California Quality Schooling Framework

The Framework Behind Every Stripe of Our Work

Ten essential elements and five integrated foundational principles that shape how WUSD plans, implements, and evaluates a high-quality education for every learner.

The Ten Elements

What makes a school high-quality

The QSF identifies ten essential elements that contribute to a high-quality school. Together they serve as a guide for schools to plan, implement, and evaluate their programs and practices.

Assessment

01

Gathering and using data to inform instruction and measure student progress.

Culture and Climate

02

Fostering a positive and supportive learning environment that promotes student engagement and well-being.

Curriculum

03

Implementing a rigorous and standards-aligned curriculum to ensure students acquire essential knowledge and skills.

Equity

04

Ensuring all students, including those from diverse backgrounds and with varying needs, have access to high-quality education and resources.

Family and Community

05

Building strong partnerships between schools, families, and the wider community to support student learning.

Instruction

06

Utilizing effective and research-based teaching strategies to meet the diverse needs of learners.

Leaders

07

Providing strong instructional and administrative leadership to guide school improvement efforts.

Professional Learning

08

Offering continuous professional development opportunities to enhance teacher skills and knowledge.

Resource Alignment

09

Effectively aligning resources — including funding, staff, and materials — to support school goals and priorities.

Teachers

10

Ensuring access to highly qualified and effective teachers committed to student success.

Integrated Foundational Principles

Five principles woven through every element

These principles are the beliefs and commitments that carry across all ten QSF elements — the throughline of our five-year strategic roadmap.

FP 1

Students Learning and Thriving

The central aim of the QSF is to ensure that every student not only acquires knowledge and skills but is also prepared to thrive in a complex, interconnected world. Learning and thriving encompasses intellectual development, emotional well-being, physical health, and civic engagement.

Schools must intentionally cultivate environments where students are challenged and supported. Intellectual development is paired with the cultivation of curiosity, empathy, collaboration, and resilience — a holistic vision that recognizes the potential of every student and commits to their full development.

FP 2

Equity in Access, Treatment, and Outcomes

Equity is the lens through which all school policies and practices are viewed. By centering equity, educators ensure that differences in outcomes are not the result of differences in opportunity.

Achieving equity involves identifying and removing systemic barriers, understanding individual student needs, and allocating resources in a manner that acknowledges disparities and works to correct them.

FP 3

Continuous Improvement through Data and Reflection

Educational systems must be nimble and responsive to emerging needs. The QSF emphasizes the use of high-quality data to drive cycles of inquiry, action, and reflection.

Improvement is not event-based — it is embedded into the daily practices of educators and leaders who continually examine what is working, for whom, and under what conditions.

FP 4

Shared Leadership and Collective Responsibility

Improvement cannot rest on the shoulders of a few. When leadership is shared across roles and stakeholders, there is greater buy-in, innovation, and accountability.

Shared leadership fosters a culture of trust and distributed expertise that is essential for system-wide progress.

FP 5

Whole Child Development

Students do not come to school as blank slates — they bring experiences, emotions, strengths, and challenges.

Whole child development requires that schools support not only academic growth but also physical wellness, mental health, social skills, and civic identity — a comprehensive approach critical to preparing students for lifelong success.

Continuous Improvement

Evidence-based practices guide every decision

The QSF centers continuous improvement and the use of evidence-based practices — the same commitments that anchor our roadmap from stabilization through sustainability.

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