In a working paper from the Atlas project’s offices in Newton, Massachusetts, Linda Gerstle offers these observations on how K-12 pathways can enhance conditions for meaningful innovation:

• They generate consensus on a common philosophy of teaching and learning that transcends grade levels. They establish a district vision of what is possible and desired as student outcomes.
• They coordinate community assets and resources that contribute to student development and success.
• They build district-wide coherence and focus within multiple tracks of reform.
• They provide opportunities to communicate within and across grade levels.
• They create the supports (that is, planning and professional development) to facilitate better transitions between grade levels.
• They help in rethinking district policies that affect teaching and learning to provide support for school-level reformers.