IES Centers
National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
As reauthorized by Congress under the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (P.L.107-279), NCES has as its responsibility to "collect, report, analyze, and disseminate statistical data related to education in the United States and in other nations."
Program Highlights
Teacher compensation study. In 2007, NCES launched a new teacher compensation study. In the fi rst year, seven states supplied NCES with compensation data for each teacher in the state. Next year, 18 states will provide data, representing more than one third of the teachers in the country. These data will enable more accurate comparisons of teacher compensation across states and at different levels of seniority and credentials.
Statewide Longitudinal Data System (SLDS) Grant Program. The SLDS was authorized by the Educational Technical Assistance Act of 2002 and is designed to aid K–12 state education agencies in developing and implementing longitudinal data systems. All 50 states, 5 territories, and the District of Columbia are eligible to apply. These are competitive, cooperative agreements that extend for 3 years and range between $1 million to $6 million per state. These data systems provide for longitudinal tracking of students through school, which facilitates the reporting of accurate graduation rates and helps identify conditions that are associated with success in school and in the workforce.
In November 2005, the first year of the grant program, IES awarded grants to 14 states and in June 2007, grants were awarded to an additional 13 states. In total, $115 million in grants have been awarded under SLDS. In this year's request for applications, the fi rst goal is to support states so they can report true cohort high school graduation rates by 2012. The second goal is to assist states in expanding existing K–12 statewide data systems to link to postsecondary data and/or workforce data.
National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Since August 2007, NAEP's accomplishments include: the release of NAEP Report Cards at 4th and 8th grades for reading, mathematics, and writing, including results for states and 11 districts participating in the Trial Urban District Assessment (TUDA); and a ground-breaking report on state No Child Left Behind performance standards at 4th and 8th grades, permitting the first-ever comparisons between and across states using NAEP as a psychometrically appropriate common scale (http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/pdf/studies/2007482.pdf).
NAEP continues to prepare for major expansions. In 2007, NAEP received an additional appropriation of $10 million annually for the inclusion of seven additional large urban districts that volunteered for TUDA and to initiate the first pilot 12th-grade state assessment in mathematics and reading. Eleven states have volunteered to participate.
College Navigator. College Navigator is a user-friendly web resource that makes it easy for students, parents, and others to learn about colleges and universities throughout the nation. It has proven to be extremely successful, winning accolades from news organizations and college counselors; most importantly, it receives heavy use by the public. The site averages close to 30,000 visits a day. A recently added Spanish-language version of College Navigator and the existing English-language version are revisited regularly to determine how they can be improved.
National Center for Education Research (NCER)
NCER supports rigorous research that contributes to the solution of significant education problems in the United States.
Overall, for fiscal year 2008, IES reviewed 851 research, research training program (predoctoral and postdoctoral), and research and development center grant applications, and funded 104 of those applications (12%). Since its inception, IES has increased significantly the number of applications and the number of grant awards.
Program Highlights
Research training programs. During 2004, 2005, and 2008, NCER awarded 13 5-year grants to launch interdisciplinary predoctoral research training programs in the education sciences to doctoral-degree-granting institutions. To date, these programs have supported 233 graduate fellows. In addition, since 2005, NCER has supported a number of postdoctoral research training programs through which 30 postdoctoral fellows have been or are being trained.
As of the summer of 2008, 39 predoctoral fellows have obtained employment following the completion of the Ph.D. Of these, 16 (41%) are employed as university or college faculty members, all but one as a full-time faculty member. Thirteen (33.3%) are employed as postdoctoral or research associates at universities, and seven (18%) have other education research positions (e.g., at nonprofit education or education research consulting firms). Only three (7.7%) fellows who have completed their Ph.D. are employed in positions that are outside the university and are not focused on education research.
In April 2008, NCER sponsored a 1-day workshop for 135 participants on evaluating state and local education programs and policies. The purpose was to explain to staff from state education agencies or districts how a rigorous impact evaluation could be embedded in new or existing programs that are not yet widely implemented.
Practice guides. NCER produced two practice guides in 2008. Developed by a panel of national experts, the practice guides bring together the best available evidence to provide educators with specific and coherent evidence-based recommendations to address a particular challenge. NCER's Encouraging Girls in Math and Science gives teachers specific recommendations on fostering girls' interest in and skill development in math and science. These recommendations can be carried out in the classroom without requiring systemic change. A second practice guide, Organizing Instruction and Study to Improve Student Learning, reflects an expert panel's consensus on some of the most important principles to emerge from research on learning and memory.
National research and development centers. The centers contribute significantly to the solution of education problems in the United States by developing, testing, and disseminating new approaches to improve teaching and learning and, ultimately, student achievement. To date, IES has funded 10 centers. In 2006, NCER funded two research and development centers that focused on education policy: the National Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research (CALDER) and the National Center on Performance Incentives (NCPI). Using longitudinal state and district administrative databases from Florida, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Texas, and Washington, CALDER researchers are examining how state and local teacher policies on hiring, compensation, and certification, and state and local governance policies on accountability and choice, relate to student outcomes. NCPI is focusing on the use and effectiveness of various pay-for-performance strategies. In addition to this large randomized field trial, NCPI is conducting reviews of incentive-focused studies and smaller studies of other pay-for-performance programs.
National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER)
In December 2004, Congress reauthorized the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and in doing so authorized the NCSER as part of IES. As specified in P.L.108-446, the mission of NCSER is to
- sponsor research to expand knowledge and understanding of the needs of infants, toddlers, and children with disabilities in order to improve the developmental, educational, and transitional results of such individuals;
- sponsor research to improve services provided under, and support the implementation of, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.); and
- evaluate the implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act in coordination with the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance.
Program Highlights
Research workshop. In April 2008, NCSER sponsored a 2-day workshop designed to give researchers specialized training to improve the rigor of special education research using single case methodologies that incorporate quantitative analyses. Thirty-nine people attended the NCSER Single Case Design Workshop.
Research programs. NCSER is accumulating a strong portfolio of projects that are developing Response to Intervention (RTI) models or are validating measurement systems to identify students at risk for disabilities. NCSER has funded five research projects to study the development of large-scale assessments that are more accessible and appropriate for an expanded range of students, including students with disabilities. The intent is to design tests that minimize the need for accommodations and modifications, and that produce scores that can be used validly in accountability systems regardless of student disabilities.
National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE)
NCEE is responsible for conducting rigorous evaluations of federal programs, synthesizing and disseminating information from evaluation and research, and providing technical assistance to improve student achievement.
Program Highlights
Reading First Impact Study: Interim Report. The Reading First program provides assistance to states and districts in using research-based reading programs and instructional materials for students in kindergarten through third grade and in introducing related professional development and assessments. The interim report presents the impacts of Reading First on classroom reading instruction and student reading comprehension during the 2004–05 and 2005–06 school years.
The evaluation found that Reading First had positive, statistically significant impacts on the total class time spent on the five essential components of reading instruction promoted by the program. The study also found that, on average across the 18 study sites, Reading First did not have statistically significant impacts on student reading comprehension test scores in grades 1–3. A final report on the impacts from 2004–2007 (3 school years with Reading First funding) and on the relationships between changes in instructional practice and student reading comprehension is expected in late 2008.
Enhanced Academic Instruction in After-School Programs. Enhanced Academic Instruction in After-School Programs is the first of two reports presenting implementation and impact findings after 1 year of program operation. This study tests whether interventions of structured approaches to academic instruction in after-school programs (one for reading and one for math) produce better academic outcomes than regular after-school services that consist primarily of help with homework or locally assembled materials that do not follow a structured curriculum.
The evaluation found a statistically significant difference in student achievement between students in the math after-school programs and those in the regular afterschool activities. In study sites implementing the reading program, there was no statistically significant difference in reading achievement between students in the reading after-school program and those in the regular after-school activities.