Building Coherence: What State Leaders Can Do

The Center for Education Market Dynamics • September 02, 2025

Across the country, state education agencies (SEAs) are confronting a pivotal challenge: how to ensure that the many decisions, supports, and systems shaping classroom instruction work in concert to accelerate student learning. Coherence, meaning when all parts of the system align around a clear vision for what and how students should learn, is a key ingredient for improving student outcomes.

Why now? Momentum is growing across the field to improve the quality and consistency of instructional experiences for all students. The COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with persistent opportunity gaps, has amplified the need for systems that reinforce – not fragment – student learning. This is where coherence comes in.

At CEMD, we are seeing encouraging progress. Recent research and reporting suggest that states are uniquely positioned to do this work. This blog:

• Highlights new guidance for state leaders
• Surfaces insights from CEMD’s recent work on ELA and math coherence
• Recommends clear next steps for SEAs looking to lead on this issue

What National Guidance Tells Us About State Action

A growing number of organizations are calling on state leaders to foster coherence. Two recent reports offer concrete direction:

• National Governors Association (NGA): The Let’s Get Ready! roadmap urges governors to prioritize coherence across education policies, services, and measurement systems. Key actions include developing a clear vision for readiness, aligning investment to support foundational literacy and numeracy, and reporting on outcomes across the education pipeline.
• Instruction Partners: The State of Instructional (In)Coherence report provides five targeted actions for SEAs:
  • Set a Clear and Coherent Vision for Instruction
  • Align State Policies and Supports to the Instructional Vision
  • Support Local Coherence-Building
  • Leverage Data to Identify and Address Fragmentation
  • Stabilize Leadership and Reduce Initiative Overload

Despite different vantage points, these organizations converge on a shared message: states play a pivotal role in fostering coherence by aligning systems, clarifying goals, investing in priorities, and monitoring implementation.

Where the Data Gaps Are and What CEMD Shows

Most states still lack visibility into the instructional materials districts select and whether those choices support or hinder coherence. Without this data, it is difficult to identify gaps, track progress, or make informed investments.

CEMD’s research begins to close this gap. Drawing on data from over 2,000 districts, our analysis offers a window into how instructional material choices impact coherence. Key findings include:

• Districts are increasingly selecting higher-quality core materials, particularly in ELA and math. This shift, tracked in our Signals of Change: Tracking District Shifts Towards High-Quality ELA Materials and K–8 Math Materials Spotlight: Understanding the Landscape in Three Charts briefs, suggests progress toward more aligned instructional systems.
• The interaction between core and supplemental materials matters. Coherence is strongest when these materials work together; when they conflict in approach or expectations, they can undermine instruction.

These insights are especially relevant for state leaders aiming to understand not only what is in use across districts, but also how materials contribute to coherent teaching and learning.

How State Leaders Can Take Action

To strengthen instructional coherence statewide, SEAs can take the following actions:

1. Anchor efforts in a shared definition of coherence. CEMD defines coherence in two dimensions:
   • Instructional Coherence: Aligned student learning experiences, within a school day, from core instruction to interventions to extended learning time. When there is consistency among key pieces of teaching and learning systems to advance grade-level student experiences.
   • Vertical coherence: Aligned student learning experiences across grade levels K to 12. When there is consistency among key pieces of teaching and learning as a student progresses from one grade level to the next.
2. Deepen understanding of how materials influence coherence. Leverage resources like Two Markets, One Classroom: How Core and Supplemental Materials Shape Student Learning and The Road to Coherence: Ensuring Alignment between Core and Supplemental Programs to examine how curriculum decisions affect instructional alignment.
3. Use national data to reflect on local practice. Use CEMD’s national datasets, including The Reality of Instructional Coherence: What Data on K-8 Math Choices Tell Us and The Hidden Complexity of ELA: What Curriculum Combinations Reveal about District Practice to benchmark your state’s landscape and surface areas for improvement.
4. Learn from peer states. Massachusetts, Nebraska, and New Mexico have made significant strides in collecting and publicly reporting on district materials selections. Their public dashboards promote transparency and support local coherence-building.

Looking Ahead

Coherence doesn’t happen by accident; it requires intentional leadership. By setting a clear vision, aligning policies and supports, and leveraging data to illuminate progress and gaps, SEAs can play a transformative role in improving instruction and accelerating student success.

Want to dig deeper? Explore Instructional Coherence in Action: Insights and Opportunities and ELA Decision Trends: What District Choices Reveal About Curriculum, Coherence, and Quality to access CEMD’s latest research and insights.