Research Report

Deeper Learning Networks: Taking Student-Centered Learning and Equity to Scale

Group of middle school students working on a project.
Laura E. Hernández, Linda Darling-Hammond, Julie Adams, Kathryn Bradley, DeAnna Duncan Grand, Martens Roc, and Peter Ross
October 2019 | Learning Policy Institute
Group of middle school students working on a project.

One of the mysteries of education reform is how leaders and educators can successfully instantiate, sustain, and spread student-centered pedagogical practices from a few schools to many others. Advocates for deeper learning grapple with this mystery as they seek to transform teaching and learning to prepare students to meet the demands of the 21st century and to close the opportunity gap between advantaged and disadvantaged groups. While research suggests that deeper learning strategies that support critical thinking and problem-solving can yield improved student outcomes, implementing these strategies is not easy, as they require reimagining school environments and changing traditional approaches to teaching. This report from the Learning Policy Institute highlights how three networks of schools engaged in deeper learning have managed this feat. It describes the systems and structures the networks have used to instantiate their equitable deeper learning models in diverse public school settings to serve students in more personalized and productive ways.