary, flexibility through the Innovative Assessment Demonstration Authority (IADA) or a general Elementary and Secondary Education Act waiver to support development of its assessment system.
Funding for Research and Innovation
Dedicated state funding supports the development and implementation of local assessments in non-federally required tested subjects or other measures that are used in local accountability systems. Funds are available to all districts with prioritization for historically under-resourced districts. Funding also supports research into the quality of state and local assessment systems with the goal of improving them over time.
Assessments and High School Graduation Requirements
Graduation requirements prioritize performance assessments, portfolios or capstones in place of standardized assessments or course sequences that emphasize completed time over mastery of content. These performance assessments may be developed at the state or local levels. The state puts mechanisms in place to ensure quality statewide implementation. The assessments can be used to demonstrate proficiency in academic content or higher-order knowledge and skills. Higher education and workforce stakeholders play a role in crafting policies.
Infrastructure
Resources are allocated to support the effective and universal implementation of the state’s assessment systems. This includes providing adequate funding for the development of assessment systems, shared public evaluation rubrics and professional development to build student-centered assessment literacy among teachers and leaders. The state invests in the technology needed to implement new formative and summative assessment models. The state also develops the infrastructure needed to study new assessment systems and make adjustments as needed.
Implementation actions
Feedback Loops
The state includes those closest to the classroom when they develop, implement and refine state assessments. The state engages educators in administering and scoring innovative assessment structures where appropriate. The state leverages technical experts through mechanisms such as its assessment technical advisory committee to support the design and review of state assessments aligned to student-centered and competency-based learning. Research also examines the higher-order knowledge and skills included in a Portrait or Profile and prioritizes which ones are most appropriate to measure.
Local Assessment Technical Quality
The state helps district planning and implementation efforts to ensure any new local assessments created are high-quality and that curricula, instructional materials and assessments are aligned to shared learning goals. This support also reinforces the importance of continuous cycles of improvement.
Model Resources
The state provides model resources to help schools and districts implement innovative assessments at the state and local levels. These resources include educator-created performance tasks or a task bank in specific content areas and grade levels or bands. These tasks align with the state’s model Portrait or Profile and aligned competencies.
Integrating Instruction and Assessment
The state creates opportunities to advance assessment literacy statewide, which helps people understand the basic principles and practices around high-quality assessments. This could take the form of public-facing resources, or educator networks focused on assessment literacy.
State examples: MA, HI, NC, VA
Massachusetts
Massachusetts received approval through IADA and a CGSA grant to create a new assessment for Science and Technology/Engineering. The assessment uses computer-simulated, authentic performance tasks to measure students’ mastery of science knowledge and practices. The state is also providing professional development and support to participating schools on practices for deeper learning. The test is being field tested in 2025 with an anticipated date of 2027 for operationalizing the test statewide. The state is also home to the Massachusetts Consortium for Innovation in Education Assessment, which provides professional development on performance assessment and maintains more than 140 performance assessments publicly available in a task bank maintained by the consortium.
Hawaii Performance Assessment Development Initiative
Hawaii received a CGSA award to work with educators to develop performance assessments, which was named the Performance Assessment Development Initiative. The state has developed performance assessments in ELA and math and is expanding to include science and possibly social studies. Teachers have been heavily involved in the development of these assessments and have created supports to help educators implement them in their classrooms.
North Carolina Personalized Assessment Tool (NCPAT)
In 2019, North Carolina received approval to participate in the Innovative Assessment Demonstration Authority (IADA) program to create a system called NCPAT. This is a through-grade assessment with an interim component to inform instruction during the school year and a multistage adaptive end-of-grade component administered at the end of the year. North Carolina’s Personalized Assessment Tool in reading and math is being administered in grades 4, 5, 7 and 8.
Virginia Performance Tasks and Local Alternatives
Virginia passed legislation in 2014 that required local school districts to measure student achievement through local alternative assessments in subjects that do not have state learning standards (history, grade 3 science, grade 5 writing). The state now encourages the development of authentic performance assessments that must meet Virginia Board of Education guidelines in those subjects. Currently, the state provides guidance and resources around history, social science and writing. The state provides extensive resources to help districts create their local assessments.
EDUCATOR DEVELOPMENT AND SUPPORT
Educator preparation and workforce systems build statewide teacher and leader expertise in implementing student-centered learning approaches like personalized, competency-based learning. These systems and structures prepare educators with the competencies necessary to facilitate student-centered learning and support teacher retention, job satisfaction and personalized career advancement.Why it matters
Quality educational experiences require strong relationships with impactful educators. For this reason, educators, leaders and paraprofessionals must have a deep understanding of how to implement student-centered learning approaches like personalized, competency-based learning. Ideally, the preparation programs in which they receive training and their future school environments are grounded in the state’s vision for student-centered education. This vision is embodied in the state’s vision, Portrait or Profile of a Learner and aligned competencies. Educator preparation and workforce systems – including professional development and evaluation – must reinforce knowledge of and training in student-centered instructional strategies. Student-centered learning environments also take time and effort to implement. For this reason, teacher retention is crucial for schools implementing these approaches. States seeking to transform their education systems must ensure that policies and practices create positive environments that attract educators to the classroom and make it desirable to remain there. They must also find ways to help teachers personalize their professional advancement throughout their teaching careers.
Transformative policies
Licensure and Credentialing
State educator licensure policy requires a demonstrated understanding of practices aligned with student-centered learning strategies. This requirement applies to applications for new licenses as well as license renewals. The state supports credentials that directly align with the educator’s ability to create student-centered learning environments. Credentials support opportunities to personalize their growth and development as they continue in the profession.
Preparation Programs
The state establishes standards for teacher and leader preparation programs that require intentional design around and training in student-centered learning practices. These standards apply to traditional teacher preparation programs and alternative certification programs.
Alternative Certification
State policy around alternative methods of teacher preparation (e.g., “grow-your-own,” apprenticeship, competency-based programs) emphasizes personalized, competency-based approaches to teaching and learning where possible. These programs also focus on expanding teacher diversity throughout the state.
Teacher Evaluation
Where a required or optional statewide teacher evaluation model exists, it explicitly incorporates knowledge of student-centered practices aligned to the state’s vision and state-level knowledge and skills frameworks. These evaluation models are also designed to help teachers personalize their professional growth. If appropriate, the state provides model observation and evaluation templates aligned with the state’s expectations for student-centered learning.
Research and Development
The state dedicates resources to studying the impact of student-centered education requirements for teachers and leaders on student outcomes. It also studies how these requirements impact teacher recruitment and retention and educator job satisfaction. The research informs policy recommendations as appropriate.
Compensation
The state ensures that teacher and leader compensation is competitive with other college-educated professions. The state connects additional educator financial incentives to demonstrated knowledge of student-centered learning practices. These incentives could include credentials or career development pathways oriented toward growth in student-centered practices.
Professional Advancement
The state creates clear credentialing pathways recognizing teacher professional growth and development, including in personalized, competency-based teaching strategies. This could be integrated into existing teacher credentialing pathways or could be implemented through alternative routes, such as a micro-credentialing system.
Implementation actions
Personalized Local Development Systems
The state supports schools and districts in creating opportunities for teachers to personalize their growth within the teaching profession and the context of personalized, competency-based systems. This could include things like instructional leadership roles, opportunities for hybrid teaching and administrative roles or more formal mentoring opportunities for high-performing teachers.
Professional Development Offerings
Professional development provides training for classroom teachers and school leaders in student-centered learning practices. The state supports schools and districts in thinking about creating space and time for professional learning focused on innovation. These offerings align with a competency-based vision. The state either provides this development directly or through a high-quality third-party entity.
Educator Networks
A statewide educator network makes it easy for teachers and leaders engaged in personalized, competency-based learning practices across the state to connect with and learn from one another. The network also provides an opportunity for the state to establish feedback loops between the field and the state to inform additional changes to policy and practice related to educators.
Educator Diversity
The state collects and shares best practices for expanding teacher diversity. This could include identifying existing gaps in access to teachers from diverse backgrounds and highlighting strategies for K-12 and higher education that help build a diverse teacher pipeline.
Additional Educator Training
The state may highlight or support the creation of alternative programs to develop educators with personalized, competency-based teaching experiences, such as apprenticeships or “grow-your-own” programs. The state studies these programs and leverages insights to inform new programs as well as traditional training programs.
State examples: UT, NV
Utah Portrait of a First-Year Teacher
Utah has established a Portrait of a First-Year Teacher that identifies the essential characteristics an educator should know upon entering the classroom. This Portrait includes many characteristics crucial for teaching in a student-centered learning environment, including customized supports and assessment.
Nevada Future of Learning Network
Nevada’s network is running several pathways to provide multiple entry points for educators to join the work, including working with a group of teachers to develop model statewide competencies, facilitating a robust two-year pilot program for school and district teams; offering opt-in learning opportunities for individual schools and teachers who are not yet ready to jump in system-wide, development of guidance for educators to activate the portrait in their classrooms. The state is documenting its learning through a series of case studies and resources. KnowledgeWorks is helping support the competency development and the two-year pilot program.
HOLISTIC STUDENT SUPPORTS
All students have equitable access to student supports and the safe, vibrant learning environments that they need to ensure future success. This access includes whole child supports, academic interventions, technology and secure and healthy learning environments, as well as transitional supports for young people as they leave K-12 education and progress towards what is next. The state actively supports schools and districts implementing these supports through partnerships grounded in data.Why it matters
Many states continue to experience high rates of chronic absenteeism and stagnating academic performance. A network of community and school supports is essential to ensure students come to school ready to learn and are prepared to take full advantage of personalized, competency-based environments. This, in turn, cultivates student agency, ensuring they can chart their own future path, both academically and as fully developed people. Personalized supports are oriented around a whole child approach to education and ensure that students can successfully engage in meaningful learning experiences and master the academic and higher-order competencies they need for future success.
Transformative policies
Whole Child Supports
State funding and policy ensure that all students have equitable access to responsive supports, including those that address whole child needs, mental health, physical health and trauma-informed care. State policy supports state agencies in coordinating across silos to provide access to these supports for all students where applicable.
Academic Interventions
The state provides targeted, personalized resources that create engaging and meaningful learning experiences for students who may be struggling academically. The state should make it clear that those supports funded by state dollars should be grounded in evidence of success while also giving districts the flexibility to determine how to best meet the needs of their students.
Educator Training
Educator preparation programs and professional development funding supports training in delivering whole child supports and how to create culturally responsive environments.
Supportive School Models
State policy and aligned funding support structures such as community schools, promise neighborhoods, after-school programs and/or children’s councils that coordinate services to support student health, wellness and other non-academic needs. Funding is distributed equitably and addresses disparities in access.
Cross-sector Alignment
Funding streams for student supports are aligned across agencies that services K-12 education, higher education, workforce, health, social services, juvenile justice and early childhood. This maximizes supports for historically underserved populations, including students with different needs, justice-impacted youth and/or foster care systems, Native youth, youth experiencing homelessness and others.
Technology Access
State policy ensures that students have access to the physical and wireless technology needed to maximize personalized, competency-based learning. The state collects data on broadband availability and technology access, identifies inequities and acts to address disparities. Where needed, the state provides clear guidance and establishes policies around emerging technologies to ensure districts are considering the benefits and challenges inherent in their implementation.
Transitional Supports
State policy establishes requirements around transitional supports for young people as they enter postsecondary education, the workforce or the military. Adequate state funding ensures that all K-12 students have access to supports, such as guidance counselors, school psychologists, social workers, coaching, mental health and planning services. State systems also directly connect students to post-K12 supports when enrolled in opportunities like dual enrollment. The state collects data on access to these supports and corrects disparities.
Implementation actions
Academic Intervention Support
The state provides technical assistance to help schools and districts implement academic interventions that they’ve determined best meet the needs of their communities. The state partners with districts and leverages its data systems to ensure that supports are directed to where they will make the greatest impact. Where appropriate, the state helps districts consider how best to customize those supports to individual students and provide them in real time where possible.
Data Systems
The state collects and analyzes data on academic and non-academic student outcomes and reports them in the state report card. The state collaborates with schools and districts to help address identified inequities and includes this information in its school improvement process.
Community Partnerships
The state encourages community partnerships to build capacity and ensure safety and oversight as local communities work to deliver the full range of whole child and academic supports needed to help students experience success.
Physical Space
The state encourages the development of physical spaces to support student health and wellness. The state collects and disseminates best practices for ensuring high-quality infrastructure as well as calming indoor and outdoor spaces for relaxation and play. There is funding support to achieve this vision.
State examples: CO, NM, OH
Colorado Taskforce
Colorado lawmakers recently established a task force to study academic opportunities or inequities, promising practices in schools and improvements to the state’s accountability and accreditation system. Task force members began meeting in 2023 and have since released their final report, which includes a series of recommendations related to district and school performance frameworks, the state’s assessments for accountability, public reporting and engagement and continuous school improvement.
New Mexico Digital Equity
New Mexico has developed an infrastructure and policy ecosystem to help ensure equitable access to technology. A recent bill in 2023 requires districts and charter schools to develop plans around digital equity, device replacement and repair and other services. See this brief from the Education Commission of the States on New Mexico’s initiative for additional details.
Ohio Whole Child Framework
Ohio has established a whole child framework that includes five commonly held beliefs that lead to success in student learning. This includes healthy and supported students, the ability to be challenged and experience success and engagement in relevant and meaningful learning. The state also includes a variety of resources on its website around stakeholder engagement, as well as links to policies around cell phones, school-based health and more. KnowledgeWorks supported stakeholders in the state in developing this framework.
RESPONSIVE FUNDING SYSTEMS
State funding structures are designed to make it straightforward for schools and districts to adopt student-centered learning practices. These funding structures ensure that learners receive funding to meet whole child needs and pursue educational opportunities that support their learning goals and interests. Supportive systems help schools and districts understand how to work within these structures to advance student-centered learning strategies.Why it matters
States need to ensure funding is available for communities to both begin and sustain student-centered learning. Even when a state’s policy supports student-centered learning, funding systems must be designed in a way that ensures schools using innovative methods continue to receive their full allotment of per-pupil funding. This requires flexibility in how schools and districts are funded overall. The structures, requirements and opportunities connected to funding, in turn, drive school and district decision-making.
Transformative policies
State Funding Formula Structure
The state prioritizes education funding in its budget and allocates money to ensure that public education is fully funded. The state funding formula makes sure that dollars enable schools and districts to support educational experiences for all students, regardless of where that learning takes place. The funding formula includes additional dollars to support equitable access to education and supplemental education programs for students with the greatest need. This includes spending additional dollars in years when more wraparound services may be required to maintain student outcomes.
School Finance Equalization
The state school funding formula accounts for the differing abilities of different districts to raise revenue locally. Given that local revenue provides a substantial amount of funding for public education, the state supports greater education equity and quality across the state by leveraging equalization policies. To do this, the state calculates a district’s ability to generate revenue through taxes and supplements local funding across the state.
Categorical Funding
State grants and other supplemental funding programs prioritize student-centered learning practices where appropriate. Dedicated funding is made available to schools and districts to grow and scale student-centered education programs. This includes grants for planning, infrastructure investment and district participation in learning networks.
Definitions Relevant to Funding
Terms and definitions impacting state funding are defined broadly enough in state statute and regulation to ensure that districts and schools are not penalized financially for innovating. This can include terms like “instructional hours” and definitions like “student count.” The definitions balance the need for flexibility with measures for quality assurance.
Equity Evaluation
The state analyzes the relationship between funding and student outcomes and adjusts the funding formula accordingly. The state also provides public information on school and district per-pupil expenditures. In partnership with a broad range of stakeholders, the state revisits the funding formula as necessary to ensure it meets the needs of its student population. The state analyzes data to identify equity gaps in funding and enacts policies to adjust its funding formula.
Implementation actions
Funding Guidance
Funding guidance and dedicated state personnel advise schools and districts on how to use funding to design the most effective student-centered learning experiences for students, including blending and braiding funding streams. The state also provides technical support and guidance to help districts analyze spending patterns and target local funding for student groups with the greatest need.
Federal Funding Opportunities
The state leverages federal funding to support expanding and implementing student-centered learning. This includes optimizing the use of passthrough funding as well as applying for competitive grants.
Economies of Scale
The state takes advantage of partnerships to broker cost-effective purchases of education supplies and services that schools and districts can choose to use. The state makes these partnership services well-known and easy to opt into. This could include the state offering districts access to software to support student-centered learning at a lower cost than what a school or district could obtain on its own.
Philanthropic Partnerships
The state offers guidance that outlines existing philanthropic resources or opportunities for which schools and districts can apply to supplement state funding. In addition, this guidance is maintained by designated state personnel who are also available to support districts as they apply for and cultivate these relationships. Philanthropic resources promote school transformation and encourage partnerships between schools and districts and philanthropic partners.
Utilizing Funding Data
The state regularly analyzes spending on programs and initiatives to evaluate the cost-benefit ratio of programs. In this analysis, the state emphasizes the equitable use of funding to support historically underserved communities. The data and analyses are made public. Additionally, the state provides comparative analyses of district and school per-pupil spending for federal, state and local expenditures to help stakeholders contextualize equity needs across the state and disseminate funds accordingly.
State examples: UT, IN, WA
Utah Funding Structures
In Utah, schools choose between learner-validated and attendance-validated funding models. Learner-validated funding exists for programs where students receive instruction through an online learning program, a blended learning program or a personalized, competency-based learning program. The local education agency (LEA) must adopt a learner-validated enrollment measurement and document student enrollment status based on this policy to use the learner-validated enrollment measure. Utah also provides a grant program for schools pursuing personalized, competency-based education. The grant supports LEAs in planning, implementing and scaling personalized learning. LEAs can receive five years’ worth of funding. Grantees can also apply for four additional years of funding to carry out their plans.
Indiana Career Scholarship Accounts
In 2023, Indiana created its Career Scholarship Account (CSA). The CSA program provides up to $5,000 to students in grades 10 through 12 to pursue work-based learning, apprenticeships and/or credentials of value. It is available to any students enrolled in eligible work-based learning programs. Funding can be used to cover enrollment fees, career coaching, postsecondary education and training, transportation, equipment and certifications and credentialing exams.
Washington’s Mastery-Based Learning Collaborative Funding
Washington’s Mastery-Based Learning Collaborative received a biennial budget appropriation directly from the state to support competency-based education (page 608 of the 2022 appropriations bill and page 677 of the 2024 appropriations bill). In addition to funding staffing and coaching, schools in the cohorts have regularly received funding to support their work. More information on specific amounts can be found on page six of this report.
Partners
We have partnered with the following organizations and more, applying concepts from our frameworks in support of student-centered and competency-based learning:
