Description: Tags: 20076004

Toward a Learning Society
Director’s Biennial Report to Congress
May 2007
IES 2007-6004
U. S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Table of Contents
Introduction………………………………...…………………………….1
Accomplishments of the Centers………………………………...………..3

National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance..…........…………3
National Center for Education Statistics……………………………..………...……..10
National Center for Special Education Research……………………..………………14
National Center for Education Research…………………………….……………….17
IES as a Whole………………………………………………………….....20
Conclusion………………………………………………………………...26
Grant and Contract Awards…………………………………………..…...26
Appendices
INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION SCIENCES
Toward a Learning Society

Director’s Biennial Report to Congress
duration, recipient, purpose of the award, and
INTRODUCTION the relationship, if any, to the priorities and
mission of IES;
The Institute of Education Sciences (IES)
within the U.S. Department of Education was ● a description of how the activities of the
authorized by the Education Sciences Reform National Education Centers are consistent
Act of 2002 (ESRA). ESRA was signed into with the principles of scientifically valid
law in November 2002. The organization of research and the priorities and mission of
IES was approved by the U.S. Department of IES; and
Education in August 2003. Thus, at the time
of this report IES is officially three and one- ● such additional comments, recommend-
half years old. ations, and materials as the Director
considers appropriate.
The mission of IES, broadly characterized,
is to provide rigorous evidence on which to The Director’s first biennial report was
ground education practice and policy and to transmitted in March 2005. That report
encourage its use. Ultimately, the ability of IES focused on the goals of IES and the progress
to fulfill its mission will depend on education that had been made in establishing the
being embedded in a learning society—one that organizational capacity to further those goals.
understands the fallibility of its best efforts, This report provides further information
conceptualizes its programs and approaches as along those lines as IES marks its transition
always in need of improvement, and commits to from an organization under construction
using every opportunity to learn from its labors. to one that is fully formed and operational.
However, the emphasis in this report is on
ESRA requires that the Director of IES, on accomplishments as the grants and contracts
a biennial basis, transmit to the President, the made by IES begin to bear fruit.
National Board for Education Sciences, and
the appropriate congressional committees, To that end, this report begins with highlights
and make widely available to the public, a
of accomplishments and findings from each
report containing
of the four National Education Centers of
IES (Centers). The organization chart in
● a description of the activities carried out
figure 1 on page 2 displays the names and
by and through the National Education
management divisions of each Center.
Centers during the prior fiscal years;
● a summary of each grant, contract, and
cooperative agreement in excess of
$100,000 funded through the National
Education Centers during the prior fiscal
years, including, at a minimum, the amount,
1
Toward a Learning Society: IES Biennial Report to Congress
Figure 1
IES Organization Chart
Office of the Director

Information Technology National Board for
Education Sciences
Administration Science
and Policy
Management Outreach & Grants Standards &

Operations Communications Administration Review Staff
Staff Staff
Staff
National Center
National Center for National Center for for Education National Center for
Education Research Education Statistics Evaluation and Special Education
Regional Research
Assistance
Teaching & Early Childhood Evaluation

Learning International & Division
Division Cross-Cutting
Division
Policy & Elementary/ Knowledge

Systems Secondary & Utilization
Division Library Studies Division
Division
Postsecondary
Division
Assessment
Division
2
● provide research-based technical assistance
ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF to educators and policymakers;
THE CENTERS
● support synthesis and wide dissemination of
National Center for Education the results of evaluation and research; and
Evaluation and Regional ● encourage the use of scientifically valid
Assistance education research and evaluation
throughout the United States.
Evaluations
The responsibility of NCEE for evaluating the
The mission of the National Center impact of programs administered by the U.S.
for Education Evaluation and Regional Department of Education is carried out using
methodologically rigorous designs applied to
Assistance (NCEE) is to
large samples of students and schools. Twenty-
● conduct evaluations of federal education four large evaluation studies are underway, as
programs administered by the Secretary; described in table 1.
Table 1 – Current NCEE Evaluation Studies

Study Purpose
Early Reading First Examine the effectiveness of the early language and
literacy programs funded by ERF on the literacy skills of
preschool children
Even Start Classroom Literacy Evaluate the effectiveness of two promising models that
Intervention and Outcomes (CLIO) integrate early childhood and parenting education on literacy
skills of Even Start children
Closing the Reading Gap Examine the effectiveness of remedial reading programs for
3rd and 5th grade students
Supplemental Literacy Interventions Evaluate the effectiveness of two promising supplemental

literacy programs for ninth graders
Reading First Assess the effectiveness of Reading First on reading instruction

and student achievement
Reading Comprehension Examine the effectiveness of promising reading

comprehension programs in fifth grade
Teacher Preparation Models Evaluate the effectiveness of different levels of intensity and
content of teacher preparation offered by traditional and
alternative routes of certification
Teacher Induction Evaluate the effectiveness of two promising teacher induction

programs on teacher retention, teacher practices and student
achievement in elementary schools
3
Table 1 – Current NCEE Evaluation Studies Continued

Study Purpose
Professional Development in Early Reading Evaluate the effectiveness of two different professional
development methods on changes in teacher practice and
student achievement
Preparation of Teachers in Scientifically Assess the preparation of new teachers by schools of education
Based Reading in teaching scientifically based reading
Professional Development in Middle School Evaluate the effectiveness of promising approaches to enhance
Math the content knowledge and pedagogical skills of middle school
teachers in mathematics
DC Opportunity Scholarship Program Evaluate the effectiveness of the scholarship program on student
achievement and other outcomes
Educational Technology Evaluate the effectiveness of 17 educational technology

interventions in early reading and middle school mathematics
Academic Instruction for After-School Evaluate the effectiveness of two promising after-school
Programs programs in reading and mathematics
Math Curricula Evaluate the effectiveness of mathematics curricula in early

elementary school grades on student achievement
Magnet Schools Evaluate the effectiveness of magnet schools on academic

achievement in elementary schools
English Language Acquisition Examine the effectiveness of high quality ELL models
of structured immersion, transitional, and two-way
bilingual education
Charter Schools Evaluate the effectiveness of charter middle schools on

student achievement
School-Based Violence Prevention Evaluate the effectiveness of a promising schoolwide program to

reduce school violence in middle schools
Evaluation of Student Mentoring Programs Evaluate the effectiveness of U.S. Department of Education-
funded programs on school engagement, and on both positive
and negative behaviors
Comprehensive Technical Assistance Centers Evaluate the quality, relevance, and usefulness of products and
services provided by the Centers
Mandatory Drug Testing Evaluate the effectiveness of mandatory drug testing programs
on reducing student drug use in high schools
Adult Education for ESL Students Evaluate the effectiveness of an enhanced version of adult
literacy instruction that is based on the principles of
scientifically based reading
Upward Bound Evaluate the effectiveness of Upward Bound on higher-risk students

4
The number, methodological rigor, and frequently purchased with Title I funds. It
objectivity of these evaluations represent a included important findings, such as:
remarkable shift from the days when the U.S.
Department of Education had just one rigorous State and district notification of parents
evaluation underway (see table 2), while the of the availability of school choice in
Administration for Children and Families in schools failing to meet annual yearly
the U.S. Department of Health and Human progress targets was often too late to
Services (HHS) led the way with 12 large-scale enable parents to choose a new school
experimental studies of welfare policies. The before the start of the school year.
studies by HHS had a substantial impact on Almost half (49 percent) of districts in
welfare reforms that were enacted in 1996. The the 2004-05 school year notified parents
IES studies could be comparably significant. after the school year had already started,
and in these districts this notification
A number of evaluation reports that gained occurred, on average, five weeks after the
wide attention were released by NCEE during start of the school year.
2005 and 2006, including the three-volume
Remedial reading interventions for
report on the National Assessment of Title I.
struggling early readers brought
This report evaluated the implementation of
significant reductions in the
the largest federal program to assist state and
achievement gap for third-grade
local education agencies in educating children
students in phonemic decoding, word
from low-income families, and examined the reading accuracy and fluency, and
impact of remedial reading programs that are reading comprehension.
The newly released March 2007 report on

Table 2
the Effectiveness of Reading and Mathematics
Of 84 program evaluations and studies Software Products: Findings from the First
planned by the U.S. Department of Educa- Student Cohort is the first rigorous national
tion for fiscal year 2000, just one involved a study of the effectiveness of widely used
randomized field trial. teaching software products. It focuses national
Purpose of the study Number attention on the impact of competitively
selected educational technologies in reading
Randomized field trial 1 and mathematics that are intended to improve
Survey of need 51 student achievement.
Program implementation/
monitoring 49
Non-randomized impact
The study was to determine whether students
evaluation 15 had higher achievement when teachers used
selected software products designed to support
Total 116*
learning in reading or mathematics. The
study implemented 15 software products
*Studies could have more than one
primary purpose. in elementary schools across the nation.
Classrooms were randomly assigned to
Source: Robert Boruch and Frederick implement the instructional software or to
Mosteller, eds., Evidence Matters
continue business as usual. Results can be
(Brookings, 2001).
obtained online at: http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/
pubs/20074005.
5
The Regional Educational Washington—are using external facilitators

Laboratories to work intensively with schools and all use
professional development. Little is known
The Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) yet about how well strategies are working,
program has been funded for over 40 years. especially in the varied school conditions.
Under ESRA, the RELs have the primary
responsibility for carrying out IES’s mission of ● What professional development
providing research-based technical assistance interventions are available in Georgia
to educators and policymakers. As required by to improve middle and high school
ESRA, a revamping of the REL program was reading? Georgia, like many states and
instituted with the award of 10 contracts in districts, is concerned about adolescent
early 2006. Under the new contracts, the RELs literacy outcomes. The state’s concern
are charged with providing technical assistance led to the development of a new set of
to policymakers and practitioners on the performance standards for reading across
meaning and use of scientifically based research the curriculum. These new standards
findings. The RELs also are required to conduct represented a significant challenge for
research to respond quickly to needs expressed content area teachers and, as a result, the
by educators and policymakers in their region. Georgia Department of Education was
These fast response projects take from 3 months interested in finding interventions to
to no more than 12 months to complete. support teachers’ efforts to align classroom
Examples from the first fast response projects instruction and assessment with the
demonstrate how these efforts are organized standards. REL Southeast identified seven
around specific regional questions. interventions that had an appropriate
focus. Studies of these interventions were
● How is the new Utah K-3 Reading examined and summarized, providing a
Improvement Program faring? Utah’s useful guide to schools.
Superintendent of Public Instruction asked
REL West to review the activities under A criticism that has been leveled at the
way during the first two years of the state’s RELs under prior contracts is that there was
K-3 initiative. The report provides detailed substantial variability across the RELs in
school performance data for districts the quality of work, including the standards
starting the program, and districts not yet used in synthesizing and disseminating the
starting the program. It helped Utah “see” results of research. NCEE is providing strong
exactly what has happened so far. REL West technical support to all 10 labs through a new
has been asked to continue the analysis peer review process. Major project plans and
another year. draft final products are subject to external
peer review. NCEE also provides technical
● What are the Northwest states doing to assistance to the RELs to assure that they
support schools in need of improvement? carry out work that is consistent with IES
Using state reports and comments by standards for scientifically valid research and
leaders of state education agencies, REL evaluation. An added benefit of this intensive
Northwest looked at the different ways five technical outreach by NCEE is that the RELs
states structured their approaches to schools are partners in IES’s efforts to turn education
in need of improvement in 2006. All five policy and practice into a field that relies on
states—Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and objective evidence within a culture of learning.
6
The What Works Clearinghouse strongest studies, the result might have been
called the “Nothing Works Clearinghouse.”
The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC)
synthesizes the best evidence of the The decision to try to extract valuable
effectiveness of education programs, policies, information from flawed studies necessitated
and practices and reports these findings a large investment by the WWC in the
through its website. development of technical standards and
procedures for separating wheat from chaff.
Questions about the effectiveness of programs Examples of vexing technical issues include:
in achieving desired outcomes are best when to accept and how to weight the results
addressed through randomized field trials in from so-called quasi-experiments (field trials
which a lottery is used to select participants. that did not use a lottery to form groups of
By comparing outcomes for those who participants and non-participants and thus
won the lottery with those who did not, cannot assure the equivalence of the groups);
researchers are assured that any differences when to accept and how to report results from
in outcomes are due to assignment to the studies that find differences between outcomes
program being evaluated. All other differences for participants and non-participants that are
between participants and non-participants are large enough to be educationally significant but
evened out due to the laws of chance. Other that are not statistically significant because the
methods for evaluating the effectiveness of study was too small; and how to handle studies
programs, such as comparing outcomes for that are well-designed but employ the wrong
participants who volunteer for a program statistical analysis in reporting results.
with outcomes for demographically similar
participants who do not volunteer, are fraught The research and development by the WWC
with interpretative challenges. For example, took time and resources, but it has paid off
researchers cannot be sure that volunteers in transparent, rule-based evidence standards,
are not more motivated to improve than rating schemes, and reporting systems.
demographically similar non-volunteers. The WWC is now providing the education
Thus any differences in outcomes favoring community with trusted information on
participants might be due to differences in the what works.
motivation of the two groups being compared
rather than the effects of participation in the ● To date, the WWC has produced and
program being evaluated. released 59 intervention reports across
the topics of beginning reading, character
In search of research in education that employs education, dropout prevention, early
randomized field trials, the WWC has had childhood education, English language
to grapple with a large number of studies on learning, and elementary and middle school
the effectiveness of education programs and mathematics. Of these 59 interventions, the
practices that have a variety of methodological WWC determined that 44 demonstrated
weaknesses. It has found only a very small positive or potentially positive effects on
number of studies that have the methodological student outcomes.
rigor and generalizability of the large-scale
evaluation studies that have been launched ● The results of the character education review
by IES (described in table 1). Had the WWC provide an example of the beginning and
chosen to ignore all but the methodologically end of the WWC review process:
7
The WWC identified experts to lead the ● The WWC has also generated much
character education review. They, in turn, discussion within the education and
developed a protocol to guide the search research communities and has become
of the literature, for example, by defining the leading authority on evidence-based
character education. practices in education.
The plan to review studies of character The WWC has been featured on
education was announced to the field, more than 75 high-traffic websites of
and developers and researchers were education agencies; by major education
invited to submit studies they believed organizations, national research
were relevant. organizations, schools of education,
education technical assistance providers,
Over 70 character education programs parenting organizations, education
were submitted to or identified by the developers and vendors; and in the media.
WWC. Forty-one school-based programs
met the WWC definition of character The number of visits to the WWC
education and were eligible for review. website in 2006 was approximately
7.5 million. Traffic to the website is
WWC collected 93 studies on these 41 increasing dramatically. According to
programs, with results displayed in figure 2. WebTrends, the WWC website had
517,373 page views in October 2005.
Figure 2
WWC identified 93 studies of 41 programs
Thirteen programs had studies that met WWC standards with or without reservations.
A single program could have studies in both categories.
7 studies of 6 programs
met evidence standards
11 studies of 8 programs
met evidence standards
with reservations
75 studies of 27 programs did

not meet evidence screens
8
For September 2006 that number had Now ERIC has digitized all of its holdings
more than doubled to 1,072,626. with the exception of about 340,000
documents that cannot be converted due
to the specific language of the permission
ERIC forms under which access to the documents
was originally granted. ERIC is contacting
ERIC, the Education Resources Information copyright holders for permission to
Center, is the world’s largest digital library disseminate the full text of these older ERIC
of education research and information. materials online.
ERIC provides free internet-based access to
bibliographic records of journal and non-journal
literature indexed from 1966 to the present.
IES initiated a substantial redesign of ERIC
when the contracts for the existing ERIC “The ERIC website reached
system expired in December 2003. The
redesign was intended to bring ERIC fully a new high in its customer
into the Internet age and to create efficiencies user base in 2006, with
and better service in a system that was
operating through 19 separate contracts and approximately 62 million
a far-flung system of 16 clearinghouses. Each separate searches.”
clearinghouse was working independently to
catalog and disseminate information and was
typically spending more than half its budget on
activities other than the electronic library.
At the time, the proposed redesign of ERIC ● In 2003, full text of indexed articles was
created considerable controversy. For example, seldom available. Now 100,000 full text
the Washington-based American Educational articles are available in PDF format at no
Research Association wrote that, “We have charge, and full text of most of the indexed
substantial concerns that the proposed ‘new’ materials published from 2004 forward is
ERIC will simply dismantle the system.” IES available through links to other sources,
responded by reiterating that its fundamental including publishers’ websites. A pilot project
goal for ERIC was to increase coverage and with 10 university libraries allows users at one
enhance access. Enough time has passed to take of those institutions to link to documents in
stock of ERIC. their own library through ERIC.
● In 2003, 350 journals were indexed in their ● The ERIC website reached a new high
entirety. Currently, about 500 journals are in its customer user base in 2006, with
indexed comprehensively. Another 150 approximately 62 million separate searches.
journals are indexed selectively.
● In 2003, there was typically a delay of six
● In 2003, ERIC materials such as microfiche
to nine months between information being
files and electronic databases were sold to
published and becoming available in the
libraries, for-profit vendors, and individuals.
ERIC system. As of mid-May 2003 none of
Now all ERIC materials and services are free.
the U.S. Department of Education’s 2003
● In 2003, a large portion of the ERIC publications was available in ERIC. Now the
library was available only on microfiche. latency between an article being published in
9
one of the journals indexed by ERIC and its Department of Education, created in 1867,
appearance in ERIC is about two months, was to “collect...such statistics and facts as
and the latency for U.S. Department of shall show the condition and progress of
Education publications is about one month. education in the several States and territories.”
While today’s education system and the task
● In 2002, usability tests conducted on of assessing its condition and progress are
the websites of the 16 separate ERIC much more complex, the National Center
clearinghouses documented user confusion. for Education Statistics (NCES) continues to
ERIC now sports a unified, highly functional carry out this core function. NCES collects
web design with advanced user functions. statistical data on all levels of education
● In 2003, IES spent $10.5 million on ERIC. from preprimary through graduate study,
In 2006, for $8.1 million, ERIC served including adult education. The education
many more users, provided comprehensive policy issues addressed by its data collections
indexing of 42 percent more content, are equally wide ranging, including enrollment
provided full-text access to virtually all trends, access to postsecondary education,
recent content, charged no fees, and the academic achievement of students, and
provided a unified highly functional web comparisons of the U.S. education system
interface to its collections. with those in other countries.
National Center for Education Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems

Statistics
In November 2005, NCES awarded grants
Reliable data are critical to informed decision to 14 states to create or enhance statewide
making for improving education in America. longitudinal data systems in order to efficiently
Indeed, the initial mission of the first and accurately manage, analyze, disaggregate,
10
and use individual student data from public at approximately 1,400 postsecondary
schools. A second grant competition will institutions. Also included were about 11,000
result in awards to a substantial number of graduates and 1,000 first-professional students.
additional states in 2007. The study is one of the most important sources
of information about the cost of postsecondary
Longitudinal data systems enable states and education in the United States.
school districts to look at changes in student
achievement from year to year, or growth. A recent report from that study demonstrated
Without the ability to measure growth in a substantial divergence between what colleges
academic performance for individual students, say is the cost of attendance (often called the
districts and states can examine only static “sticker price”) and, given the availability of
aggregated data on performance at one point grants and loans, the price that students pay
in time. But two schools with identical average to attend a postsecondary institution for a year
achievement scores for their students at the (the “access” price).
end of a particular year may be dramatically
different in performance if one school served The total price of attendance (tuition plus
students with substantially lower academic room and board and other expenses) for full-
achievement than the other school at the time undergraduates in 2003-04 was $10,500
end of the previous year. One school will at public two-year institutions; $15,200 at
have engendered more growth in achievement public four-year institutions; and $28,300 at
than the other. The statewide longitudinal private, not-for-profit four-year institutions;
data systems grants are critical in enabling and $20,300 at private for-profit institutions.
states to collect and use such growth data for (See figure 3 on page 12.) But the access price
management, research, and reporting functions. of attending these schools was much lower:
After subtracting all financial aid (including
Many systems also include data on the loans), the average out-of-pocket access price
preparation and training of teachers and on of attendance for all full-time undergraduates
programs used in schools and classrooms. in 2003-04 was $7,400 at public two-year
These rich data will allow policymakers, institutions; $8,500 at public four-year
educators, and researchers to evaluate the institutions; $13,900 at private, not-for-profit
effectiveness of various initiatives and to use four-year institutions; and $10,100 at private,
data for teaching and learning. For example, for-profit institutions.
one state is using its longitudinal data system
to provide detailed feedback from statewide The “discount rate” was higher for low-
student assessments to teachers, principals, and income students: For full-time, low-income,
districts to support their instructional decisions. dependent undergraduates the average out-of-
Another state is using its system to examine the pocket net price of attendance was $6,000 at
effects of changes in promotion policies. public two-year institutions; $5,600 at public
four-year institutions; and $9,200 at private,
nonprofit four-year institutions.
How do Students Pay for
Postsecondary Education?
The High School Transcript Study
and NAEP Assessments at Grade 12
The most recent National Postsecondary
Student Aid Study (NPSAS) survey was
conducted in 2003-04 and included The National Assessment of Educational
approximately 80,000 undergraduates enrolled Progress (NAEP) High School Transcript Study
11
Figure 3
The Net Price of Attendance and Federal Education

Tax Benefits in 2003-04
Average Amount
$30,000 $28,300 $20,300

Price of Attendance
Price Minus Total Grants
25,000
Price Minus Total Aid
$20,600 $17,400
20,000
$15,200
15,000
$13,900 $10,100
$12,400
$10,500
10,000 $8,700 $8,500
$7,400
5,000
0
Type of Institution Public 2–Year Public 4–Year Private Not-For- Private For-Profit
Profit 4–Year
Note: Full-time/full-year students were enrolled full time for 9 or more months from July 1, 2003 to June 30, 2004. The
price of attendance includes tuition and fees charged by the institution and all other expenses related to enrollment
such as books and supplies, room and board, transportation, and other personal living expenses. Grants include any
grants, scholarships, or tuition waivers from federal, state, institutional, or private sources, including employers. Total aid
includes grants, loans, work-study, and other aid, including federal Parent Loans to Undergraduate Students (PLUS), but
not federal education tax benefits. Average amounts are for all students, including those who received no financial aid.
Estimates include postsecondary students in Puerto Rico.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2003-04. National Postsecondary
Student Aid Study (NPSAS:04).
provides information on course offerings and credits more than their counterparts in 1990.
course-taking patterns in the nation’s secondary Graduating seniors also earned more credits
schools and the relationship of student course- in each of four core course fields (English,
taking patterns to achievement at grade 12 as social studies, mathematics, and science) in
measured by NAEP. 2005 than in 1990. At the same time, they had
completed more challenging curriculum levels:
The 2005 High School Transcript Study reveals 68 percent of graduates in 2005 had completed
a pattern of increasing credits earned by high a curriculum at or above the standard
school graduates over the last 15 years. By level—an increase of 28 percentage points over
2005, graduating seniors had earned over three the graduates in 1990. Increases in students
12
completing at least this level of curriculum of students performing at or above the Basic
were seen for White, Black, Hispanic, and achievement level in mathematics. In 1990,
Asian students. 50 percent of the nation’s fourth-graders
performed at or above Basic. By 2005, 80
Despite these positive trends in credits earned percent of students in the fourth grade were
and the level of curriculum completed by performing at or above this level. (See figure 4.)
graduating seniors, results from the NAEP
assessments in reading and science have not Gains were seen between 2003 and 2005 for
shown comparable increases in the overall all racial/ethnic groups. For White, Black, and
performance of twelfth-graders. Average scores Hispanic students, these gains resulted in the
in reading were lower in 2005 than they highest average score since 1990. At the same
were in 1992. Twelfth-grade average scores in time, score gaps between White fourth-graders
science also declined between 1996 and 2005. and their Black and Hispanic peers were
narrowing. By 2005, the score gap between
White and Black students was narrower than
NAEP Mathematics Results at it had been in any previous assessment year.
Grades 4 and 8
Eighth-graders also demonstrated progress
Fourth-graders across the nation made between 2003 and 2005, posting their highest
gains on the NAEP mathematics assessment average score since 1990. The percentage
between 2003 and 2005, resulting in the of eighth-graders at or above Basic in
highest average score for fourth-graders since mathematics increased from 52 percent in
this assessment was first administered in 1990. 1990 to 69 percent in 2005. The disaggregated
Increases were also seen in the percentage data showed that gains were made by White,
Figure 4
Percentage of students at or above Basic and at or above

Proficient in mathematics, grade 4: Various Years, 1990-2005
Percent
100
32* 36
18* 21* 21* 24*
13*
50* 59* 64* 63* 65* 77* 80

0
1990 1992 1996 2000 2003 2005
Accommodations not permitted Accommodations permitted
At or above Proficient
* Significantly different from 2005. At or above Basic
13
Black, and Hispanic students. Each of these educated parents compared to the United
three student groups attained an average score States. The data also show that 9 percent
in 2005 that was higher than in any previous of U.S. 15-year-olds did not speak English
assessment year. (the language of the test) at home. Of the 19
other countries, 6 had a higher percentage of
15-year-olds who did not speak the language
The Poor Performance of U.S. Students of the test at home.
on International Assessments
In short, the cross-national comparisons of
student populations and their social and
International assessments of mathematics and economic contexts show that the mediocre
science have shown that U.S. 15-year-olds performance of U.S. students cannot be
are typically outperformed by most of their attributed primarily or exclusively to the fact that
international peers from Organization for the United States serves a more economically and
Economic Cooperation and Development culturally diverse student population.
(OECD)-member countries. For example, U.S.
15-year-olds had lower average mathematics
literacy scores than the OECD average and National Center for Special
lower scores than their peers in 20 of the other Education Research
28 OECD countries participating in 2003.
In December 2004, Congress reauthorized
A recent comparison of 2003 data from the
the Individuals with Disabilities Education
Program in International Student Assessment
Act (IDEA) and in doing so authorized
(PISA) explores the extent to which variations
the National Center for Special Education
in student backgrounds across countries are Research (NCSER) as part of IES. NCSER
associated with the reported outcomes of began operation on July 1, 2005.
international studies. The study focuses on data As specified in PL 108-446, the mission of
from 20 countries that are considered to be NCSER is to
the most developed (based on the World Bank
High Income Group). ● sponsor research to expand knowledge and
understanding of the needs of infants,
While the U.S. student population is more toddlers, and children with disabilities
diverse than student populations in certain in order to improve the developmental,
Asian countries such as Japan and Korea, educational, and transitional results of
the study found that student populations in such individuals;
other countries are often quite similar to the
● sponsor research to improve services provided
U.S. student population on the distribution
under, and support the implementation of,
of social and economic factors that might the Individuals with Disabilities Act (20
affect performance. For example, 48 percent U.S.C. 1400 et seq.); and
of 15-year-old students in the United States
reported having at least one parent who ● evaluate the implementation of the
had a college degree or a postsecondary effectiveness of the Individuals with
vocational qualification. Eleven of the 19 Disabilities Act in coordination with the
other countries in the study had a smaller National Center for Education Evaluation
percentage of students with postsecondary- and Regional Assistance.
14
Organizational Accomplishments investments in special education, increasing
the methodological standards for funded
In the short one and one-half years of its research, expanding the pool and capacity of
existence, NCSER has devoted considerable the research community that does research in
energy to organizing, staffing, and putting special education, creating strong links between
research in special education and research
the mechanisms in place to carry out its
in regular education, and collaborating with
responsibilities. The accomplishments include:
OSERS to ensure that their technical assistance
centers disseminate research findings that meet
● Staffing—
IES’s standards.
A commissioner of special education
research was recruited and seven staff
members were hired or transferred Longitudinal Studies
into NCSER.
NCSER managed two longitudinal studies
● Collaboration and Outreach— designed to examine at a national level the
Consistent with the statutory language experiences of children with disabilities and the
of PL 108-446, the Commissioner services they receive.
of NCSER developed and signed a
memorandum of agreement with the ● The National Longitudinal Transition
Assistant Secretary of the Office of Special Study-2 (NLTS2) is intended to provide
Education and Rehabilitative Services a national picture of the experiences
(OSERS) on research collaboration. and achievements of students in special
education during high school and as they
NCSER organized two large meetings for transition from high school to adult life.
representatives from more than 90 special NLTS2 involves a nationally representative
education or disability advocacy, policy, and sample of 11,276 students who were
research organizations to exchange views on 13 to 16 years old and receiving special
special education research. education services in December 2000, when
the study began. NLTS2 is designed with
● Grant Making— many of the same features of the original
National Longitudinal Transition Study
NCSER conducted grant competitions on 12 (NLTS, 1987-1993) in order to identify
different special education research topics in the nature and extent of changes in the
FY 2006 that produced 252 applications and special education services provided to high
resulted in awarding 28 grants. school students and in their post-school
achievement in the last decade. Significant
● Evaluations— recent findings include:
NCSER launched the Congressionally The proportion of students with

mandated evaluation of the IDEA Paperwork disabilities who left school with a
Reduction Act, which includes a provision to high school diploma or certificate of
allow multiyear individual education plans for completion rose from 53.5 percent in
students with disabilities. 1987 (NLTS) to 70.3 percent in 2003
(NLTS2), while the proportion of
In general, NCSER and IES leadership has students who dropped out fell from 46.5
emphasized creating more focus in research percent to 29.7 percent.
15
During this same time, the rate of NLTS2 sample, from 14 percent to 27
attendance in postsecondary education percent (depending on the subtest) scored
doubled from 14.6 percent in 1987 below 70. Scores were lowest in passage
to 31.9 percent in 2003. The greatest comprehension, and for students with
growth was observed in two-year mental retardation, multiple disabilities,
colleges, where the rate of attendance deaf-blindness, or autism.
increased almost sevenfold from 3.6
percent in 1987 to 20.8 percent in 2003. ● The Pre-Elementary Education
Longitudinal Study (PEELS) is a six-year
Students with disabilities still have study that examines the experiences and
significant deficits in academic services of a nationally representative
achievement. NLTS2 administered sample of 3,100 preschool children with
a student assessment that included disabilities receiving special education
subtests in language arts, mathematics,
services and follows them through the early
science, and social studies. On these
elementary school years. (See figure 5.)
subtests, a standard score of 70 is two
standard deviations below the mean,
indicating significantly sub-average Findings from PEELS include:
performance. Among the general student
population, approximately 2 percent Nearly half (46 percent) of preschoolers
scored 70 or lower. In contrast, among with disabilities were identified as having
the students with disabilities in the a speech or language impairment as their
Figure 5
PEELS Profile of Primary Disabilities Among Children

Ages 3-5 with Disabilities: School Year 2003-04
2% 2% 1 %
(ED)
3% (LD) (OI)
(OHI)
4%
(MR)
Speech or Language Impairment (SLI)
Development Delay (DD)

7% Autism (ASD)
(OD)
Other Disabilities (OD)
7% (ASD) 46% Mental Retardation (MR)
(SLI) Other Health Impairment (OHI)
28% Learning Disability (LD)
(DD) Orthopedic Impairment (OI)
Emotional Disturbance (ED)
16
primary disability, and 28 percent were number of applications received increased
identified as having a developmental delay from 226 in FY 2002 to 459 in FY 2007.
as their primary disability. OERI, the predecessor organization to IES,
had 89 active grants funded in FY 2001.
Preschoolers identified with disabilities IES had 265 active grants funded from the
were disproportionately male, 70 percent. same funding line in FY 2006. The efficiency
Two-thirds (67 percent) were White, 22 of IES in managing its grant portfolio has
percent Hispanic, and 11 percent Black. increased even faster than the size of the
portfolio: OERI had 69 staff members
The vast majority of children with managing its grants in 2001. In 2006, IES
disabilities, ages three through five, had 13 staff members in NCER managing
who received special education services its grants. Thus each staff member in OERI
received speech or language therapy managed 1.3 grants, while each staff member
(93 percent). Other common services in IES managed 19.2 grants.
included special education in school
(42 percent), occupational therapy The quality of IES-funded research is quite
(34 percent), physical therapy (21 high: In 2006, 94 percent of funded grant
percent), and tutoring for learning applications received a score of excellent
problems (19 percent). from the panels of distinguished scientists
responsible for the peer review of grant
applications. And befitting IES’s emphasis
National Center for Education on applied research, in 2006, 74 percent of
Research the projects it funded were deemed to be
of high relevance to education practice as
The National Center for Education Research determined by an independent review panel
(NCER) supports research that contributes of experienced practitioners.
to improved academic achievement for
all students, and particularly for those
whose education prospects are hindered by Increasing the Nation’s Capacity
conditions associated with poverty, minority to Conduct High-Quality
status, family circumstance, and inadequate Education Research
education services. Although many conditions
may affect academic outcomes, NCER
supports research on those that are within Recognizing the significant capacity issues
the control of the education system, with the within the education research community,
aim of identifying, developing, and validating NCER established a program to fund
effective education programs and practices. interdisciplinary research training programs
in the education sciences at the graduate and
NCER primarily funds research conducted postdoctoral levels. Through its predoctoral
by individuals and teams of investigators program, NCER has made substantial grants
at universities and other nonprofit research to support graduate research training programs
organizations. NCER has developed focused at these 10 top research institutions:
research competitions that target topics that
are IES priorities. The number of research ● Carnegie Mellon University
competitions increased from three in fiscal
year (FY) 2002 to 11 in FY 2007; the ● Florida State University
17
● Northwestern University over the last 50 years about how people learn,
process, and remember information. NCER
● University of Chicago has worked effectively with the cognitive
● University of Miami science community to develop research projects
that address practical instructional problems
● University of Minnesota that bridge the gap between basic research
on learning and information processing
● University of Pennsylvania
and what happens in classrooms with real
● University of Virginia teachers and students. Two examples follow.
(More information on these and other related
● University of Wisconsin-Madison projects can be obtained online from a special
● Vanderbilt University issue of the American Psychological Society’s
Observer that highlighted IES-supported
research on cognition and learning: http://
The 10 interdisciplinary programs include psychologicalscience.org/observer/
departments such as psychology, political getArticle.cfm?id=1949.)
science, economics, education, and
epidemiology and are providing intensive ● Temporal Spacing of Learning—
training in education research and statistics
to about 160 predoctoral graduate students.
Studies going back a century and more
In the short history of the program, students
have found that spacing learning episodes
have participated in nearly 200 research
presentations at conferences across the country. across time sometimes enhances memory.
The so-called spacing effect is the topic of
Funding provided to these institutions is hundreds of articles, and one might assume
enabling them to attract the best students. that we know all we need to know about it.
The average combined verbal and quantitative However, whether one looks at classrooms,
Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) scores textbooks, or software, there is little sign
of students supported by the IES predoctoral that people are paying attention to temporal
programs is 1,341. By comparison, the average spacing of learning.
GRE scores for doctoral students in the schools
of education that house IES predoctoral In one of several studies on temporal spacing
training programs is 1,196. Thus the IES of instruction that has been conducted by
predoctoral training programs are attracting IES researchers, students learned how to
a much more qualified pool of graduate solve a permutation problem in mathematics
students than is attracted in general to doctoral and then worked two sets of practice
programs in education at the elite universities problems. One-week spacing separating the
that house the IES programs. practice sets drastically improved final test
performance (which involved problems not
previously encountered). In fact, when the
Using the Cognitive Sciences two practice sets were back-to-back, final
to Redesign Curriculum and performance was scarcely better than if
Instructional Practices the second study session had been deleted
altogether. Interestingly, most mathematics
Education has yet to wholeheartedly embrace textbooks follow precisely the approach that
what cognitive scientists have been learning this and other studies find so ineffective.
18
A brief lesson on a topic is followed by Researchers from the University of Michigan
a practice set containing virtually every observed that students who made the most
problem in the book relating to this topic. progress over the course of the year had
The findings from the IES-supported teachers who individualized instruction in very
research program suggest that it would be far specific ways. For example, children who began
more useful to intersperse practice problems first grade with weaker letter-word-recognition
over weeks and months of instruction. skills and received more teacher-managed
instruction that focused on decoding skills
● Test-Enhanced Learning— made greater progress. Children with stronger
vocabulary skills at the beginning of the year
Another team of IES researchers is exploring made more progress if they spent more time
the effect of frequent classroom testing engaged in child-managed, meaning-focused
on student learning. Many teachers and activities such as independent reading. The
administrators decry emphasis on testing in researchers developed an algorithm that
the schools, and some argue that classroom accurately predicted how much students
testing takes away valuable class time that learned in one year based on students’ fall
could be used for instruction or discussion. reading scores and the proportion of time
However, several studies by IES researchers spent in different types of instructional
have found that giving tests to students activities. Armed with this insight and a
after they have read the material produces a grant from NCER, this team, now from
greater benefit on a final test than do many Florida State University and the University of
additional readings of the material. Further, Michigan, developed a software program that
repeated testing boosts the testing effect, so uses students’ reading scores at the beginning
the positive effects of testing accumulate. of the year to develop an instructional profile
of the type, duration, and timing of instruction
that is recommended for each child and assigns
Improving Teacher Quality
children with similar profiles to reading groups
for classroom instruction. The instructional
Teachers use a variety of strategies to teach profile was designed so that teachers can apply
children to read. Reading instruction, for the recommended instructional profile to the
example, may focus on decoding skills or reading curriculum provided by their school in
comprehension. Activities may be teacher order to plan instructional activities for each
managed, such as when a teacher introduces reading group.
a list of vocabulary words to a class, or child-
managed, such as when children engage in In a randomized field trial, teachers were
independent reading. We have known for assigned by lottery to use the algorithm-guided
a while that some teachers are better able individualized reading instruction program
to individualize instruction and produce or to plan reading instruction in their usual
larger gains in reading achievement for their fashion. The evaluation included an ethnically
students relative to other teachers. We have and economically diverse sample of first-grade
not, however, been able to capitalize on this students in 10 schools. Relative to children
knowledge because we did not know the critical in the control classrooms, first-grade students
differences in instruction that produced the in the intervention group made greater gains
effect and how to help less effective teachers in reading comprehension. (See figure 6.) In
emulate more effective teachers. fact, there was about a two-month difference
19
Figure 6
Growth in Reading Comprehension Comparing Treatment,

High-Fidelity Treatment, and Control Children
475
Treatment–All
470
Treatment–High fidelity
Passage Comprehension W Score
Control
465
460
455
450
445
Fall Spring
in grade equivalents between the groups at the Organization, Staffing,

end of the year. In classrooms in which teachers and Budget
made greater use of the software program,
almost all students, even those who started with
IES is led by a director at the deputy secretary
weaker vocabulary scores, were reading at grade
level who is nominated by the President and
level by the end of the year. confirmed by the Senate for a term of six years.
Dr. Grover J. (Russ) Whitehurst, a research
psychologist, became the first director on
IES AS A WHOLE November 22, 2002, and continues to serve.
Senior staff reporting to the director include
The previous sections were intended to convey the Deputy Director for Policy and Operations,
Sue Betka; the Deputy Director for Science,
some of the results of IES’s investments
Dr. Anne Ricciuti; the Chief Information
through each of its four Centers. There is
Technology Officer, Gerald Malitz; and the
also an important story to be told about the commissioners of the four Centers of IES:
functioning of IES as a whole. Dr. Mark Schneider, a political scientist
(National Center for Education Statistics); Dr.
Lynn Okagaki, a developmental psychologist
(National Center for Education Research); Dr.
Edward Kame’enui, an education researcher
(National Center for Special Education
20
Research); and Dr. Phoebe Cottingham, an qualified individuals with an in-depth knowledge
economist (National Center for Education of the subject to be investigated, for reviewing
Evaluation and Regional Assistance). and evaluating all applications for grants and
cooperative agreements that exceed $100,000.
IES has a full-time staff complement of about Further, ESRA requires that all research,
185 and was responsible in FY 2006 for statistics, and evaluation reports conducted by,
roughly $567 million in annual expenditures or supported through, IES shall be subject to
on external grants and contracts through seven rigorous peer review before being published or
budget line items (research, development, and otherwise made available to the public.
dissemination; statistics; national assessment
of educational progress; statewide longitudinal Independent, high-quality peer review is
data systems; special education research; a fundamental mechanism of science. It
special education studies and evaluations; requires scientists to justify their methods
and regional educational labs), and through and conclusions to their peers, and thereby
evaluation and national activity set-asides assures that work that is funded or that is
in the budgets of other U.S. Department of
published has been subjected to and improved
Education programs. (See figure 7.) by informed criticism. Researchers who know
that their work will undergo quality peer
review learn to anticipate and handle likely
Scientific Peer Review Process objections before their work is submitted for
review. This lessens substantially the tendency
to plan or publish studies in which alternative
Under ESRA, the Director is required to points of view are not considered and
establish a peer-review system, involving highly alternative explanations for findings are not
Figure 7
2006 IES Budget (millions)
Research, development, and dissemination ($162.6)

$54.6
Statistics ($90.0)
$65.5 $162.6 National assessment of educational progress ($88.1)

$9.9
Statewide longitudinal data systems ($24.6)
$71.8 Special education research ($71.8)
$90.0 Special education studies and evaluations ($9.9)

$24.6
$88.1 Regional educational laboratories ($65.5)
Evaluation ($54.6)
21
addressed. It is the conduct of activities and reviews. Centers submit a report to the
the drawing of conclusions that can withstand standards and review office after they have
informed criticism that separates scientific conducted their own center-level review.
research from advocacy with numbers, Reports that present new analyses of data
which often parades as science. Thus, the are sent to external scientists for peer review.
importance of the Institute’s establishing Reports that contain only limited descriptive
high-quality processes for peer review of grant data are reviewed internally by standards and
applications and its own publications cannot review staff. Reports are revised as necessary
be overestimated. by their authors until they are approved by the
standards and review office. During fiscal year
IES has established a system for peer review (FY) 2005 and FY 2006, the standards and
for grant applications that is similar in many review office handled 168 reports. On average,
ways to the system of peer review at the the time between receipt of a manuscript and
National Institutes of Health. A key provision the generation of a disposition memo was
is intended to put distance between the
30 working days for external reviews and 8
program officers and administrators within
working days for internal reviews. By way
IES who administer grant programs, work
of comparison, the average turnaround time
with grantees, and disseminate the results of
between submission of a manuscript to leading
research on the one hand, and, on the other,
scientific journals and communication to the
those who are responsible for the peer review
authors of the results of peer review is typically
of applications for funding under those grant
programs. To that end, an office for standards two to three months.
and review was created and staffed within the
office of the deputy director for science of IES. As required by statute, the National Board
That office selects peer reviewers, determines for Education Sciences (Board) undertook a
review criteria, manages competitions, provides thorough review of IES’s peer-review processes.
feedback to applicants, and generates scores for Board members received grant reviews and
applications that determine scientific merit for multiple iterations of report reviews. Members
funding decisions. IES’s procedures and process also attended panel meetings and thus were
for peer review of grant applications have been able to assess the quality of the deliberations.
thoroughly documented (http://ies.ed.gov/ Many of the Board members are researchers
director/doc/SRO_grant_peerreview.doc). who have received funding from the National
Science Foundation (NSF) and/or the National
Likewise, IES has established and documented Institutes of Health (NIH) and are familiar
a process for independent peer review of all with the processes of these federal research
research, evaluation, and statistical publications agencies. They were impressed with what IES
of IES (http://ies.ed.gov/director/sro/ had put in place and were able to validate that
peer_review/report_review.asp) that is very these processes would assure quality, objectivity,
similar to the process by which scientific validity, and integrity in scientific publications.
journals select and edit manuscripts for In addition, ex-officio members Arden
publication. The standards and review office Bement, the director of the National Science
carries out its work independent of any of Foundation, and Duane Alexander, director
IES’s four operating Centers. Action editors of the National Institute of Child Health and
within the standards and review office are Human Development, publicly acknowledged
senior staff members with years of experience that the approved procedures were of the
conducting research and carrying out scientific highest merit and comparable to those of their
22
agencies. In its annual report to Congress in
2006, the IES Board concluded that: Overview of IES Research Priorities
The Institute has implemented standards and By providing an independent, scientific base of
procedures for reviewing and approving grants evidence and promoting and enabling its use, the
and IES reports that are of the highest merit and Institute of Education Sciences (IES) aims to further
are comparable to those of the National Science the transformation of education into an evidence-based
field and thereby enable the nation to educate all of its
Foundation and the National Institutes of Health.
students effectively.
In pursuit of its goals, IES will support research,

Priorities conduct evaluations, and compile statistics in education
that conform to rigorous scientific standards, and will
disseminate and promote the use of research in ways
ESRA requires that the director of IES propose that are objective, free of bias in their interpretation, and
to the Board long-term research priorities for readily accessible.
IES and that upon approval of such priorities,
the director make IES’s plan for addressing IES’s Goals are to
such priorities available for public comment. ● develop or identify a substantial number of
programs, practices, policies, and approaches that
In July 2005, the director developed a enhance academic achievement and that can be
proposed set of priorities and published widely deployed;
them in the Federal Register to solicit public ● identify what does not work and what is problematic
comment. Over the summer, the Board or inefficient, and thereby encourage innovation and
prepared an analysis of the public comments further research;
and shared it with Institute senior staff. The ● gain fundamental understanding of the processes
director considered the Board’s analysis and the that underlie variations in the effectiveness of education
public comments and modified his proposed programs, practices, policies, and approaches; and
draft. At its meeting of September 2005 the ● develop delivery systems for the results of education
Board approved IES’s priorities (http:// research that will be routinely used by policymakers,
ies.ed.gov/director/board/reports/report06/ educators, and the general public when making
attachment_a.asp). education decisions.
In its 2006 report to Congress, the IES Board IES’s Foci

commented on the director’s priorities:
IES has a focus on students whose education prospects
are hindered by inadequate education services and
The Institute did an excellent job developing its conditions associated with poverty, race/ethnicity, limited
research priorities. The draft prepared for public English proficiency, disability, and family circumstance.
comment was a sound document, reflecting the
Institute’s current work. It was more focused IES has a focus on academic outcomes. It will
than many of the previously developed priority concentrate on conditions within the control of
statements. That said, the public and Board the education system, with the aim of identifying,
developing, and validating effective education programs,
comments concentrated on important new areas
practices, policies, and approaches as well as
such as special education and the use of research. understanding the factors that influence variation in their
The director and the Institute were appropriately effectiveness such as implementation.
responsive to the comments, and the final draft
provides a strong long-term guide.
23
Web-Based Dissemination topic(s) that are most appropriate for

their research interests (http://ies.ed.gov/
funding/grant_topic_selection.asp);
Delivery of information through IES’s
website is of critical importance in generating
● a calendar of events that includes
access to and utilization of the activities
information on conferences, training
and products of IES. To that end, the
sessions, publications, grant awards, and
position of chief information technology
other pertinent pieces of information
officer was established in 2005 in the
(http://ies.ed.gov/whatsnew/calendar/);
office of the director of IES. The chief
information technology officer and his staff
● a fully integrated website for all 10 Regional
of three employees and 10 contractors were
Educational Laboratory Programs (REL)
charged with a complete overhaul of IES’s
Web presence with the goal of generating (http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs/);
timely, readily accessible information with a
common look and feel across the Centers and ● a new search engine that provides faster and
offices of IES. more accurate search results to user queries
(http://search.nces.ed.gov/search); and
On May 5, 2006, a new IES website was
launched. This included new websites for the ● a complete staff listing for all IES employees
National Center for Education Research, the that contains area of expertise and keywords
National Center for Educational Evaluation to help the public better identify appropriate
and Regional Assistance, and the National staff members to contact for questions
Center for Special Education Research, as (http://ies.ed.gov/staff/stafflist.asp).
well as a redesign of the previously existing
website of the National Center for Education
Statistics. The IES website now provides a Annual Research Conference
comprehensive and uniform look and feel for
all information generated by IES. In 2006, IES organized the first of what will
be a series of annual research conferences
Web traffic for IES’s website now exceeds 18 (http://ies.ed.gov/director/sro/ies_conference/
million page views per month. When this index.asp). Attendance (527 registered) was
is combined with the traffic for two major so much greater than expected that additional
IES websites that are hosted by contractors hotel space had to be obtained. The program
(ERIC with 8.2 million searches per month included 235 research presentations and 4
and WWC with 1 million page views per plenary sessions. A survey of participants found
month), IES accounts for about one-third of that 80 percent reported the overall quality of
the web traffic of the entire U.S. Department the conference to be good or excellent.
of Education and substantially more traffic
than popular sites such as that of the U.S.
Census Bureau.
Urban Education Research
Major website additions over the past eight Task Force
months include
In October 2006, IES announced the
● an interactive grant topic selection tool to formation of a 15-member task force charged
help users find the current IES research with advising IES on issues related to the
24
nation’s largest public school districts. Task Educational Effectiveness (SREE). For nearly
force duties include making recommendations a century now, the American Educational
of areas of research and data collections that are Research Association has been the main
not covered through existing programs; helping professional organization that has supported
IES’s leaders think about the design of large, and disseminated the work of education
cross-district research projects; and identifying researchers. While recognizing the great
and supporting greater collaboration between contribution that AERA has made and will
the research community and urban educators. continue to make to education, SREE was
Michael Casserly, executive director of the formed to provide a home for researchers who
Council of the Great City Schools, chairs have a commitment to using the procedural
the task force, which held its first meeting in
norms of science to investigate questions
Washington, D.C. on January 8, 2007.
of cause-and-effect critical for effective
educational practice. SREE held a very
As part of what IES anticipates will be a
long-term collaboration with the Council of successful initial conference in December of
the Great City Schools, IES has provided a 2006 that was standing-room-only. SREE’s
competitive grant to the Council to establish upcoming projects include a research journal
the Senior Urban Education Research slated to start in January 2008 and a handbook
Fellowship program. The fellowship program of research on educational effectiveness.
is designed to promote collaborative, high-
quality, rigorous research projects between
senior researchers and urban school districts. National Board for Education
Sciences
National Conference of State IES is overseen by the National Board for
Legislatures Education Sciences—15 highly qualified
individuals, the majority with strong research
IES has made a competitive grant to the backgrounds, who are nominated by the
National Conference of State Legislatures to President and confirmed by the Senate. The
support a number of invitational institutes that initial members of the Board were confirmed
will allow distinguished researchers to inform by the Senate at the close of the 108th Congress.
state legislators of research related to pressing The Board held its first meeting in February
policy issues and to consider with legislators how 2005 and has held six meetings in total.
legislative initiatives can be designed to generate The Board’s initial activities focused on
data that can be used to evaluate and improve statutory responsibilities for considering and
programs. The initial institute on “What Works approving IES’s long-term priorities and
to Recruit and Retain Effective Teachers,” was procedures for peer review. With those two
held January 4-6, 2007, in San Diego. responsibilities accomplished through actions
of the Board by January 2006, the Board
turned its attention to receiving testimony
Society for Research on from practitioners and policymakers on needs
Educational Effectiveness that might be served by IES.
IES has made a competitive grant to support The Board made its first annual report to
the formation of the Society for Research on Congress in 2006, concluding that:
25
The vision Congress had when it created the is inarguable. For example, life expectancy at
Institute for Education Sciences is being realized, birth in the United States increased by 30 years
and the Board is privileged to serve during this from 1900 to 2000. Dramatic changes can also
important period of transformation. be expected from evidence-based education if
it receives appropriate support from Congress
The Board further concluded: and the American public.
Since the Institute has and continues to meet

the highest standards for promoting rigorous GRANT AND CONTRACT
and relevant research, the National Board for
Education Sciences recommends that Congress and
AWARDS
the Administration support the Institute’s role as IES carries out its programs through grants and
the primary agency for federal education research. contracts. The appendices include all awards
made since the last biennial report to Congress.
CONCLUSION
The nation needs policymakers, educators, and
concerned citizens to see the value of rigorous
evidence, to turn to it when faced with difficult
decisions, and to insist that new policies that
cannot wait for evidence be tested as they are
implemented. That requires a transformation
in the way education is conducted. We must
become a learning society—a society that
plans and invests in learning how to improve
its education programs. IES is at the center
of that transformation because that is our
statutory mission and there is substantial,
bipartisan political support for evidence-based
education policy. IES has made substantial
progress in the last four years. It has established
the infrastructure that is necessary to support
rigorous and relevant research. Investments
through the infrastructure are beginning
to yield important results. And people gain
access to IES’s products widely and frequently
through its websites. Much work remains,
and many challenges lie ahead. As a point
of contrast, the transformation of medicine
from a field dominated by authority and
professional consensus to one dominated by
evidence arguably began in earnest in the
1930s and was not in full bloom until the early
1990s. The yield in health outcomes from that
transformation in medicine and public health
26
APPENDICES Appendix A
National Center for model for new principals in several Greater

New Orleans school districts. The impact of the
Education Research coaching model program on student achievement
and school climate will be assessed as well as the
(NCER) impact on principals’ understanding and ability
to perform in their jobs, their persistence in
NCER carries out education research leadership positions, and their perceived levels of
job stress and sense of isolation in their roles.
activities primarily through grants.
Amount: $1,482,155
Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/08
Education Leadership
● Name of Institution: Research Foundation of
● Name of Institution: The Board of Regents of State University of New York
the University of Wisconsin
Principal Investigator: James Wyckoff
Principal Investigator: Anthony Milanowski
Co-Principal Investigators: Hamilton Lankford,
Co-Principal Investigators: Steven Kimball, Donald Boyd, Susanna Loeb (Stanford University),
Herbert Heneman, III Pamela Grossman (Stanford University)
Description: Study of Innovative School Leadership Description: Do Reduced Barriers to Entry Affect
Performance Evaluation Systems – Increased Student Achievement and Teacher Retention: The
accountability demands on school principals to Case of New York City Math Immersion – The
improve student achievement have led to a need researchers are conducting a two-year project
for research on how school leadership skills are that seeks to identify the relationship between
associated with student success, on assessment an alternative teacher certification program and
practices that can identify leaders who possess these academic outcomes. This research will evaluate
skills, and on how to help principals develop these Math Immersion, a New York City alternative
skills. The purpose of this project is to provide certification program for math teachers that is
evidence of the potential efficacy of standard-based designed to increase the pool of qualified math
leadership evaluations in helping principals develop teachers for schools. The Math Immersion program
the proficiencies needed to support improved offers teacher candidates who did not major in
student achievement. mathematics as undergraduates the opportunity to
Amount: $420,070 become public school math teachers if they have
a math related major, or if they passed at least one
college-level calculus course with a grade of B-minus
or better and have math-related work experience.
● Name of Institution: School Leadership Center Amount: $394,424
of Greater New Orleans
Principal Investigator: Brian Riedlinger
Co-Principal Investigators: Scott Bauer (George
Mason University), Betty Porter, Jeffrey Oescher ● Name of Institution: National Bureau of
(University of Southeastern Louisiana) Economic Research
Description: The Coaching Model: A Collaborative Principal Investigator: Patrick Bayer
Pilot Program – In the context of high-stakes Co-Principal Investigators: Fernando Ferreira,
school accountability policies, school principals Robert McMillan
are increasingly expected to provide instructional
leadership that promotes student achievement, in Description: The Unintended Consequences of a
addition to fulfilling managerial and administrative Major Education Policy Reform: California’s Class
responsibilities. The purpose of this project is Size Reduction, Student Achievement, and the ‘Social
to develop, implement, and evaluate a coaching Multiplier’ – All school reforms, but especially those
A-1
that are far-reaching in scope, have the potential Description: Cost Accounting for Student-Level
to have consequences unanticipated by policy- Resources – Currently school-level per-pupil
makers. The purpose of this study is to identify the expenditure data collapse expenditures across
unintended consequences associated with California’s students receiving different services. When these
class size reduction on the distribution of students data are associated with school-level student
across schools and households across neighborhoods. achievement scores, the data do not enable
The theory behind class size reduction policies is administrators to make informed decisions
that smaller classes will lead to lasting academic about the allocation of resources in ways that
improvements, especially in the areas of reading, are meaningfully linked to student learning. The
mathematics, and science. In 1996, California purpose of this project is to assist educators in
inaugurated a state-wide voluntary class reduction using existing resources to achieve instructional
policy aimed at reducing class sizes in the primary goals. The researchers are developing and field
grades from around 30 students to 20. This research testing a new cost accounting system and procedures
team hypothesizes that the policy created a domino that will allow schools and districts to track
effect in areas outside of the classroom that ultimately student-level resources in ways that will enable
had a negative impact on student achievement. administrators to make resource allocation decisions
Amount: $390,923 that are tied to student-level learning outcomes.
Period of Performance: 7/1/05-6/30/07 Amount: $1,104,161
● Name of Institution: National Bureau of
Economic Research
Principal Investigator: Thomas Kane
High School Reform
Co-Principal Investigators: Justine Hastings,
Douglas Staiger
● Name of Institution: The University
Description: Implementing Public School Choice
of Chicago
in Charlotte, NC: Impacts on Student Outcomes,
Competitiveness and Racial Segregation – Intradistrict Principal Investigator: Diane Schanzenbach
public school choice is a systemic school reform Description: Assessing the Effectiveness of Chicago’s
strategy focused on allowing parents the right to Small High School Initiative – There is a growing
choose which public school their child may attend consensus among policy makers, educators,
within their home school district. The goal of this parents, and future employers that American
study is to examine the impact of implementing high schools are in need of significant reform.
lottery-based public school choice in Charlotte, One of the most popular recent reforms is the
“small schools” movement. Small schools have
NC, on several outcomes: performance on
been associated in some settings with improved
standardized tests, student absences, disciplinary
student outcomes, especially among disadvantaged
problems, parental satisfaction, participation in
youth. Although prior research attempted to
after-school activities, school demand, and racial
isolate the impact of smaller schools, it is difficult
re-segregation in Charlotte. to completely disentangle the impact of small
Amount: $1,364,688 schools in the previous research from other
Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/09 confounding factors correlated with school size
such as community factors, Catholic school effects,
and smaller classes. The research study will use a
● Name of Institution: Pennsylvania
rich longitudinal data set from the Chicago Public
State University Schools (CPS) and a variety of analytic models
Principal Investigator: William Hartman to attempt to ascertain the impact on student
A-2
Appendix A
achievement of CPS’s recent introduction of 21 schools: one to engage all students in traditional
small public high schools of choice. college preparatory work, and another to increase
Amount: $336,664 the difficulty of college preparatory curriculums.
This study provides an elaborate and sophisticated
examination of a series of curricular changes that
were phased in over the course of a decade in
● Name of Institution: University of Florida Chicago public high schools. The study looks at the
changes in course offerings, course requirements,
Principal Investigator: Damon Clark
instructions and student achievement scores.
Co-Principal Investigator: Francisco Martorell
Amount: $1,844,860
Description: The Impact of Exit Exam Performance
on High School and Post-Secondary Outcomes – Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/10
A growing number of states require students to
pass exit exams in order to graduate from high ● Name of Institution: University of North
school. However, a large and vocal group of testing Carolina at Greensboro
opponents worries that exit exams will harm
Principal Investigator: Julie Edmunds
students, especially disadvantaged students who
tend to do poorly on standardized tests. Critics Co-Principal Investigator: Lawrence Bernstein
argue that exit exams lower graduation rates by Description: Study of the Efficacy of North
denying diplomas to students who complete all Carolina’s Learn and Earn Early College High School
other requirements for a degree, and by inducing Model – Students in Early College High Schools
some students who fail the exam initially to are expected to graduate in four to five years with
drop out rather than try again. This research a high school diploma and an Associate’s degree or
will use data from Florida students to: (1) assess two years of transferable college credit. Yet Early
the generalizability of the Texas results; (2) see if College High Schools are a recent intervention
specific features of a testing policy (such as the with very little research on their impact. Therefore,
number of retest attempts) matter; (3) test whether this study aims to: (a) determine whether students
the impact varies by student characteristics; and (4) who attend Early College High Schools perform
conduct a longer follow-up than was possible in significantly better than students in traditional high
Texas to see if exit exam performance affects long- schools; (b) examine the extent to which effects on
term economic status. student outcomes vary by student characteristics;
Amount: $367,081 and (c) identify the extent to which specific Early
Period of Performance: 9/1/06-10/30/08 College High School components are associated
with positive student outcomes.
Amount: $2,871,016
● Name of Institution: The University
of Chicago Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/10
Principal Investigator: Elaine Allensworth
Co-Principal Investigator: Valerie Lee
Description: Comprehensive Evaluation of the Mathematics and Science
Effects of District-Wide High School Curriculum Education
Reform on Academic Achievement and Attainment
in Chicago – There is increasing recognition and ● Name of Institution: High/Scope Educational
concern in the U.S. that too few high school Research Foundation
students, especially those in urban areas, are
graduating with the skills needed for college and Principal Investigator: Ann Epstein
the workforce. Currently, there are two major Co-Principal Investigator: Marijata
curriculum reform movements at work in high Daniel-Echols
A-3
Description: Numbers Plus-A Comprehensive ● Name of Institution: Miami Museum

Approach to Early Mathematics Education – The of Science
High/Scope educational approach is implemented Principal Investigator: Judy Brown
in many early childhood programs serving children
from low-income and minority backgrounds. Co-Principal Investigators: Daryl Greenfield
For example, the Head Start Family and Child (University of Miami), Mark Chung
Experiences Survey data indicate that one in four (SRI International)
Head Start programs report using the High/Scope Description: Early Childhood Hands-On Science
curriculum. Although the overall positive impact of Curriculum Development and Demonstration – Early
the High/Scope approach has been demonstrated Childhood Hands-On Science Curriculum
in past research, its mathematics component needs Development and Demonstration. There has also
to be made compatible with current research and been very little systematic focus on science education
standards, such as those developed by the National in the preschool classroom. This may be partly due
Council for Teachers of Mathematics. The purpose to the misperception that preschool children are
of this project is to develop and obtain preliminary too young to learn certain topics, including science.
evidence of the potential impact of a targeted, Recent efforts to apply research in the cognitive
research-based preschool mathematics curriculum sciences to the preschool setting is beginning to
to supplement the overall High/Scope educational change such misperceptions, but science still remains
approach that can also be used in any program a marginal component of most preschool curricula.
implementing compatible instructional models. The goal of this project is to develop and obtain
Amount: $1,497,813 preliminary evidence of the potential impact of a
comprehensive early science readiness curriculum
and related teacher professional development.
Amount: $1,415,652
● Name of Institution: Lehigh University
Principal Investigator: Asha Jitendra
Co-Principal Investigator: Jon Star (Michigan ● Name of Institution: SRI International
State University)
Principal Investigator: Jeremy Roschelle
Description: Enhancing the Mathematical Problem
Co-Principal Investigator: Ken Rafanan
Solving Performance of Sixth Grade Students Using
Schema-Based Instruction – Data indicate that Description: Getting Fractions Right with
by the eighth grade, U.S. students’ mathematics Technology-Mediated Peer-Assisted Learning
(TechPALS) – A review of experimental studies
performance is below the international average,
in elementary mathematics education aimed at
especially in geometry, measurement, and
improving the performance of low-achieving
proportionality. The problem of underachievement students identified two productive strategies:
is particularly severe for high-risk groups, such (1) providing feedback to teachers and students,
as low-income and limited-English proficient and (2) peer-assisted learning. This project seeks
students. Although there is emerging evidence to integrate these strategies through the use
to support reform based mathematics methods of technology, thus enabling more teachers to
and curricula, data regarding the impact of these implement these strategies successfully. This project
reforms for students at-risk for math failure are involves the development of an intervention
limited. The purpose of this study is to develop designed to improve students’ mastery of rational
and evaluate the potential impact of schema-based numbers by integrating two research-based
instruction to enhance the mathematical problem interventions. The intervention will include the
solving performance of sixth grade students. use of handheld computers to implement effective
strategies of peer-assisted learning and feedback to
Amount: $1,432,797 both teachers and students. Two RCTs will be used
Period of Performance: 9/1/06-8/31/09 to investigate the potential efficacy of the approach
A-4
Appendix A
to teaching rational numbers and examining how inferences. The purpose of this project is to develop
teachers are able to use feedback from the system an assessment system to evaluate elementary and
to adapt instruction and the resulting impact on middle school students’ skills and understandings
student achievement. related to data modeling and statistical reasoning.
Amount: $527,077 Amount: $1,599,946
Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/08 Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/10
● Name of Institution: Biological Sciences ● Name of Institution: New York University

Curriculum Study Principal Investigator: Jan Plass
Principal Investigator: Janet Carlson Powell Co-Principal Investigators: Catherine Milne,
Co-Principal Investigator: Joseph Taylor Bruce Homer, Trace Jordan
Description: Measuring the Efficacy and Student Description: Molecules and Minds: Optimizing
Achievement of Research-Based Instructional Materials Simulations for Chemistry Education – The primary
in High School Multidisciplinary Science – In order purpose of the project is to improve high school
to improve student achievement in science, chemistry education. Recent evidence suggests
school districts in the U.S. need rigorous evidence that U.S. students lag behind their international
regarding the impact of instructional materials counterparts with regard to their science skills. The
so they can make sound decisions about their investigators plan to develop and assess the potential
science programs. In 2000, the Biological Sciences of instructional simulations to improve student
Curriculum Study team began the design and learning and achievement in chemistry. At the end
development of BSCS Science: An Inquiry
of this project, the investigators will have a set of
Approach to meet the need for multidisciplinary
computer simulations and data showing whether or
science curricula. Their initial work was funded by
the National Science Foundation. Now that the not using these simulation modules have the potential
curriculum has been developed and commercially to facilitate learning chemistry concepts. A subset
published, in this IES project, the researchers are of these simulations could be combined to form a
conducting a rigorous evaluation to test whether complete curriculum for a grade 9 chemistry course.
students who use this curriculum will learn more Amount: $1,112,774
than students using the existing commercially
produced science curriculum.
Amount: $2,632,563
Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/10 ● Name of Institution: Purdue University
Principal Investigator: Panayota Mantzicopoulos
● Name of Institution: Vanderbilt University Co-Principal Investigators: Helen Patrick,
Ala Samarapungavan
Principal Investigator: Richard Lehrer
Description: The Scientific Literacy Project:
Co-Principal Investigators: Leona Schauble, Mark
Wilson (University of California, Berkeley) Enhancing Young Children’s Scientific Literacy
Through Reading and Inquiry-Centered Adult-Child
Description: Assessing Data Modeling and
Dialog – The primary purpose of this project is
Statistical Reasoning – Data modeling is, in fact,
to better prepare young children for later science
what professionals actually do when they reason
learning. The Nation’s Report Card documents
statistically, and it is central to a wide variety of
disciplines, including engineering, economics, that by fourth grade, students from minority and
medicine, and natural science. Data modeling economically disadvantaged backgrounds lag
includes deciding which aspects of the world behind white, middle-class students in science
are relevant to a conceptual model, how best to achievement. To work on addressing this problem,
measure them, how to structure and represent this research team plans to develop, pilot, and
the resulting measures, and how to make relevant implement a comprehensive instructional program
A-5
designed to enhance preschool and kindergarten the investigators plan to create and evaluate
children’s early scientific literacy. The Scientific supplemental intelligent tutoring software (ITS)
Literacy Project intervention will have both a school for supporting student learning outcomes in
and a home component and will be built around Grade 6 mathematics. The AnimalWatch software
science topics and skills linked to state and national will integrate mathematics problem solving and
standards for preschool and kindergarten curricula. multimedia instruction with information about
environmental science and endangered species.
Amount: $1,490,693
Amount: $1,500,000
● Name of Institution: University of Illinois

● Name of Institution: Ohio State University
Principal Investigator: Arthur Baroody
Principal Investigator: Douglas Owens
Description: Developing an Intervention to Foster
Co-Principal Investigators: Louis Abrahamson
Early Number Sense and Skill – The primary
purpose of this project is to help children at risk (The Better Education Foundation), Frank
for difficulties learning mathematics become Demana, Karen Irving, Stephen Pape, Joan
fluent in basic addition and subtraction facts. Herman (University of California, Los Angeles)
In the classroom, students who fall behind in Description: Classroom Connectivity in Promoting
mathematics and are labeled as “learning disabled” Mathematics and Science Achievement – The primary
often lack fluency with basic mathematics’ facts, purpose of the project is to improve mathematics
and these skills are essential for success with many and science achievement. U.S. high school students
more-advanced aspects of school mathematics. To compare relatively poorly internationally, while
work on addressing this problem, the investigator
U.S. elementary school students perform as well
plans to develop three qualitatively different
as or better than those of other countries. This
computer-aided pre-K to grade 1 programs for
helping children at risk for difficulties learning project is focusing on grade levels where some
mathematics memorize the basic addition facts (e.g., studies have indicated that test scores decrease for
8+6) and related subtraction facts (e.g., 14-8) and to U.S. students. These investigators plan to examine
evaluate the potential efficacy of the programs. the efficacy of connected classroom technology with
interactive pedagogy and professional development
Amount: $1,499,965
on mathematics and science achievement at the 7th
Period of Performance: 6/16/05-6/15/08 through 10th grade levels.
Amount: $3,092,652
● Name of Institution: University of
Southern California
Principal Investigator: Carole Beal
Description: AnimalWatch: An Intelligent ● Name of Institution: WestEd
Tutoring System for Grade 6 Mathematics – The Principal Investigator: Carne Barnett-Clarke
primary purpose of the project is to improve
Description: Math Pathways and Pitfalls Lessons for
mathematics skill and achievement, including
K-7 Students: Improving Mathematics Achievement
for those individuals from groups that have
for English Language Learners – The purpose of this
been traditionally under-represented in science
and engineering fields. Within the United project is to improve mathematics achievement
States, there are substantial group differences in for English Language Learners (ELL). In 2000,
mathematics achievement. This project focuses on while 35 percent of white fourth-graders scored at
Grade 6 because significant group differences in or above proficient in mathematics on the NAEP,
mathematics achievement and motivation emerge just 10 percent of Latinos scored at this level. There
at the transition to middle school. Specifically, is a need for rigorous research-based instructional
A-6
Appendix A
materials that help Latino students and English at risk for poor math achievement. Focused PreK
Language Learners develop important mathematics math interventions have been shown to improve
concepts and the academic language needed to student learning in math under limited conditions.
understand and reason about those concepts. Unfortunately, scaling up such interventions has
The investigators will address this problem by not been attempted. To work on addressing this
problem, these investigators plan to evaluate a large-
conducting an efficacy trial investigating the
scale implementation of the TRIAD mathematics
impact of the Math Pathways and Pitfalls (MPP) intervention in diverse geographical areas with diverse
lessons on English Language Learners’ (ELL) student populations.
mathematical achievement and the development of
Amount: $7,161,466
mathematics-related language.
Amount: $2,757,173
National Research and

● Name of Institution: Regents of the University
of California Development Centers
Principal Investigator: Prentice Starkey
(University of California, Berkeley) ● Name of Institution: Teachers College,
Columbia University
Co-Principal Investigator: Alice Klein
Principal Investigator: Thomas Bailey
Description: Scaling Up the Implementation of
a Pre-Kindergarten Mathematics Curriculum in Description: National Research Center on Preparing
Public Preschool Programs – The primary purpose Low-Skilled Students to Succeed in College – The
is to improve school readiness and subsequent National Center for Postsecondary Research has a
achievement in math of students from low- program of research aimed at addressing the weak
income families. Low-income children enter academic and social preparation that hinders student
kindergarten behind their middle-class peers in success. Major studies include examinations of dual
math knowledge. This gap in knowledge persists enrollment programs (i.e., programs in which high
through high school. To work on addressing school students are able to enroll in college courses)
this issue, the investigators plan to examine the and learning communities (i.e., an approach to
effectiveness of a pre-kindergarten mathematics remediation in which college students are placed in
intervention implemented at scale across two types small groups that take paired remedial and academic
of public preschool programs serving low-income courses). Although both strategies are increasingly
children (Head Start and state-funded preschools) in popular, and significant resources are expended
California and Kentucky. upon them, little is known about their effects. In
Amount: $6,000,000 addition, the Center will carry out supplementary
research and engage in leadership and dissemination
activities with the education policy, practitioner, and
research communities.
● Name of Institution: University at Buffalo, The Amount: $9,813,619
State University of New York
Principal Investigator: Douglas Clements
Co-Principal Investigators: Julie Sarama,
● Name of Institution: University of Connecticut
Jaekyung Lee
Principal Investigator: Joseph Renzulli
Description: Scaling Up TRIAD: Teaching Early
Mathematics for Understanding with Trajectories and Description: National Research Center on the
Technologies – The primary purpose is to increase Gifted and Talented (NRCGT) – The NRCGT
math achievement in young children, especially those will conduct research that addresses significant
A-7
challenges in the education of gifted and talented community conditions (e.g., changing student
students in elementary and secondary schools demographics, resources) on education. The Center
and will engage in leadership and dissemination will utilize comprehensive education databases
activity with the education policy, practitioner, in Florida, Missouri, New York, North Carolina,
and research communities. One of the Center’s Texas, and Washington to disentangle the effects
areas of concentration is on assessment of gifted of different policies by location. The Center also
and talented students. In this area, the Center will expects to make significant technical contributions
develop and validate an assessment system for the to the field as it engages new, rich databases to help
identification of gifted and talented students and guide policymaking.
will construct outcome assessments in reading Amount: $10,000,000
and mathematics for gifted and talented students. Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/11
Another major activity of the Center is a rigorous
evaluation of education programs for gifted and
talented elementary school students. ● Name of Institution: Vanderbilt University
Principal Investigator: James Guthrie
Amount: $8,706,200
Co-Principal Investigator: Matthew Springer
Description: National Center on Teacher Performance
Incentives – The signature activity of the National
● Name of Institution: University of Virginia Center on Teacher Performance Incentives
Principal Investigator: Robert Pianta (Policy-NCTPI), one of two IES Policy Centers,
addresses a key issue in education, namely, a
Description: National Research Center on Early
possible misalignment between uniform salary
Childhood Education – The National Research
schedules applicable to virtually all teachers and
Center on Early Childhood Education will
the concept of providing financial rewards to
conduct research that contributes to the solution
classroom teachers who significantly elevate students’
of significant problems in early childhood
academic achievement. The Center will conduct two
education and will engage in leadership and
randomized field trials offering student achievement-
dissemination activities with the early childhood
related bonuses (ranging from $5,000 to $15,000)
policy, practitioner, and research communities. The
to teachers, one in Nashville (TN) concentrating
Center’s research will include work on inservice on 200 volunteer 5th- and 6th-grade mathematics
and preservice training of early childhood teachers, teachers and the other in another large school
early childhood curricula in literacy and language district to be determined. Participating teachers
development, and assessment of child outcomes in will be randomized into control and treatment
language and literacy. conditions for a three-year period. Experimental-
Amount: $9,959,200 group teachers will be eligible for an annual bonus,
Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/11 contingent upon student achievement gains.
Control-group teachers will be compensated for
record-keeping and other study activities.
● Name of Institution: The Urban Institute Amount: $10,000,000
Principal Investigator: Jane Hannaway Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/11
Description: Center for Analysis of Longitudinal
Data in Education Research (CALDER) – National
Research and Development Center for Analysis ● Name of Institution: University of California,
of Longitudinal Data in Education Research Los Angeles
will address a variety of education policy Principal Investigator: Eva Baker
issues including teacher policies (e.g., hiring,
Co-Principal Investigator: Joan Herman
compensation, and certification), governance
policies (e.g., accountability, choice) and the Description: Center for Research on Evaluation,
ramifications of changing social and economic Standards, and Student Testing (CRESST) – The
A-8
Appendix A
Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, Amount: $9,897,290

and Student Testing is developing and testing a Period of Performance: 8/1/05-7/31/10
model assessment system, emphasizing the intense
and extended use of research-based formative
assessments that are aligned to state standards and
intended to improve instruction and subsequent
student learning.
Postdoctoral Research
Training Program
Focusing on middle school mathematics and
building on its own prior research, CRESST
● Name of Institution: Stanford University
is developing POWERSOURCE, a formative
assessment intervention emphasizing fundamental Principal Investigator: Anthony Bryk
mathematical principles essential to student Description: Postdoctoral Research Training in the
success in Algebra I. The assessments are designed Education Sciences – This Fellowship will center on
to help students organize their mathematical one or more of the ongoing research projects of the
knowledge into big ideas or schema. After the Center faculty, which currently include (a) the study
development, initial testing, and refinement of teacher labor markets, (b) the effects of teacher
of POWERSOURCE are complete, CRESST pre-service training and continuing professional
will conduct randomized controlled studies development, (c) the effects of early childhood
in Pennsylvania and Hawaii to evaluate its education programs, (d) the effects of programs for
effectiveness at scale. English-language learners; (e) the introduction of
Amount: $9,968,718 technology into schools; (f) efficiency and adequacy
in educational finance; and (g) methodological
Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/10 development to improve causal inference in
educational research using value-added methods and
● Name of Institution: University of Houston quasi-experimental designs.
Principal Investigator: David Francis Amount: $673,189
Description: National Research and Development Period of Performance: 6/1/06-5/31/10

Center for English Language Learners – The Center’s
focused program of research consists of work in ● Name of Institution: University of Oregon
two areas. First is a series of targeted experiments
Principal Investigator: Robert Horner
to study critical issues for English-language
learners and their teachers. Three of the issues Description: Postdoctoral Research Training in
are: (1) the efficacy of incorporating English as a the Education Sciences. The focus is on research
second language enhancements into traditional addressing school-wide behavior support practices
effective comprehension instruction; (2) the role and integration of family support systems within
of teacher-guided instruction compared with schools, as well as methodological issues of
teacher-guided instruction that also incorporates studying intervention effects. Fellows will work
student group work; and (3) the benefits of with Drs. Tom Dishion and Robert Horner, with
specific tasks related to (a) analysis of existing
modifying narrative and expository text to make
research databases, (b) designing and conducting
them more comprehensible to English language
intervention research, (c) development of
learners. The second area involves a popular model
conceptual/synthesis papers, (d) development
for the delivery of content area instruction to
of grant proposals, (e) development of advanced
English language learners, the Sheltered Instruction
research and data analysis skills, and (f) professional
Observation Protocol or SIOP Model. Research to
presentations in multiple forums.
be conducted by the Center will test the effects of
the SIOP Model on student academic success in Amount: $665,116
science and social studies. Period of Performance: 6/1/06-2/28/10
A-9
● Name of Institution: University of North Description: PIRT Program to Increase Research

Carolina at Chapel Hill Capacity in Educational Science – This award supports
Principal Investigator: Donna Bryant an interdisciplinary predoctoral training program in
the education sciences, with a particular emphasis
Description: Postdoctoral Training in Behavioral and
on reading research. The PIRT is part of the Florida
Family Supports. The University of North Carolina-
Center for Reading Research which employs an
Chapel Hill Postdoctoral Research Training
interdisciplinary approach to facilitating the reading
Program in the Education Sciences promotes the
achievement of children in the state of Florida.
professional development of research scientists who
will significantly contribute to early childhood Amount: $705,627
education and related fields. Fellows work with Period of Performance: 3/1/05-2/28/09
faculty on one or more of 14 grant-funded studies:
(1) evaluations of large samples of a variety of early
childhood education settings, usually involving ● Name of Institution: Northwestern University
random selection of classrooms and children, and Principal Investigator: Larry Hedges
methods including classroom observations and Description: Postdoctoral Research Training in
child assessments, and (2) studies of professional Education Sciences – This program is designed to
development using random assignment to enable fellows to obtain both training in advanced
educational or quality enhancement interventions. measurement, research design, and statistical
Amount: $598,052 analysis methods as well as practical experience
Period of Performance: 3/1/06-2/28/10 in their application in significant educational
research projects. Fellows will work in one of
a variety of substantive and methodological
● Name of Institution: University of Virginia educational research projects at Northwestern
Principal Investigator: Robert Pianta University. These include projects on the design
Description: Interdisciplinary Postdoctoral of large scale randomized experiments, methods
Training Program in Education Sciences – Among for the synthesis (meta-analysis) of large-scale
these projects are five randomized evaluation educational research studies, the social distribution
trials, quasi-experimental studies on large scale of academic achievement, the development of
databases of state and national significance, language, mathematical, and spatial skills (and
planned comparison evaluations, natural history particularly the relation between input factors and
studies, and the Teachers for a New Era research the development of these skills in young children).
program. These projects are organized in programs Amount: $542,776
of research focused on early childhood/elementary Period of Performance: 3/1/05-12/1/05
classroom quality and intervention effects, teacher
workforce quality and effects, and schooling
experiences in relation to other developmental ● Name of Institution: Purdue University
influences. In addition, work with affiliated faculty Principal Investigator: Douglas Powell
in a secondary rotation will draw into education
Description: Postdoctoral Training in Early
sciences the expertise of faculty from across
Childhood Research – Purdue’s postdoctoral
the University, including the Departments of
fellowship training in early childhood intervention
Psychology, Economics, and Sociology.
and teacher quality research is based at the West
Amount: $608,294 Lafayette campus of Purdue University, in the
Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/10 Department of Child Development and Family
Studies. The program provides recent Ph.D.
recipients with intensive training in curriculum
● Name of Institution: Florida Center for Reading intervention and teacher quality research in
Research, Florida State University early childhood classrooms. Fellows base their
Principal Investigator: Christopher Lonigan work on one or more large-scale, federally
A-10
Appendix A
funded intervention studies. Participation in on- Education, and the new Pittsburgh Science of
going projects provides fellows with numerous Learning Center, in collaboration with Carnegie.
opportunities to collaborate with leading Amount: $637,900
methodologists and early intervention experts at
other institutions affiliated with the Purdue studies.
Amount: $327,248
● Name of Institution: Vanderbilt University
Principal Investigator: David Cordray
Description: Experimental Education Research
● Name of Institution: University of Training (ExpERT) – ExpERT is designed to train
California, Berkeley postdoctoral education scientists in conducting
Principal Investigator: Prentice Starkey randomized field experiments of theory-based
Description: Postdoctoral Training and Research in interventions and approaches to enhance student
Children’s Early Mathematical Training – This award learning in educational settings. ExpERT involves
supports a postdoctoral research training program. formal coursework in statistics, measurement, and
The training program’s theme is the socioeconomic design, as well as courses in educational policies
status (SES)-related gap in mathematical and practices, instruction, and learning. ExpERT
knowledge that appears early and widens during provides opportunities to design, execute, and
early childhood. The program will draw fellows analyze results of field experiments, and attend
summer workshops, a distinguished seminar series,
from child-focused graduate programs such as
and conferences.
developmental psychology, child and family
studies, language and literacy education, or special Amount: $615,460
education and provide crucial content knowledge Period of Performance: 3/1/05-2/28/09
in mathematical cognition, early childhood
education, and intervention research methods.
Preschool program partners include Oakland
Head Start, Berkeley-Albany YMCA Head Start, Predoctoral Research Training
Oakland Unified School District, the Berkeley
Unified School District, Sacramento Head Start, Program
and the San Juan Unified School District.
Amount: $313,280 ● Name of Institution: University of Chicago
Period of Performance: 3/1/05-2/28/09 Principal Investigator: Stephen Raudenbush
Description: Interdisciplinary Training in
● Name of Institution: University of Pittsburgh Educational Research Methods – Research being
conducted by core faculty includes methodological
Principal Investigator: Charles Perfetti
research on the design, analysis, and combination
Description: Postdoctoral Training in Reading of results from randomized experiments in
and Language Research – The program combines education, research designs for studies of scaling
research in classrooms and laboratories using a
up of educational interventions, the analysis
range of methods (e.g., eye tracking and ERP) to
of non-experimental studies, and the use of
study vocabulary learning and comprehension.
natural experiments in education. Substantive
Fellows will work on research with training
faculty from Psychology and Education in the research includes the social distribution of
Reading and Language Group (http://www.lrdc. academic achievement, the effectiveness of teacher
pitt.edu/ReadLab/) at the Learning Research and development programs in middle school science,
Development Center (LRDC; http://www.lrdc. input effects on the development of language,
pitt.edu/ ). Partners include the Departments mathematics, and spatial competence in preschool
of Psychology and Linguistics, the School of through elementary school.
A-11
Amount: $4,399,467 theories and data-gathering methods in education-

Period of Performance: 5/1/05-4/30/10 related fields of cognition such as cognitive
neuroscience, psycholinguistics, psychology of
higher-order thinking and learning).
● Name of Institution: University of Miami
Amount: $4,999,997
Principal Investigator: Daryl Greenfield
Description: Interdisciplinary Training in
Education Research and Advanced Statistical
Methods focuses on in-depth study of educational ● Name of Institution: University of Pennsylvania
issues arising in diverse, urban settings. The Principal Investigator: Rebecca Maynard
training program is housed in The Department
of Psychology within the Applied Developmental Description: University of Pennsylvania Pre-
Ph.D. program and also includes faculty mentors Doctoral Training Program in Interdisciplinary
from the Departments of Sociology, Economics, Methods for Field-Based Research in Education – The
Epidemiology, and multiple departments within program in Interdisciplinary Methods for Field-
the School of Education. Advanced statistical based Research in Education emphasizes field-
skills will be used in the analysis of project data based, multi-disciplinary research that includes
on a diverse set of topics with an emphasis on the randomized controlled trials of educational
study of low-income and bilingual populations in interventions and innovations. Settings for the
urban settings who are at risk for poor educational research will include both inner city schools
outcomes. A rigorous seven course methodology serving high poverty neighborhoods and schools
core, supported by content and elective courses in more working-to-middle class communities.
tailored to student’s professional interests, serves Trainees are expected to achieve proficiency in
as the central training grant theme, providing all seven areas through standard course offerings;
students with a strong foundation in quantitative projects designed and supported summer institutes
research designs and statistical methods applicable in advanced methods; weekly seminars; periodic
to educational research. visits by “experts in residence;” and participation in
Amount: $4,869,993 collaborative field-based research projects directed
Period of Performance: 7/1/05-6/30/10 by members of the faculty leadership team in
collaboration with program partners.
Amount: $4,559,360
● Name of Institution: University of Minnesota
Principal Investigator: Mark Davison
Co-Principal Investigator: Paul van den Broek
Description: Minnesota Interdisciplinary Training
Wisconsin-Madison
in Education Research – The MITER Program is
designed to develop education researchers whose Principal Investigator: Adam Gamoran
ability to apply experimental methodology and Description: Interdisciplinary Training Program for
cognitive sciences to practical educational issues Predoctoral Research in the Education Sciences – The ITP
will place them at the forefront of research and program is training a new generation of researchers
academic endeavors worldwide. Research themes to carry out rigorous quantitative research that will
within the program focus on experimental research provide scientific evidence on pressing problems
methodology (standards-based assessment, of policy and practice in education. Wisconsin’s
continuous monitoring of student progress, ITP focuses on two related themes: (a) design and
experimental and quasi-experimental design implementation of field-based randomized studies
with an emphasis on experimental designs, and in schools and other complex, real-world settings;
longitudinal studies) and cognitive science as and (b) the statistical analysis of quantitative
applied to educational issues (including training in survey, observational, and assessment data on
A-12
Appendix A
education, with special attention to questions of lack of instructor preparation to teach reading and
causal inference. writing to low-skilled students; lack of instructional
Amount: $5,000,000 time; and limited connection of remedial reading
and writing instruction to discipline-area content
knowledge. This study addresses these problems
by developing, testing, revising, and retesting an
intervention that provides guided practice and
transfer instruction in several reading and writing
Reading and Writing skills, contextualized in science content.
Amount: $1,168,758
● Name of Institution: California State University, Period of Performance: 6/1/06-5/31/09
Los Angeles
Principal Investigator: Anne Hafner
● Name of Institution: University of California,
Description: Using Growth Mixture Modeling
Santa Cruz
to Identify Patterns of Early Reading Development
and Teacher and Program Correlates for English Principal Investigator: Judith Scott
Learners – This project will use data from the Early Co-Principal Investigator: Katharine Samway
Childhood Longitudinal Study to examine the (San Jose State University)
development of English reading proficiency among Description: Vocabulary Development Through
English language learners. The purposes of this
Writing: A Key to Academic Success – A pattern of
project are to: (a) use growth mixture modeling
disparity is found for English language learners
to identify distinct reading growth patterns and
when compared with native English speakers.
trajectories in children from kindergarten to
Although many factors contribute to the
grade five in two different large-scale data sets; (b)
underperformance of low-income students and
compare English language learners’ reading growth
English language learners, research indicates that
with the growth of native English students; and
differences in students’ knowledge of academic
(c) examine the associations that exist between
language is a key element in academic achievement.
membership in reading proficiency classes for
English learners, and a variety of student SES The purpose of the proposed study is to develop
and background characteristics, as well as teacher, and obtain evidence of the potential impact of an
instructional, class, and programmatic conditions. academic register and vocabulary intervention for
improving the reading and writing achievement of
Amount: $88,179 fourth graders.
● Name of Institution: Teachers College,
Columbia University
● Name of Institution: University of Texas Health
Principal Investigator: Dolores Perin
Sciences Center at Houston
Description: Postsecondary Content-Area Reading-
Principal Investigator: Dennis Ciancio
Writing Intervention: Development and Determination
of Potential Efficacy – Questions have been raised Description: Development of an Empirically Based
about the effectiveness of community college Vocabulary Curriculum for Kindergarten and First
developmental education. Failure and dropout rates Grade Students – The ability to read and write
are high, and literacy performance even among proficiently is critical to success in American
advanced remedial students is poor. The poor schools. However, according to recent national
outcomes may stem in part from inappropriate reports, there is a significant and increasing gap
instructional approaches, including: lack of direct, in reading and writing scores between students
explicit instruction in reading and writing skills; in economically advantaged and economically
A-13
disadvantaged schools. A pattern of disparity Description: Improving Reading Comprehension

is also found for English language learners for Struggling Readers: Understanding the Roles of
when compared with native English speakers. Vocabulary Development, Guided Strategy Use, and
National reports concur on the dearth of effective Spanish Language Supports in a Digital Reading
interventions for oral language development, Environment – The purpose of this project is to
vocabulary development, comprehension skills, and develop and test a technology-based instructional
writing. In this project, the researchers focus on approach to improving reading comprehension
vocabulary as a central component of oral language among diverse 5th-grade struggling readers, including
development, and on writing as one manifestation English language learners. Over three years, the
of literate language during the acquisition of researchers are conducting three studies to develop
literacy in the early grades. and refine a digital reading environment called a
Amount: $1,105,785 Universal Learning Edition (ULE), which has strong,
embedded supports for reading strategies and active
vocabulary learning. At the end of this project, the
researchers will have a final version of the ULE
prototype, teacher guide materials, and preliminary
data on the potential effectiveness of this intervention
Reading Comprehension and to improve reading comprehension among struggling
Reading Scale Up readers and ELLs.
Amount: $1,499,185
● Name of Institution: Arizona State University Period of Performance: 7/1/05-6/30/08
Principal Investigator: M. Adelaida Restrepo
Description: Vocabulary and Abstract Language ● Name of Institution: Texas A&M University
Enhancement (VALE) to Improve Reading
Principal Investigator: Jorge Gonzalez
Comprehension in English Language Learners – To
increase the likelihood of success in school of Co-Principal Investigator: Deb Simmons
Latino students, schools must address these Description: Project Words of Oral Reading and
students’ reading skills, particularly their reading Language Development (Project WORLD) – During
comprehension. Low vocabulary levels are found the preschool years, children develop language
to be one of the primary correlates of reading skills that influence their long-term ability to read
comprehension difficulties among Latino children. with comprehension. We know that children start
The purpose of this project is to improve the reading school with different levels of language skills, and
comprehension of Spanish-speaking English language that those entry-level skills are correlated with
learners by developing a curriculum designed to long-term performance. However, there are few
improve the vocabulary and understanding of interventions that specifically target developing
abstract language of these at-risk students during comprehension skills among preschool children.
their kindergarten year. At the end of this project, the The purpose of this project is to develop a preschool
investigators also will have gathered empirical data on curriculum (Words of Oral Reading and Language
the influence of this intervention on the reading skills Development) designed to bridge the vocabulary
of the participating children. and comprehension gap that exists for many
Amount: $1,488,273 disadvantaged children. The curriculum integrates
preschool and home learning, narrative and
Period of Performance: 9/15/05-9/14/08 informational text, and word and world knowledge.
In addition, the investigators will assess the efficacy
● Name of Institution: CAST, Inc. of the curriculum.
Principal Investigator: Bridget Dalton Amount: $1,292,086
Co-Principal Investigators: Patrick Proctor, Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/08
Catherine Snow (Harvard University)
A-14
Appendix A
● Name of Institution: University of determined to be effective over the course of the

California, Riverside project. The researchers will have evidence of the
Principal Investigator: Robert Calfee effectiveness of the combined intervention, and
Co-Principal Investigator: Roxanne Miller will also provide descriptive data on how fluency
(Chapman University) relates to comprehension in good and poor readers
in the second and fourth grades.
Description: The Read-Write Cycle: An Integrated
Model for Instruction and Assessment of Reading Amount: $1,043,775
Comprehension Through Reading and Writing in the Period of Performance: 8/1/05-7/31/08
Disciplines – Success in the 21st century requires
competence in comprehending and communicating
in academic disciplines such as the natural sciences, ● Name of Institution: University of Connecticut
history, and geography. In upper elementary school, Principal Investigator: Donald Leu
students are increasingly expected to master content
knowledge independently, and yet we see that many Co-Principal Investigator: David Reinking
students struggle with reading comprehension (Clemson University)
and the acquisition of knowledge from text. The Description: Developing Internet Comprehension
purpose of this project is to create an effective and Strategies Among Adolescent Students At Risk to
generalizable instructional method that teachers Become Dropouts – As the Internet becomes an
can implement across subject areas and grade increasingly important source of information,
levels for the improvement of students’ reading it presents new challenges for reading
comprehension, one that serves to broaden and comprehension, as well as new opportunities for
deepen student knowledge of the content areas. At reaching students who have struggled because
the conclusion of this project, this research team will of their limited ability to comprehend printed
have modified the Read-Write Cycle for use across materials. Although reading on the Internet
several content areas, and will have data to support can pose new challenges–as it demands new,
its potential effectiveness. higher-level comprehension skills–it also has
Amount: $1,549,795 the potential to increase students’ engagement
with learning, creating a context that permits
Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/08 renewed attention to reading and to instruction
in reading comprehension strategies. The purpose
of this project is to develop a research-based
California, Riverside adaptation of reciprocal teaching to support
poor, minority, adolescent youth in acquiring
Principal Investigator: Rollanda O’Connor reading comprehension skills. At the conclusion
Co-Principal Investigator: H. Lee Swanson of this project, the researchers will have developed
Description: Variations in Procedures to Improve instructional materials that can be used to teach
comprehension while students read on the Internet.
Reading Fluency and Comprehension – Many poor
readers struggle with word reading, and often Amount: $1,795,477
exhibit slow, halting, error-laced reading––that is, Period of Performance: 7/1/05-7/1/08
reading that lacks fluency. This lack of fluency is
correlated with poor comprehension. The intent
● Name of Institution: Vanderbilt University
of this 3-year research project is to implement
and evaluate approaches to improving the Principal Investigator: Donald Compton
reading fluency and, by extension, the reading Description: Evaluating a Multicomponent
comprehension of struggling readers in second Reading Intervention Designed to Address the
and fourth grades. At the conclusion of this Diverse Needs of Struggling Readers in Late
project, this team will have a fully developed Elementary School – Although a central task
fluency intervention that incorporates the practices of students in upper elementary school is to
A-15
learn from what they read, national evaluations Amount: $2,885,585

consistently demonstrate that approximately one- Period of Performance: 9/1/05-8/31/09
third of fourth graders do not easily make sense
of what they read. The purpose of this project is
to develop a multi-component reading program ● Name of Institution: University of Virginia
to address the diverse needs of late elementary Principal Investigator: Laura Justice
school students who are struggling readers.
The research team is developing instructional Description: Print Referencing Efficacy. Research
dialogues, strategies, and materials that increase has shown that there are substantial early
the probability that struggling readers derive and differences in children’s emergent literacy skills
retain vocabulary and knowledge while reading and that those skills contribute to long-term
text, especially science and social studies texts. outcomes in children’s reading achievement. At the
At the completion of the project, this team will same time, research shows that intervening before
have initial effectiveness data on the proposed children reach elementary school significantly
multi-component instructional program. These decreases the likelihood of their developing reading
instructional procedures will be easily adapted for difficulties. This research team will implement and
use with any expository text and used effectively rigorously evaluate a preschool literacy intervention
across both general and remedial programs. designed to facilitate children’s early achievements
in print knowledge, including names of alphabet
Amount: $1,083,163
letters and the way in which print is organized
Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/08 and carries meaning in texts, including children’s
writing. The purpose of this project is to complete
● Name of Institution: Pacific Institutes a systematic and rigorous replication and extension
for Research of research showing the effectiveness of the Print-
Referencing Intervention in enhancing the literacy
Principal Investigator: Scott Baker
of all children, including those at risk of failure.
Co-Principal Investigators: Lana Edwards
Amount: $2,626,659
Santoro, David Chard
Description: The Read Aloud Curriculum in First
Grade Classrooms: Furthering Our Understanding
of Immediate and Long-Term Impacts and Causal ● Name of Institution: Boston University
Influences – Although much reading instruction
Principal Investigator: Gloria Waters
in first grade is focused on developing children’s
word recognition skills, it is becoming increasingly Description: Assessment of Comprehension Skills
apparent that reading success in third grade in Older Struggling Readers – The purpose of
depends upon young children developing this project is to develop a new comprehensive,
comprehension skills in the early grades. The computerized language assessment battery that is
researchers have developed and preliminarily organized according to psycholinguistic principles
evaluated a first-grade read aloud curriculum and that can be used to assess the comprehension
designed to expose children to narrative and problems of older readers (students in grades 7-10).
expository text and provide instruction about the The new assessment is called the Comprehensive
structural elements of text, key vocabulary, and Assessment of Reading and Listening (CARL) Test.
how to make connections across related texts. The At the conclusion of this project, the research team
purpose of this project is to test the effectiveness will have a validated and reliable computerized
of this curriculum and to investigate factors that assessment test that educators can use to identify
account for its impact, including examining the which comprehension skills are deficient in particular
effects of the intervention on a range of student students, to target these deficiencies in focused
comprehension and vocabulary outcomes, and the remediation, and to assess whether the various
degree to which student engagement during read subcomponents of reading are becoming more
aloud lessons contributes to learning. accurate, efficient and automatic with instruction.
A-16
Appendix A
Amount: $1,255,025 of multiple texts and identify where readers

Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/09 struggle in this complex but important task. At
the conclusion of this project, the research team
will have a rigorously documented taxonomy
● Name of Institution: University of Houston of comprehension strategies and skills central
Principal Investigator: David Francis to multiple text comprehension and a set of
assessments and indicators that differentiate
Co-Principal Investigators: Catherine Snow
among levels of proficiency, are useful in classroom
(Harvard University), Diane August (Center for
contexts, and provide information for instructional
Applied Linguistics)
decision making.
Description: Diagnostic Assessment of
Amount: $1,562,428
Reading Comprehension: Development and
Validation – Currently available tools for the Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/09
assessment of reading comprehension have limited
use in profiling students’ strengths and weaknesses
in the components of reading comprehension. The
purpose of this project is to develop a diagnostic Cognition and Student Learning
assessment of reading comprehension (DARC)
for children in grades 3 through 5 that focuses ● Name of Institution: Carnegie Mellon University
on the critical components of comprehension.
Those components include (1) decoding and word Principal Investigator: David Klahr
fluency; (2) central comprehension processes such as Co-Principal Investigator: Junlei Li
remembering the text, accessing relevant background Description: Training in Experimental Design:
knowledge, making text-based inferences, and Developing Scalable and Adaptive Computer-
integrating text-based information with world Based Science Instruction – Both national and
knowledge; and (3) sensitivity to linguistic variation international assessments, and the extensive
in the text. Data on the reliability and validity of
body of literature on children’s understanding of
this new instrument will be collected, and norms for
experimental design, reveal not only that many
both monolingual English speakers and for English
students from very good schools do poorly on
language learners will be established.
experimental design assessments, but also that there
Amount: $1,590,077 are substantial achievement gaps on these types
Period of Performance: 7/1/05-6/30/09 of items between schools with large proportions
of students from low income families and schools
with students from predominantly middle and
● Name of Institution: University of Illinois
at Chicago high income families. To improve student learning
of scientific thinking in late elementary and middle
Principal Investigator: Kimberly Lawless
school science, the research team is developing a
Co-Principal Investigator: Susan Goldman computer-based intelligent tutoring system that
Description: Assessing Readers Struggling to will provide instruction in experimental design.
Comprehend Multiple Sources of Information – The This intelligent tutoring system provides feedback
need to better understand how students make based on individual learners’ knowledge and mastery
meaning as they read across multiple texts and for in real time across a variety of tasks and science
teachers to assess whether students are developing content areas.
appropriate comprehension skills serves as the
Amount: $1,485,318
motivation for this research project. Its purpose is
to develop a set of assessments that can diagnose Period of Performance: 8/1/06-7/31/09
the strategies and skills required for comprehension
A-17
● Name of Institution: Research Foundation of ● Name of Institution: University of California,

The City University of New York Los Angeles
Principal Investigator: Barry Zimmerman Principal Investigator: Philip Kellman
Co-Principal Investigators: Bert Flugman, Co-Principal Investigator: Christine Massey
John Hudesman (University of Pennsylvania)
Description: Enhancing Self-Reflection and Description: Integrating Conceptual Foundations in
Mathematics Achievement of At-Risk Students Mathematics through the Application of Principles of
at an Urban Technical College: A Self-Regulated Perceptual Learning – The objective of this project is
Learning – Previous research has documented the to help students in Grades 3-8 develop an integrated
success of an assessment-for-learning approach in mathematical knowledge base in which the domains
improving student performance, but unfortunately of measurement and fractions are meaningfully
most teachers have no clear methodology (grounded connected to each other and to core concepts of
multiplication, division, ratio, and proportion. This
in cognitive science) to assist them in making this
interrelated set of mathematical concepts has been
instructional transition. The goal of this project is
selected because it is central to the mathematical
to develop an intervention program that teachers
standards identified for these grades (NCTM,
can use to help prepare students to respond to their
2000); it provides essential foundations for higher
academic grades as sources of self-regulated learning math learning; expert understanding is characterized
rather than as indices of personal limitation. by dense connections across these topics; and there
Amount: $482,496 is convincing evidence that too few children in
Period of Performance: 9/1/06-8/31/08 U.S. schools are reliably achieving this integrated
knowledge base.
Amount: $1,500,000
● Name of Institution: The Trustees of Columbia
University in the City of New York Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/09
Principal Investigator: Janet Metcalfe

● Name of Institution: University of Kentucky
Co-Principal Investigator: Lisa Son
Research Foundation
(Barnard College)
Principal Investigator: Elizabeth Lorch
Description: The Effect of Metacognition on
Children’s Control of Their Study and of Their Description: Teaching the Logic of the Scientific
Cognitive Processes – This project will examine Method in the Fourth Grade – The purpose of this
children’s metacognitive skills, or the ability to project is to develop a general intervention for
accurately monitor one’s own learning, and to teaching the core logic of the scientific method,
that is, the “control of variables” strategy. In
use this knowledge to regulate one’s learning
the “control of variables” strategy, one variable is
behaviors. By examining children’s spontaneous
manipulated while the others are held constant or
use of metacognitive skills and strategies, the
controlled, allowing experimenters to conclude that
researchers will then be able to devise interventions
any changes that occur are due to changes in the one
addressing weaknesses in this area and remediate variable. A primary theoretical objective is to achieve a
them in order to improve learning. By building better understanding of the roles of direct instruction
metacognitive skills and control strategies, children versus discovery learning in science education.
could be better positioned to assess their own
Amount: $1,140,201
knowledge so that they can more effectively allocate
and organize study time and effort optimally, and to Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/09
improve learning more generally.
Amount: $835,709 ● Name of Institution: University of Washington
Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/09 Principal Investigator: Deborah McCutchen
A-18
Appendix A
Description: Making Meaning: Morphological Co-Principal Investigators: Kefyn Catley, Dan

Processing and Its Contribution to Adolescent and Schwartz (Stanford University)
Pre-Adolescent Literacy – Research has begun to Description: A Learning by Teaching Approach
document relationships between children’s literacy to Help Students Develop Self-Regulatory Learning
achievement (both reading and writing) and their Skills in Middle School Science Classrooms – The
morphological awareness-that is, the ability to purpose of this project is to develop and test a new
recognize, reflect on, and manipulate meaningful form of easily scaled technological support for the
word parts such as roots and suffixes. Much of this development of metacognition, and to examine
work has been correlational, allowing for few causal whether using the metacognitive interventions
arguments regarding underlying mechanisms. will be associated with improvement in students’
The goal of this project is to understand further the subsequent abilities to learn, in this case the learning
mechanisms by which morphological insights are of middle school science.
used by children to increase their vocabulary Amount: $1,499,980
and comprehension. Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/09
Amount: $834,155
Period of Performance: 9/16/06-9/15/09 ● Name of Institution: The University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill
● Name of Institution: University of Principal Investigator: Stephen Hooper
Wisconsin, Madison Co-Principal Investigator: Nathan Vandergrift
Principal Investigator: Martha Alibali Description: Attention, Memory, and Executive
Functions in Written Language Expression in
Co-Principal Investigator: Eric Knuth, Mitchell
Elementary School Children – Researchers have only
Nathan, R. Breckinridge Church (Northeastern
begun to understand the factors that contribute
Illinois University) to the development of written expression in the
Description: Does Visual Scaffolding Facilitate formative elementary school years. The primary
Students’ Mathematics Learning? – Visual scaffolding purpose of this project is to establish a stronger
may be important in instructional settings, in scientific foundation for educational practice within
which students’ comprehension is often challenged the writing domain by utilizing recent advances
by new concepts and unfamiliar terms. However, in cognitive science and neuroscience to examine:
little is known about how teachers actually use (1) text generation for children at-risk for writing
problems and typically developing children; (2) the
visual scaffolding in instructional communication
cognitive underpinnings of writing skills for children
or whether visual scaffolding influences students’
at-risk versus those not at-risk for writing problems,
comprehension and learning. This project has and how these relationships change over time; and
three aims: (1) to document how teachers use (3) the impact of an evidence-based treatment
visual scaffolding in naturalistic instructional program on the developmental trajectories of written
communication; (2) to investigate whether visual expression in children at-risk for writing problems.
scaffolding promotes students’ comprehension of Amount: $1,596,398
instructional language, and therefore their learning;
and (3) to investigate a possible mechanism by which
visual scaffolding may promote learning-namely, by
facilitating students’ encoding of visual information. ● Name of Institution: Washington University
Amount: $982,736 in St. Louis
Principal Investigator: Henry Roediger, III
Co-Principal Investigators: Mark McDaniel,
Kathleen McDermott
● Name of Institution: Vanderbilt University Description: Test-Enhanced Learning in the
Principal Investigator: Gautam Biswas Classroom – Achievement of American students falls
A-19
behind that of students in many other industrialized computer simulations that provide perceptual
countries, especially in science and mathematics. support to students as they master abstract scientific
This project builds on earlier work on test-enhanced principles. At the conclusion of this research project,
learning, or the use of frequent quizzes as learning the team will have developed new curricula and
events. Test-enhanced learning has been shown to supporting materials for teaching complex systems
be highly effective in promoting student learning at the college and K-12 levels.
in laboratory situations. The purpose of this project Amount: $796,479
is to import the Test-Enhanced Learning Program
into school settings to examine its efficacy at two Period of Performance: 8/1/05-7/31/08
different educational levels.
Amount: $2,964,770 ● Name of Institution: Kent State University
Period of Performance: 8/1/06-7/31/10 Principal Investigator: John Dunlosky
Co-Principal Investigator: Katherine Rawson
● Name of Institution: Fordham University Description: Supporting Efficient and Durable
Principal Investigator: William Whitten Student Learning – This research team is developing
and evaluating the effectiveness of a new method
Co-Principal Investigator: Mitchell Rabinowitz
of learning and study called retrieval-feedback-
Description: Guided Cognition of Unsupervised monitoring (RFM). This new method is inspired
Learning – Teachers generally assign homework to by two cognitive principles. First, research has
help students learn new information and procedures. demonstrated that the durability of learning
From the perspective of cognitive scientists, the can be improved by requiring learners to study
value of homework assignments for improving concepts systematically spaced over time instead of
student learning depends on how the assignments
trying to master many concepts in a single study
are structured. The purpose of this project is to
session (i.e., “cramming”). Second, study time can
test specific strategies for structuring homework
be used most efficiently when there is accurate
assignments in ways that will increase the likelihood
monitoring of what has been learned and what still
that homework will involve productive study of
new material. The overall goal is to determine the needs to be learned. The researchers hypothesize
conditions under which students adopt cognitive that computer-assisted studying based on these
strategies, such as summarizing, asking questions, principles will improve learning.
and considering divergent answers to questions, Amount: $868,864
when engaged in unsupervised study for which Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/08
specific study tasks are not provided.
Amount: $623,390
● Name of Institution: Michigan State University
Principal Investigator: Jon Star
Co-Principal Investigator: Bethany Rittle-
● Name of Institution: Indiana University
Johnson (Vanderbilt University)
Principal Investigator: Robert Goldstone
Description: Using Contrasting Examples to Support
Co-Principal Investigator: Linda Smith Procedural Flexibility and Conceptual Understanding
Description: Grounded and Transferable in Mathematics – The purpose of this research
Knowledge of Complex Systems Using Computer project is to develop and evaluate an instructional
Simulations – In determining how best to support approach that uses contrasting examples in order
the transfer of knowledge, this research project
to foster flexible mathematical problem solving.
examines the relation between the specific fact and
details through which a phenomenon is presented, Contrasting examples of solution procedures
and the abstraction of deeper scientific principles are presented during discussions in mathematics
underlying the phenomenon. These researchers classrooms. Students are asked to compare these
are developing perceptually based and interactive contrasting examples. This instructional approach
A-20
Appendix A
should foster students’ awareness of critical features scientist’s view of the same phenomenon. These
of the procedures and to abstract their common misconceptions are resistant to change. The
underlying structure. purpose of this project is to study the cognitive
origins of scientific misconceptions and to design
Amount: $1,014,175
interventions to correct them. At the conclusion
Period of Performance: 8/16/05-8/15/08 of this project, the researchers will have a set of
interventions that can be used to overcome scientific
misconceptions and improve science learning.
● Name of Institution: Northwestern University
Amount: $933,397
Principal Investigator: David Uttal
Co-Principal Investigator: Judy DeLoache
(University of Virginia)
Description: Understanding and Facilitating ● Name of Institution: University of Chicago
Symbolic Learning – The ability to understand Principal Investigator: Sian Beilock
letters, numbers, and mathematical symbols is
Description: Improving the Assessment Capability
critically important to learning in school. To
of Standardized Tests: How High-Stakes Testing
facilitate the learning of educational symbol
Environments Compromise Performance – The
systems, teachers and parents often encourage
purpose of this project is twofold. First, these
children to play with a variety of concrete
researchers are examining how stereotype threat
symbolic objects. For example, teachers often use
undermines women’s expression of math skills
such objects, commonly called manipulatives, to
by examining how testing situations impact
facilitate children’s learning of mathematics. It
performance. Second, building on this set of
is generally assumed that these objects facilitate
findings, the researchers are developing and testing,
learning by helping children to understand
in an education delivery setting, new assessment
concepts before they can understand abstract,
tools that are designed to reduce the negative
symbolic representations. However, this
effects of stereotype threat. The results of this
assumption has never been adequately tested, and
project should be able to provide new guidance on
there are theoretical reasons to believe that merely
how standardized assessments can be developed that
interacting with an object that is intended to be a
accurately reflect all students’ abilities and potential.
symbol may actually be counterproductive. This
research team will develop and test interventions Amount: $427,786
designed to help parents and teachers use symbolic Period of Performance: 6/9/05-5/31/08
objects, such as manipulatives, more effectively.
Amount: $958,491
● Name of Institution: University of Memphis
Principal Investigator: Barry Gholson
Co-Principal Investigators: Arthur Graesser,
● Name of Institution: Ohio State University Wali Abdi
Principal Investigator: Andrew Heckler Description: An Implementation of Vicarious
Description: Scientific Misconceptions: From Learning with Deep-Level Reasoning Questions in
Cognitive Underpinning to Educational Treatment – Middle School and High School Classrooms – This
There is a growing need for research that examines research project will compare different versions
barriers to learning science and ways to facilitate of an intelligent tutoring system developed by
science learning. One known barrier to successful the research team in prior work, AutoTutor, to
science learning is scientific “pre-conceptions” or examine how best to support learning of course
“misconceptions.” A scientific misconception is content. For example, students will compare the
often defined as everyday beliefs about a natural use of AutoTutor in its typical interactive version
phenomenon, which are different from an expert to a vicarious condition where students listen to
A-21
and observe the AutoTutor agent presenting the to other estimation tasks, enhances arithmetic
same course content, but they do not physically learning, and can be scaled up to the classroom
interact with the source of the materials. This will level. At the conclusion of this project, the research
enable the research team to determine whether team will have validated both instructional
students are equally able to learn course content interventions for use in one-on-one settings and in
during interactive and vicarious learning. They are whole group instruction.
also examining whether mastery of course content
Amount: $851,346
can be improved by asking students to generate
reasoning questions during study (e.g., “Why is Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/08
x important?”). The researchers are working with
school-aged students in the areas of computer
● Name of Institution: Duke University
literacy and Newtonian physics.
Principal Investigator: David Rabiner
Amount: $1,050,000
Description: A Randomized Trial of Two Promising
Interventions for Students with Attention Problems –
Attention problems, even when not severe enough
● Name of Institution: University of to warrant a formal diagnosis of Attention Deficit
Southern California Hyperactivity Disorder, are strongly associated
with academic achievement difficulties and have
Principal Investigator: Carole Beal an adverse impact on school success for thousands
Description: Dynamically Modifying the Learning of students each year. Currently, there are no
Trajectories of Novices with Pedagogical Agents – The interventions that have been clearly established
challenge for science education is that once to enhance attention and achievement among
students settle on a strategy, they will often students with attention difficulties. The purpose
continue to use the same approach in the future, of this project is to conduct a rigorous, school-
even if the approach is not effective or efficient. based evaluation of two promising interventions
The purpose of this project is to develop an for inattentive students. Documenting the efficacy
intervention designed to help novice chemistry of either approach, or their combination, has
learners revise their strategy while solving chemistry important implications for helping students whose
problems. Building on prior research, this team academic achievement is significantly impaired by
is developing predictive models of problem inattentive behavior in the classroom.
solving and using them to provide individualized Amount: $1,150,719
instruction to novice chemistry learners. Period of Performance: 7/1/05-6/30/08
Amount: $1,220,822
Period of Performance: 7/1/05-6/30/08 ● Name of Institution: Northern Illinois University
Principal Investigator: M. Anne Britt
● Name of Institution: Carnegie Mellon University Description: Creating a Usable Environment to
Principal Investigator: Robert Siegler Teach Argument Comprehension and Production
Skills – Argumentation is a central component
Description: Improving Children’s Pure Numerical of social and personal decision-making, as well
Estimation – The researchers have developed two as a fundamental skill required by many class
interventions-one for preschool children and assignments and by entrance exams to postsecondary
one for young elementary school children to education (e.g., SAT, LSAT, and GRE). While
support the acquisition of linear representations of our education system expects students to acquire
numerical magnitudes. The purpose of this research the ability to comprehend and produce written
project is to test whether learning produced by arguments, ensuring this outcome is not the purview
these interventions lasts over time, generalizes of any specific discipline. Not surprisingly, many
A-22
Appendix A
students leave high school unable to comprehend ● Name of Institution: LessonLab, Inc.
and write arguments. The purpose of this project is Principal Investigator: Nicole Kersting
to understand students’ argumentation strengths and
weaknesses and to develop and evaluate computer- Co-Principal Investigators: Rosella Santagata,
based instructional modules to improve their Karen Givvin
argument comprehension and production skills. Description: Using Video Clips of Classroom
These modules will be available online as stand-alone Instruction as Item Prompts to Measure Teacher
lessons and as a course presented in the context of Knowledge of Teaching Mathematics: Instrument
a simple role playing game. The final product will Development and Validation – Over the past two
include teacher support materials. decades researchers have developed teaching
Amount: $574,931 standards, detailing what teachers should know and
be able to do. However, many of the assessments
of teacher knowledge currently available assess
low-level or marginally relevant knowledge, and
not teachers’ deep knowledge of subject matter
and actual teaching skills. In addition, many
Teacher Quality: Mathematics assessments of teacher knowledge have been
criticized for technical shortcomings relating to
and Science Education the instruments’ reliability, inter-rater reliability, or
validity, further underscoring the need for better
● Name of Institution: The Regents of the assessments. To address existing needs, this study
University of California will take a novel assessment approach to measure
Principal Investigator: Roland Tharp (University teachers’ knowledge of teaching mathematics.
of California, Berkeley) Following up on promising pilot data, this project
will develop video-analysis assessments for three
Co-Principal Investigator: Trish Stoddard pre-algebra topic areas: (1) fractions, (2) ratio and
(University of California, Santa Cruz) proportion, and (3) equations.
Description: Integrating Science and Diversity Amount: $1,413,121
Education: A Model of Pre-Service Elementary
Teacher Preparation – Using sociocultural Period of Performance: 9/1/06-8/31/10
theory and research, the Center for Research on
Education, Diversity and Excellence has identified
● Name of Institution: Allegheny Singer
Five Pedagogy Standards to teach students at risk
Research Institute
for educational failure: (1) joint productive activity
among teacher and students; (2) developing Principal Investigator: Erdosne Toth
language and literacy across the curriculum; (3) Description: Mentoring Teachers Through
connecting school to students’ lives; (4) teaching Pedagogical Content Knowledge Development –
complex thinking; and (5) engaging students High school life science teachers often lack
through dialogue, especially the instructional in-depth knowledge in specialized topics of life
conversation. The purpose of this project is to science. Researchers will develop and test the
implement and test an experimental model of potential efficacy of professional development
pre-service elementary science teacher education modules, including both content and pedagogy,
based on the Five Standards for Effective Pedagogy, to address this need. The study will focus on novel
in order to prepare elementary school teachers to science content––genetics and biotechnology, and
teach science to the increasingly diverse student their ethical implications; and how to turn novel
body in U.S. elementary schools. content knowledge into effective teaching and
improved student achievement. The project will
Amount: $1,473,522 explore models of long-term mentoring via face-to-
Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/09 face and more distant on-line interaction.
A-23
Amount: $957,825 professional development program for middle school

Period of Performance: 9/1/05-8/31/08 science teachers with an emphasis on improving the
science achievement of Latino students.
Amount: $913,620
● Name of Institution: Education
Development Center Period of Performance: 6/10/05-5/31/08
Principal Investigator: Nancy Clark-Chiarelli

Co-Principal Investigator: Jess Gropen ● Name of Institution: South Carolina
Department of Education
Description: Assessing the Potential Impact of
Principal Investigator: Christina Schneider
a Professional Development Program in Science
on Head Start Teachers and Children – English Description: Investigating the Efficacy of a
language learners and students from low-income Professional Development Program in Classroom
homes perform lower in science on average than Assessment for Middle School Reading and
their peers. Researchers will develop and test the Mathematics – The purpose of this project is to
potential efficacy of a professional development conduct a replication field trial that will determine
program in science, Foundations of Science how best to implement and deliver standardized
Literacy (FSL), on Head Start teachers and professional development in classroom assessment
children in the Boston area of Massachusetts. that meets teachers’ needs in math and reading
across grade levels.
Amount: $1,367,500
Amount: $1,680,625
● Name of Institution: University of Nebraska

● Name of Institution: SRI International
Principal Investigator: Elizabeth Doll
Principal Investigator: William Penuel
Co-Principal Investigators: Ron Bonnstetter,
Roger Bruning, Christy Horn Description: Comparing the Efficacy of Three
Approaches to Improving Teaching Quality in Science
Description: Evolving Inquiry: An Experimental Education: Curriculum Implementation, Design,
Test of a Science Instruction Model for Teachers in and Adaptation – The purpose of this project
Rural, Culturally Diverse Schools – This project will is to compare the efficacy of three competing
test the potential efficacy of a technology-supported approaches to improving teaching in middle school
professional development program for rural 5th-8th science education: (1) training to use a specific
grade science teachers from two rural Nebraska curriculum; (2) training to develop curriculum
Educational Service Units (ESUs). The program is units aligned to local standards; and (3) training to
adapted for rural school populations from a program adapt a curriculum to be aligned to local standards.
with promising results in an urban setting.
Amount: $1,864,415
Amount: $1,261,684

● Name of Institution: University of Toledo South Florida
Principal Investigator: Carla Johnson Principal Investigator: Kathryn Borman
Co-Principal Investigator: Jamison Fargo (Utah Co-Principal Investigators: Kim Davis (District
State University) School Board of Pasco County), Sherri Steffen
Description: Utah’s Improving Science Teacher (Teaching SMART and Girls Inc., Rapid City)
Quality Initiative – The purpose of this project Description: Replication and Outcomes of the
is to design and test the potential efficacy of a Teaching SMART® Program in Elementary Science
A-24
Appendix A
Classrooms – This project will study the efficacy Pre-Service Teachers – Research suggests that good
of Teaching SMART®, a widely used professional early literacy instruction can dramatically improve
development program for elementary school student achievement. Despite the acknowledged
teachers, on improving teacher performance and importance of teachers, little research has directly
student learning in science education. The study focused on pre-service teacher education, or on
will also identify instructional methodologies and ways to enhance teacher’s problem-solving skills as
strategies that are effective in improving teacher they relate to the needs of children who struggle
performance and, in turn, student achievement. with literacy acquisition. In the current project,
the researchers plan to develop a set of multimedia
Amount: $2,408,168
materials that can be used in the context of pre-
Period of Performance: 8/1/05-7/31/09 service language arts methods courses to enhance
pre-service teacher preparation.
Amount: $1,440,551
Teacher Quality: Reading
and Writing
● Name of Institution: The Regents of the
University of California
● Name of Institution: California State University Principal Investigator: Carol Olson (University of
Long Beach Foundation California, Irvine)
Principal Investigator: Claude Goldenberg Description: The Pathway Project: A Cognitive
Description: Standards-based Differentiated Strategies Approach to Reading and Writing Instruction
ELD Instruction to Improve English Language Arts for Teachers of Secondary English Language Learners –
Achievement for English Language Learners – A Research suggests that good early literacy instruction
critical piece in addressing the English literacy can dramatically improve student achievement.
development of English language learners lays in Despite the acknowledged importance of teachers,
professional development for teachers that gives little research has directly focused on pre-service
them: (1) a deeper understanding of how English teacher education, or on ways to enhance teacher’s
Language Development standards can be used problem-solving skills as they relate to the needs of
to support students’ acquisition of the English children who struggle with literacy acquisition. In
language arts standards; and (2) practical tools the current project, the researchers plan to develop
and techniques to help English language learners a set of multimedia materials that can be used in
achieve the standards. The purpose of this project is the context of pre-service language arts methods
to obtain preliminary evidence for the impact of a courses to enhance pre-service teacher preparation.
recently developed English Language Development Amount: $2,942,842
professional preparation program for in-service
teachers of English language learners. Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/10
Amount: $991,630
● Name of Institution: University of Pittsburgh
Principal Investigator: Lindsay Clare Matsamura
● Name of Institution: Research Foundation of Co-Principal Investigators: Brian Junker

the State University of New York (Carnegie Mellon University), Lauren Resnick,
Donna DiPrima Bickel
Principal Investigator: Donna Scanlon
Description: Content-Focused CoachingSM for
Co-Principal Investigators: Lynn Gelzheiser, High Quality Reading Instruction – Finding new
Frank Vellutino, Virginia Goatley strategies for building teachers’ capacity to teach
Description: Enhancing Knowledge Related to reading comprehension well is a significant
Research-Based Early Literacy Instruction Among challenge. One way that school districts across
A-25
the country have responded to this challenge has professional development activities and coaching
been to hire additional, presumably more skilled, practices associated with Reading First efforts
teachers as “instructional coaches.” However, there that predict teacher and student outcomes. The
is no agreed upon definition of the coaching job, teacher outcomes of interest are knowledge of
and the actual tasks that coaches perform vary reading instruction and use of instructional
widely. This project will implement and study a practices congruent with research on reading.
structured coaching program that is designed to The student outcomes of interest are oral reading
improve reading comprehension instruction in the fluency, reading comprehension, and phonological
upper elementary grades. awareness skills.
Amount: $5,946,864 Amount: $500,000
● Name of Institution: WestEd ● Name of Institution: Success for All

Principal Investigator: Cynthia Greenleaf Foundation, Inc.
Co-Principal Investigators: Steve Schneider, Joan Principal Investigator: Nancy Madden
Herman (University of California, Los Angeles) Description: Embedded Classroom Multimedia:
Description: A Randomized Controlled Study of Improving Implementation Quality and Student
the Efficacy of Reading Apprenticeship Professional Achievement in a Cooperative Writing Program –
Development for High School History and Science The research will develop and evaluate the potential
Teaching and Learning – Many students who reach efficacy of a program to help teachers transfer
middle and high school do not possess sufficient effective writing methods from the workshop
reading skills to learn new knowledge when reading to the classroom using multimedia content
content texts. In the same vein, many subject- embedded in classroom instruction, teacher’s
area teachers in middle and secondary schools learning communities, well-structured manuals and
are ill-prepared to teach reading to students who materials, cooperative learning, and metacognitive
need extra help in deciphering complex subject- writing strategies.
matter text books. The purpose of this project is Amount: $1,498,045
to find out how well the Reading Apprenticeship
professional development program can improve
teachers’ integration of reading instruction into high
school science and history and the extent to which it ● Name of Institution: Texas A&M University
increases student reading and content proficiency. Principal Investigator: Deborah Simmons
Amount: $2,997,972 Co-Principal Investigators: William Rupley,
Period of Performance: 1/1/06-12/31/09 Sharon Vaughn (University of Texas at Austin)
Description: Enhancing the Quality of Expository
● Name of Institution: Florida State University Text Instruction through Content and Case-Situated
Professional Development – In order for professional
Principal Investigator: Alysia Roehrig
development to be worthwhile, it must address
Co-Principal Investigators: Mary Brownell the needs of the teachers it is meant to serve.
(University of Florida), Christopher Often times, this is not the case. The studies in
Schatschneider, Joseph Torgesen this project focus specifically on the instructional
Description: Identifying the Conditions Under strategies of social studies teachers and the reading
Which Large Scale Professional Development comprehension of 4th-grade students. The purpose
Policy Initiatives are Related to Teacher Knowledge, of this development project is to refine and evaluate
Instructional Practices, and Student Reading the potential efficacy of content- and case-situated
Outcomes – The purpose of this study is to identify professional development linking evidence-based
A-26
Appendix A
practices with the experiences and needs of social children will benefit from instruction. However,
studies teachers. little research has been conducted to rigorously
Amount: $1,498,530 evaluate the impact of different early literacy
professional development programs. The purpose
Period of Performance: 9/1/05-8/31/08 of this project is to examine the efficacy of two
approaches to implementing empirically based
● Name of Institution: University of Texas at early literacy professional development, Literacy
San Antonio Environment Enrichment Program (LEEP), and
Technology-Enhanced LEEP (T-LEEP).
Principal Investigator: Misty Sailors
Amount: $2,834,272
Co-Principal Investigator: Janis Harmon
Description: Teaching Teachers to Teach Critical
Reading Strategies (CREST) Through an Intensive
Professional Development Model – The purpose ● Name of Institution: Regents of the University
of this development project is to develop and of Michigan
test a model of professional development that Principal Investigator: Joanne Carlisle
demonstrates the potential to change teacher
Co-Principal Investigator: Brian Rowan
behavior in teaching students to be strategic readers
and improving student reading achievement. The Description: Assessment of Pedagogical Knowledge of
Critical Reading Strategies (CREST) professional Teachers of Reading – This project will develop and
development intervention includes strategic validate measures of pedagogical content knowledge
reading behaviors that teachers will be taught: word in early reading and to investigate the relationship
identification and word knowledge strategies; and between elementary school teachers’ pedagogical
comprehension strategies for before, during, and content knowledge of reading, their instructional
after reading. In addition, teachers will be asked practices, and their students’ reading achievement.
to engage in professional journal writing, “critical Amount: $1,677,575
friends” networks, intensive support by an expert Period of Performance: 9/1/05-8/31/09
in strategic reading, discussion about student
progress based on student work data, and creation
of new Webquests to support strategy instruction. ● Name of Institution: Utah State University
Amount: $926,814 Principal Investigator: D. Ray Reutzel
Period of Performance: 10/1/05-9/30/08 Co-Principal Investigator: Janice Dole
(University of Utah)
Description: Connecting Primary Grade Teacher
● Name of Institution: Education Development
Knowledge to Primary Grade Student Achievement:
Center, Inc.
Developing the Evidence-Based Reading/Writing
Principal Investigator: Nancy Clark-Chiarelli Teacher Knowledge Assessment System – The
Description: Examining the Efficacy of Two purpose of this assessment project is to develop
Models of Preschool Professional Development in a comprehensive, and practical primary-grade
Language and Literacy – Children who come from measure of teachers’ knowledge about effective,
homes where oral language interactions are sparse evidence-based reading and writing instruction and
enter school at a disadvantage from peers who validate the measure against students’ reading and
come from homes where the opposite is true. In writing achievement.
addition, many early childhood teachers lack a Amount: $926,814
solid foundation in early teaching and learning
pedagogy. Taken as a whole, these conditions
warrant providing teachers with early literacy
professional development to ensure that young
A-27
Unsolicited Proposals ● Name of Institution: American Institutes

for Research
Principal Investigator: Harold Doran
● Name of Institution: Syracuse University
Co-Principal Investigators: Douglas Bates,
Principal Investigator: Benita Blachman
Gary Phillips
Co-Principal Investigator:
Description: The Consequences of Various
Christopher Schatschneider
Psychometric Decisions on Teacher Effects Estimated
Description: A One-Year Follow-Up of Evidence- From Value-Added Models – Under this grant,
Based Early Reading Intervention Provided by the research team is empirically examining the
Kindergarten and First Grade Teachers – This
degree to which some psychometric decisions
research will build on a previous project that was
made in calibrating student response data on state
designed to address the gap that exists between
assessment programs influence the teacher effects
research and practice in early reading interventions.
estimated under VAM. The study will examine the
This study will address unanswered questions
regarding the timing and duration of early impacts on VAM teacher effect estimates for one-,
intervention needed for maximum benefit and two- and three-parameter models and comparing
investigate whether responsiveness to treatment vertically scaled versus not vertically scaled student
is influenced by different beginning skill levels scores, using maximum likelihood estimation
and classroom behavior. The relationship between (MLE) procedures.
teacher instruction, school context and student Amount: $167,239
outcomes will also be examined.
Amount: $199,897
● Name of Institution: Council of the Great
City Schools
● Name of Institution: Vanderbilt University Principal Investigator: Jason Snipes
Principal Investigator: David Cordray
Description: Senior Fellowship in Urban Education
Description: Assessing Intervention Fidelity in Research – Under this grant, the Council of
Randomized Field Experiments – Under this grant, the Great City (CGCS) is establishing a Senior
the research team will (a) “take stock,” of what has Fellowship in Urban Education awards program.
been learned about assessing intervention fidelity The Fellowships are designed to facilitate
by conducting a systematic review of the methods collaboration between large urban school districts
used in past fidelity assessments; (b) reanalyze and senior researchers with established track
several existing randomized field trials (RFTs) with
records of high quality research. In particular, the
fidelity assessments to explore and refine ways of
Council is conducting three rounds of fellowship
assessing fidelity; and (c) making use of what is
awards. Each round includes $100,000 stipends
learned from (a) and (b), gather and analyze new
plus project support for each of three fellows. A
data within a recently funded cluster randomized
trial. The products of this research (e.g., data on Research Advisory Committee (RAC) composed of
reliability and validity of fidelity measures, evidence senior scholars in education and practitioners with
about what methods “work best,” and algorithms experience in leadership positions in urban districts
for constructing indices) will be made available is developing research priorities and specific criteria
to the education research community on the VU for awards. The RAC also assists in the selection of
website and in peer reviewed papers, presentations, awardees. The CGCS will provide IES with reports
and other publications. on the fellowships and research projects undertaken.
Amount: $1,495,133 Amount: $2,483,740
A-28
Appendix A
● Name of Institution: University of Washington ● Name of Institution: AbleLink Technologies

Principal Investigator: Dan Goldhaber Principal Investigator: Steven Stock
Description: Is It Just A Bad Class? – Examining Description: Listening Comprehension Assessment
the Size and Stability of Teacher Performance and Instruction (LCAI) System – This project is
Estimates. Under this grant, a University of developing an independently usable, internet based
Washington (UW) research team is studying the multimedia software system to enable self-paced
year-to-year stability of teacher effects over a nine assessment, instruction and practice in listening
year period to determine how various measures comprehension/auditory recall for non-readers.
of teacher performance vary over time, as well as Research will be conducted to test the efficacy of the
how they vary across different teaching contexts. intervention on students’ listening comprehensions.
The study uses data on all teachers and students Amount: $500,000
in North Carolina over the period of school years Period of Performance: 7/1/05-6/30/07
1995-96 through 2003-04 and uses a variety of
teacher performance measures.
Amount: $428,590 ● Name of Institution: Hope, Incorporated
Period of Performance: 9/30/06-12/31/08 Principal Investigator: Susan Watkins

Description: Project Prepare – This project is
developing a computer software to prepare
deaf preschoolers and kindergartners to read by
teaching early critical service words. Research
Small Business Innovation will be conducted to test the efficacy of the
Research intervention on deaf students’ vocabulary.
Amount: $499,594
● Name of Organization: Whimsica Toys, Inc. Period of Performance: 9/30/05-9/30/07
Principal Investigator: Daniel Savage
Description: Cinematic Sciences – The purpose of ● Name of Institution: Rockman et al., Inc.
this project is to develop an online 3D simulation
platform with real behavioral programming for Principal Investigator: Beverly Farr
physical sciences to improve students’ physics Description: School Tracker – This project is
understanding. Research will be conducted to developing an online tool to support and enhance
test the efficacy of the intervention on students’ the school improvement process. Research will be
standardized test scores in science. conducted to test the efficacy of the intervention
Amount: $849,881 on school improvement outcomes.
Period of Performance: 12/22/06-12/21/08 Amount: $497,774
● Name of Institution: AbleLink Technologies
Principal Investigator: Daniel Davies ● Name of Institution: Seward Incorporated
Description: Rocket Reader – The project Principal Investigator: Gregory Sales
developed a simplified PDA-based portable Description: Teaching Reading Comprehension
reading system to enable access to audio books Strategies – This project developed a digital and
and electronic documents for individuals print materials professional development package
with intellectual disabilities. Research will be for teachers to teach reading comprehension.
conducted to test the efficacy of the intervention Research will be conducted to test the efficacy of the
on students’ listening comprehension. intervention on students’ state reading test scores.
Amount: $500,000 Amount: $500,000
A-29
● Name of Institution: Sirius Thinking, LTD evaluating the impact of specific preschool
Principal Investigator: Daniel Shanahan curricula on child outcomes.
Description: Using Television to Expand the Amount: $6,086,996
Vocabulary of Beginning Readers – This project Period of Performance: 6/6/03-6/9/07
embeds vocabulary words inside episodes of a
popular children’s television program. Research
● Name of Organization: Research Triangle
will be conducted to test the efficacy of the
Institute (RTI)
intervention on students’ vocabulary.
Description: The purpose of this project is to
Amount: $500,000
improve the quality of preschool education. The
Period of Performance: 9/1/05-8/31/07 approach is to collect and analyze comparable
outcome data across seven randomized trials
● Name of Institution: Tactus Technologies evaluating the impact of specific preschool
curricula on child outcomes.
Principal Investigator: Kevin Chugh
Amount: $7,668,706
Description: Applying Virtual Surgery Principles
to Dissection Simulation – This project develops a Period of Performance: 5/13/02-4/14/07
virtual frog dissection software. Research will be ● Name of Organization: Optimal Solutions
conducted to test the efficacy of the intervention Group, LLC
on students’ knowledge of anatomy and biological Description: Logistical and analytic support for IES.
functionings.
Amount: $3,038,628
Amount: $500,000
Interagency Agreements
Contracts
● Name of Organization: U.S. Army Medical
● Name of Organization: Mathematica Policy Research Acquisition Activity
Research, Inc.
Description: Interagency agreement for services
Description: The purpose of this project is to to contract for scientific peer review management
promote positive social and character development and administrative support for IES research
and reduce antisocial behavior in school. The competitions in 2006.
approach is to collect and analyze comparable
Amount: $2,588,000
outcome data across seven social and character
development intervention programs. Period of Performance: 5/9/06-5/8/07
Amount: $12,464,615
● Name of Organization: U.S. Army Medical
Research Acquisition Activity
Description: Interagency agreement for services
● Name of Organization: Mathematica Policy to contract for scientific peer review management
Research, Inc. and administrative support for IES research
Description: The purpose of this project is to competitions in 2005.
improve the quality of preschool education. The Amount: $2,500,000
approach is to collect and analyze comparable Period of Performance: 5/9/05-5/8/06
outcome data across six randomized trials
A-30
Appendix B
National Center for Since 1969, assessments have been conducted

periodically in reading, mathematics, science,
Education Statistics writing, U.S. history, civics, geography, and the arts.
(NCES)
● Name of Organization: American Institutes for
NCES carries out activities of collecting, Research (AIR)
analyzing, and disseminating statistics Amount: $5,591,430
on the condition of education primarily Period of Performance: 5/10/02-5/9/07
through contracts.
Assessment Division Research (AIR)
Amount: $5,691,195
National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL) – The Period of Performance: 9/25/03-9/25/08
NAAL provides nationally representative assessments
of English language literacy skills of American ● Name of Organization: Council of Chief State
adults. The NAAL seeks to: describe the status School Officers (CCSSO)
of adult literacy in the U.S., report on national Amount: $1,399,563
trends, and identify relationships between literacy
and selected characteristics of adults. NCES has
conducted adult literacy assessments since 1985.
● Name of Organization: Westat, Inc.
Amount: $24,882,599
Amount: $19,497,197
● Name of Organization: Education Testing
Service (ETS)
● Name of Organization: Westat, Inc. Amount: $91,954,137
Amount: $14,316,804 Period of Performance: 9/17/02-4/16/08
● Name of Organization: American Institutes for Amount: $152,620,521
Research (AIR) Period of Performance: 9/16/02-9/15/07
Amount: $5,854,619
Period of Performance: 8/30/99-12/31/06 ● Name of Organization: NCS Pearson, Inc.
Amount: $83,996,769
National Assessment of Educational Progress

(NAEP) – The NAEP, also known as “the Nation’s ● Name of Organization: American Institutes for
Research (AIR)
Report Card,” is the only nationally representative
and continuing assessment of what America’s Amount: $8,684,411
students know and can do in various subject areas. Period of Performance: 9/16/02-9/15/07
B-1
● Name of Organization: Government Micro of two longitudinal studies: the Early Childhood
Resources, Inc. (GMRI) Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99
Amount: $12,752,686 (ECLS-K) and the Early Childhood Longitudinal
Study, Birth Cohort (ECLS-B). Combined, these
studies provide detailed information on children’s
health, early care and early school experiences. The
● Name of Organization: Hager Sharp ECLS-K began in fall of 1998 with a nationally
representative sample of approximately 21,000
Amount: $12,007,269
kindergartners from about 1,000 kindergarten
Period of Performance: 9/20/02-9/19/07 programs, both public and private. These children
will be followed longitudinally through the eighth
● Name of Organization: Human Resources grade, with data collections in the fall and spring of
Research Organization kindergarten and first grade, in the spring of third
and fifth grade, and follow-ups in eighth grade. The
Amount: $9,271,794
ECLS-B includes a nationally representative sample of
Period of Performance: 9/24/02-9/23/07 approximately 14,000 children born in the calendar
year 2001 who will be followed longitudinally from
birth through kindergarten entry, with data collected
● Name of Organization: Windwalker Corporation
from the child’s birth certificate and when the
Amount: $387,978 children were about 9 months of age, 2 years of age,
Period of Performance: 9/15/04-9/30/06 preschoolers, and kindergartners.
● Name of Organization: DoD Education Activity ● Name of Organization: Research Triangle

Amount: $125,000 Institute (RTI)
● Name of Organization: Cogent, Inc.
Amount: $1,169,407
Institute (RTI)
Amount: $17,000,000
Research (AIR)
Amount: $30,000,000
Amount: $29,000,000

Early Childhood, International & Amount: $13,600,000
Crosscutting Studies Division Period of Performance: 9/14/05-9/13/09
Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (ECLS) –

The ECLS program is sponsored primarily by
NCES in collaboration with other federal agencies Amount: $40,012,997
and organizations. The program is comprised Period of Performance: 12/31/97-12/31/06
B-2
Appendix B
Quick-Response Information System (QRIS) – QRIS ● Name of Organization: Organization for

supports quick, ad hoc surveys on issues not Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
covered by NCES’s large recurring surveys. It Amount: $140,000
includes the Fast Response Survey System (FRSS)
and Postsecondary Education Quick Information
System (PEQIS). FRSS was established in 1975 to
collect and report data on key education issues at ● Name of Organization: Organization for
the elementary and secondary levels. Findings from Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
FRSS surveys have been included in congressional
Amount: $100,000
reports, testimony to congressional subcommittees,
NCES reports, and other U.S. Department of Period of Performance: 6/1/06-5/31/07
Education reports. The findings are also often used
by state and local education officials. PEQIS serves
policy analysts, program planners, and decision
Research (AIR)
makers in postsecondary education. In addition to
obtaining information on emerging issues quickly, Amount: $7,500,000
PEQIS surveys are also used to assess the feasibility Period of Performance: 8/30/99-8/29/09
of developing large-scale data collection efforts
on a given topic or to supplement other NCES
postsecondary surveys.
Progress in International Reading Literacy Study
(PIRLS) – PIRLS is a large international
comparative study of the reading literacy of
Amount: $9,730,924
young students. Reading literacy is one of the
Period of Performance: 9/30/04-9/29/09 most important abilities students acquire as they
progress through their early school years. It is the
foundation for learning across all subjects, it can
International Comparisons (IC) – NCES supports be used for recreation and for personal growth,
a variety of activities to provide statistical data and it equips young children with the ability to
for cross-national comparisons of education. participate fully in their communities and the
These activities focus on two major areas: larger society. The PIRLS study focuses on the
indicators and assessments. For the Indicators of achievement and reading experiences of children
National Education Systems (INES) project, the in 35 countries in grades equivalent to fourth
United States, the Organization for Economic grade in the United States. The study includes a
Cooperation and Development (OECD), and
written test of reading comprehension and a series
other countries collaborate to develop comparable
of questionnaires focusing on the factors associated
measures of schools and education, from student
with the development of reading literacy.
enrollment and teacher salaries to graduation
rates. The United States also participates in several
international assessments, including: the Trends ● Name of Organization: IEA/Boston College
in International Mathematics and Science Study
Amount: $1,500,000
(TIMSS) and the Progress in International Reading
Literacy Study (PIRLS), both conducted by the Period of Performance: 9/28/04-9/29/08
International Association for the Evaluation of
Educational Achievement (IEA); the OECD’s
Program for International Student Assessment
(PISA); and the Adult Literacy and Lifeskills Program for International Student Assessment
Survey (ALL) conducted by Statistics Canada and (PISA) – PISA, began in 2000. The program
the OECD. focuses on 15-year-olds’ capabilities in reading
B-3
literacy, mathematics literacy, and science literacy. familiarity with information and communication
PISA 2006 data collection has been completed, technologies. ALL builds on the foundation of
with results to be released in December 2007. earlier studies of adult literacy.
In the United States, this age corresponds
largely to grade 9 and 10 students. PISA also
● Name of Organization: Statistics Canada
includes measures of general or cross-curricular
competencies such as learning strategies. PISA Amount: $405,000
emphasizes skills that students have acquired Period of Performance: 6/7/05-5/31/06
as they near the end of mandatory schooling.
PISA is currently being administered every three
years. PISA 2000 focused on reading literacy,
PISA 2003 focused on mathematics literacy, and Trends in International Mathematics and Science
in 2006, PISA focused on science literacy. In Study (TIMSS) – The Trends in International
addition, PISA 2003 reported on problem-solving Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) provides
skills. PISA is coordinated by the Organization reliable and timely data on the mathematics and
for Economic Cooperation and Development science achievement of U.S. students compared
(OECD), an intergovernmental organization of to that of students in other countries. TIMSS
industrialized countries. data has been collected in 1995, 1999, and 2003.
The United States will next collect TIMSS data in
● Name of Organization: Research Triangle spring 2007.
Institute (RTI)
Amount: $7,995,778 ● Name of Organization: International Association
Period of Performance: 8/25/04-8/29/09 for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA)
Amount: $3,351,638
● Name of Organization: Organization for Period of Performance: 9/13/02-9/15/08
Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
Amount: $980,000 ● Name of Organization: Windwalker
Period of Performance: 8/28/05-8/27/06 Corporation
Amount: $5,179,025
● Name of Organization: Organization for Period of Performance: 9/30/05-9/29/09
Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
Amount: $1,000,000 ● Name of Organization: Westat, Inc.
Amount: $31,732,475
Adult Literacy and Lifeskills (ALL) – The Adult

Literacy and Lifeskills (ALL) Survey is an
international comparative study designed to National Household Education Survey
provide participating countries, including the (NHES) – The NHES provides descriptive data on
United States, with information about the skills of the educational activities of the U.S. population
their adult populations. ALL measured the literacy and offers researchers, educators, and policymakers
and numeracy skills of a nationally representative a variety of statistics on the condition of education
sample from each participating country. On a in the United States. The NHES surveys cover
pilot basis, ALL also measured adults’ problem- learning at all ages, from early childhood to school
solving skills and gathered information on their age through adulthood. The most recent data
B-4
Appendix B
collection in 2005 consisted of three surveys: Adult ● Name of Organization: Bureau of the Census
Education, Early Childhood Program Participation, Description: Title I funding – Census produces
and After-School Programs and Activities. the small area estimates of poverty needed to
allocate Title I funding to school districts. Made
with funds from the Office of Elementary and
● Name of Organization: Westat, Inc. Secondary Education.
Amount: $11,600,000 Amount: $3,436,402
● Name of Organization: Bureau of the Census

Early Childhood, International Description: Title I funding – Census produces the
& Crosscutting Studies Division small area estimates of poverty needed to allocate Title
I funding to school districts. Made with funds from
General Programs the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education.
Amount: $3,437,280
● Name of Organization: Child Trends Period of Performance: 9/1/06-8/31/07
Description: Crosscutting Education Data
Analysis – These funds provide ongoing support
for data on various programs including planning,
technical, and administrative support. Elementary/Secondary &
Library Studies Division
Amount: $1,200,000
Library Statistics Program – The National Center for
Education Statistics (NCES) initiated and funded
● Name of Organization: Global Insight, Inc. a nation-wide library statistics program in 1989.
Description: Education Modeling System/ NCES works collaboratively with the Census
Projections Data and Model Updates – Produces Bureau and the U.S. National Commission on
projections of education statistics using the NCES Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS) to plan
Education Modeling System. The contract is the content of four surveys and to collect, process,
used to (1) update the System’s data banks; (2) and disseminate the data. The surveys’ topics
purchase economic data used in the production of are: Academic Libraries serving degree-granting
projection; (3) execute the forecasting models; (4) institutions of higher education; Public Libraries
revise model specifications; (5) extract projected supported by public funds to serve communities,
data and rates; and (6) upgrade the system. districts or regions; School Library Media
Centers that are organized collections of printed,
Amount: $1,500,000
audiovisual, and/or computer resources in an
Period of Performance: 6/10/03-6/9/08 elementary or secondary school and make resources
and services available to students, teachers, and
administrators; and State Library Agencies (StLAs),
the official agencies charged with state-wide library
Description: Current Population Survey (CPS) –
development and the administration of federal
for collecting school enrollment information on
funds authorized by the Library Services and
the CPS.
Technology Act (LSTA). StLAs provide important
Amount: $114,700 reference and information services to state
Period of Performance: 5/17/05-5/16/06 and government and administer the state library and
6/1/06-5/31/07 special operations such as state archives, libraries
B-5
for the blind and physically handicapped, and the are intended to enhance the ability of states to
State Center for the Book. efficiently and accurately manage, analyze, and
use education data, including individual student
records. The data systems developed with funds
● Name of Organization: Westat, Inc. from these grants should help states, districts,
Amount: $109,405 schools, and teachers make data-driven decisions
Period of Performance: 7/31/01-12/31/04 to improve student learning, as well as facilitate
research to increase student achievement and close
achievement gaps.
● Name of Organization: U.S. National
Commission on Libraries and Information Science
● Name of Organization: California Department
Amount: $200,000
of Education
● Nameof Organization: U.S. National
Commission on Libraries and Information Science
● Name of Organization: Ohio Department
Amount: $150,000 of Education
Common Core of Data (CCD) – The Common ● Name of Organization: Michigan Department
Core of Data (CCD) is a major NCES program of Education
that annually collects fiscal and non-fiscal data
Amount: $3,000,000
about all public schools, public school districts and
state education agencies in the United States. The Period of Performance: 2/1/06-1/31/09
data include information describing schools and
school districts, including name, address, and phone ● Name of Organization: South Carolina
number; descriptive information about students Department of Education
and staff, including demographics; and fiscal data,
including revenues and current expenditures. Amount: $5,795,603
● Nameof Organization: Bureau of the Census

Amount: $4,898,000 ● Name of Organization: Pennsylvania State
Amount: $4,008,875
Amount: $5,386,000
● Name of Organization: Maryland State
Amount: $5,690,718
Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems (SLDS) – The
SLDS program awards competitive grants to states
to aid them in the design and implementation of ● Name of Organization: Tennessee Department
statewide longitudinal data systems. These systems of Education
B-6
Appendix B
Amount: $3,226,313 Data Quality Standards – These contracts provide

Period of Performance: 12/1/05-7/1/08 support to develop and maintain the NCES Online
Data Handbooks that are used throughout the
Department; conduct CCD data quality studies;
● Name of Organization: Minnesota Department allow personnel exchanges between state education
of Education agencies to enable states to learn how others have
Amount: $3,272,448 handled data management challenges; and support
state data systems, allow state site visits, and provide
Period of Performance: 2/1/06-1/31/09 technical support to states under the Performance
Based Data Management Initiative.
● Name of Organization: Kentucky Department
of Education ● Name of Organization: Council of Chief State
Amount: $5,780,275 School Officers
● Name of Organization: Alaska Department of
Education and Early Development ● Name of Organization: Council of Chief State
Amount: $3,506,757 School Officers
● Name of Organization: Arkansas Department
of Education
Amount: $3,328,503 Education Longitudinal Study (ELS) – The
Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:2002)
is a longitudinal survey that is monitoring the
transitions of a national sample of young people as
● Name of Organization: Wisconsin Department they progress from tenth grade and twelfth grade to
of Public Instruction schooling beyond high school and to the world of
Amount: $3,081,000 work. ELS:2002 obtains information not just from
students and their school records, but also from
Period of Performance: 2/1/06-1/31/09 students’ parents, their teachers, their librarians
and the administrators of their schools.
● Name of Organization: Florida Department
of Education ● Name of Organization: Research Triangle
Amount: $1,577,602 Institute (RTI)
● Name of Organization: Connecticut
Amount: $1,500,714 National Cooperative Education Statistics System
Period of Performance: 12/1/05-11/30/08 (NCESS) – The National Cooperative Education
Statistics System was established under the
Hawkins-Stafford Education Improvement
Amendments of 1988. The system is meant to
B-7
organize cooperation with the states on issues private, and Bureau of Indian Affairs schools,
of education data collection and dissemination. including school districts, principals, teachers, and
To this end, the National Forum on Education school libraries.
Statistics was established in 1989 to create a
voluntary, democratic, participatory, federal-state
● Name of Organization: Child Trends
group to identify education data needs at the
national, state, and local levels. Amount: $300,000
● Name of Organization: Multiple awards–all 50
states, D.C., and Puerto Rico. ● Name of Organization: Bureau of the Census
Amount: $23,866,851 Amount: $1,137,709
Period of Performance: 8/28/2003 and Period of Performance: 1/1/05-6/30/05
9/29/2003- 2/1/07
Amount: $3,397,010
Private School Survey (PSS) – The purposes of this Period of Performance: 7/1/05-6/30/06
data collection activity are (a) to generate biennial
data on the total number of private schools, ● Name of Organization: Bureau of the Census–
teachers, and students; and (b) to build an accurate includes $99,950 contribution from the Office of
and complete list of private schools to serve as Indian Education
a sampling frame for NCES surveys of private
Amount: $5,710,050
schools. The PSS is conducted every two years with
the first collection during the 1989-90 school year Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/07
and again in 1991-92, 1993-94, 1995-96, 1997-
98, 1999-2000, 2001-02, 2003-04, and then every
two years thereafter.
Amount: $339,900
Amount: $432,239
School District Demographics System (SDDS) – The
SDDS Web site enables users to directly access
● Name of Organization: Bureau of the Census school district geographic and demographic data,
Amount: $2,102,987 and provides information about school district
Period of Performance: 7/1/05-6/30/06 demographic concepts, uses, and applications to
facilitate effective use of these information resources.

● Name of Organization: Synectics for
Amount: $1,157,000 Management Decisions, Inc.
Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) – SASS is the ● Name of Organization: Bureau of the Census
largest survey of the characteristics and conditions
of the nation’s elementary and secondary schools. Amount: $450,000
SASS collects information on public, charter, Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/06
B-8
Appendix B
● Name of Organization: Bureau of the Census Elementary/Secondary &

Amount: $608,000 Library Studies Division
Period of Performance: 6/1/06-5/31/07 General Programs

School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS) – The Description: Elementary/Secondary Education
School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS) Cooperative System Support-Task Force Meeting/
is the National Center for Education Statistics’ Administrative Support – This contract provides
sample survey of the nation’s public schools support for several major areas of work including
designed to provide estimates of school crime, Task Force/Working Group meetings, training and
discipline, disorder, programs and policies. SSOCS Personnel Exchanges, establishment and maintenance
is administered to public elementary, middle, of group listservs, and pre-planning for the
secondary, and combined school principals during Management Information Systems Conference.
the spring of a school year.
Amount: $15,100,000
● Name of Organization: Abt Associates
Amount: $670,730
● Name of Organization: KForce, Inc. (formerly
Period of Performance: 9/25/02-9/28/06 Pinkerton Computer Consultants, Inc.)
● Name of Organization: Bureau of the
Description: This contract provides website, web
Census–funding from the Office of Safe and tool, and technical support to NCES. This includes
Drug Free Schools on-line collection of library data, enhancement and
Amount: $116,730 maintenance of Web sites and peer comparison
tools, and development of on-line public access
tools. This contract exercised the first option period
of the GSA purchase order which provides NCES
● Name of Organization: Bureau of the with the development and maintenance of Web sites
Census– funding from the Office of Safe and and related tools, and provides technical program
Drug Free Schools support. It may be extended for up to five years.
Amount: $632,274 Amount: $14,000,000

Census–funding from the Office of Safe and Postsecondary Studies Division
Drug Free Schools
Amount: $266,000 Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System
(IPEDS) – IPEDS, the core postsecondary
education data collection program for NCES,
is a single, comprehensive system designed
● Name of Organization: Bureau of the to encompass all institutions and educational
Census–funding from the Office of Safe and organizations whose primary purpose is to provide
Drug Free Schools postsecondary education. The IPEDS is built
around a series of interrelated surveys to collect
Amount: $733,000 institution-level data in such areas as enrollments,
Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/07 program completions, faculty, staff, and finances.
B-9
● Name of Organization: Research Triangle study designed to determine how students and their
Institute (RTI) families pay for postsecondary education, and to
Amount: $4,821,441 describe some demographic and other characteristics
of those enrolled. The study is based on a nationally
Period of Performance: 7/3/00-11/30/04 representative sample of students in postsecondary
education institutions, including undergraduate,
● Name of Organization: Decision Information graduate, and first-professional students. Students
Resources, Inc. attending all types and levels of institutions are
represented, including public and private not-for-
Amount: $769,902
profit and for-profit institutions, and less-than-two-
Period of Performance: 9/26/03-6/1/06 year institutions, community colleges, and four-
year colleges and universities. The NPSAS studies
● Name of Organization: Decision Information
are designed to address policy questions resulting
Resources, Inc. from the rapid growth of financial aid programs
and the succession of changes in financial aid
Amount: $475,533 program policies since 1986. The first NPSAS study
Period of Performance: 5/15/04-8/11/07 was conducted during the 1986-87 school year;
subsequent studies have been carried out during the
1989-90, 1992-93, 1995-96, and 1999-2000 school
years (i.e., NPSAS:90, NPSAS:93, NPSAS:96, and
Institute (RTI)
NPSAS:2000).
Amount: $23,940,340
Institute (RTI)
● Name of Organization: Macro International, Inc. Amount: $77,997,899
Amount: $400,000 Period of Performance: 9/9/05-9/8/10
● Name of Organization: HigherEd.org, Inc. Baccalaureate and Beyond Longitudinal Study

Amount: $384,642 (B&B) – B&B provides information concerning
education and work experiences after completion
of bachelor’s degrees. B&B provides both cross-
sectional information one year after bachelor’s degree
● Name of Organization: HigherEd.org, Inc. completion, comparable to the Recent College
Amount: $500,000 Graduate (RCG) Survey, and longitudinal data
concerning entry into and progress through graduate-
Period of Performance: 6/1/05-8/30/06 level education and the workforce. A special emphasis
of B&B is on those entering teaching.
● Name of Organization: HigherEd.org, Inc.
Amount: $500,000 ● Name of Organization: Research Triangle
Period of Performance: 8/4/05-5/3/06 Institute (RTI)
Amount: $6,553,578
National Postsecondary Student Aid Study
(NPSAS) – NPSAS is a comprehensive nationwide
B-10
Appendix B
National Study of Postsecondary Faculty (NSOPF) – Postsecondary Studies Division

NSOPF was conducted in response to a continuing
need for data on faculty and instructors––persons
General Programs
who directly affect the quality of education in
postsecondary institutions. Faculty are the pivotal ● Name of Organization: State Higher Education
resource around which the process and outcomes Executive Officers (SHEEO)
of postsecondary education revolve. They often Description: State Postsecondary Education
determine curriculum content, student performance Coordination Network – This SHEEO/NCES
standards, and the quality of students’ preparation Communication Network provides timely
for careers. Faculty members perform research dissemination of NCES projects to state policy
and development work upon which this nation’s makers. The SHEEO are the primary policy
technological and economic advancement depend. officials for public institutions (and in some cases all
Through their public service activities, they make institutions) in most states. Their input and interest
valuable contributions to society. For these reasons, in NCES data collections is critical to the provision
it is essential to understand who they are; what they of policy relevant data. Incremental funding will
do; and whether, how, and why they are changing. continue these activities and provide the services to
This study was designed to provide data about SHEEO and NCES that are necessary to collect and
faculty to postsecondary education researchers, disseminate policy relevant data.
planners, and policymakers. NSOPF is the most Amount: $3,289,086
comprehensive study of faculty in postsecondary
educational institutions ever undertaken. Period of Performance: 9/28/01-9/27/07

Institute (RTI) Description: Postsecondary analysis and technical
development–this is a delivery order contract that
Amount: $41,400,000
conducts special analyses of NCES and other
Period of Performance: 5/2/02-5/2/07 postsecondary data. It also provides support to
users on NCES data, and provides the capability
of conducting feasibility studies for new data
collection, assessing the quality of data being
Postsecondary Education Descriptive Analysis Reports collected, carrying out small scale data collection
(PEDAR) – PEDAR provides a series of analysis activities, and providing technical support for
reports that focus on postsecondary education methodological studies on an as-needed basis.
policy issues, and an information system that
Amount: $806,831
organizes postsecondary data sets and analyses.
The crosscutting work done in this program takes Period of Performance: 9/30/04-9/29/09
advantage of multiple education data sources,
especially data from recently completed surveys. ● Name of Organization: National
Science Foundation
● Name of Organization: MPR Associates, Inc. Description: This interagency agreement helps
Amount: $17,164,076 support and gives NCES access to data from the
Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED). The SED began
Period of Performance: 9/30/02-9/30/07 in 1957-58 to collect data continuously on the
number and characteristics of individuals receiving
research doctoral degrees from all accredited U.S.
institutions. The results of this annual survey are
used to assess characteristics and trends in doctorate
education and degrees. This information is vital
B-11
for educational and labor force planners within the Office of the Commissioner
federal government and in academia.
General Programs
Amount: $675,000
● Name of Organization: Strategic Research Group
Description: NCES Customer Satisfaction
● Name of Organization: National Survey – To conduct the 2006 survey with an
Science Foundation option to conduct the 2008 survey.
Description: For SED transfer of funds in FY 2006 Amount: $500,000
Amount: $675,000 Period of Performance: 3/17/05-1/16/07
Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/07 ● Name of Organization: National
Science Foundation
Description: American Educational Research
Association (AERA) Grants Program – Jointly
Office of the Deputy funded by the National Science Foundation
Commissioner and NCES, this training and research program
is administered by the AERA. The program has
four major elements: a research grants program,
Statistical Standards Program (SSP) – The SSP a dissertation grants program, a fellows program,
provides methodological and statistical support and a training institute. The program is intended
to the Center, as well as to federal and nonfederal to enhance the capability of the U.S. research
organizations that engage in statistical work in community to use large-scale data sets, specifically
support of the mission of NCES. This program those of the NSF and NCES, to conduct studies
develops standards for procedures to ensure the that are relevant to educational policy and
quality of statistical surveys, analyses, and products; practice, and to strengthen communications
consults and advises on the implementation of between the educational research community and
standards for all Center projects; coordinates government staff.
the NCES review process for publications and
Amount: $450,000
other Center products; leads the NCES Task
Force on Quality Systems; and coordinates the Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/06
revision of the NCES Statistical Standards.
The program also monitors and administers ● Name of Organization: National
confidentiality procedures and related restricted Science Foundation
use data licenses for Institute of Education Sciences
Description: AERA Grants Program- see National
(IES) data products. In addition to this set of
Science Foundation (in this section above).
ongoing activities, the SSP consults and advises
on emerging statistical issues, and initiates and Amount: $450,000
monitors or participates in long-term statistical and Period of Performance: 6/1/06-5/31/07
methodological research projects.
● Name of Organization: Harbor Lane Description: To help support the Joint Program
Associates, Inc. in Survey Methodology (JPSM), the nation’s oldest
Amount: $1,016,237 and largest program offering graduate training
in the principles and practices of survey research.
Founded in 1993, it is sponsored by the Federal
Interagency Consortium on Statistical Policy and
located at the University of Maryland. To date, it
B-12
Appendix B
has 107 graduates working in government agencies, location for access to the full breadth of federal
academic settings, and private survey research statistical information.
firms. Its award-winning faculty is drawn from Amount: $100,000
the University of Maryland, the University of
Period of Performance: 8/1/05-7/30/06 and
Michigan, Westat and other organizations.
8/1/06-7/31/07
Amount: $110,000
● Name of Organization: National
Science Foundation
● Name of Organization: Bureau of the Census Description: Jointly funded by contributions from
Description: For JPSM- see Bureau of the Census major federal statistical agencies, The National
(in this section above). Academies convenes the Committee on National
Amount: $115,000 Statistics (CNSTAT), a committee of prominent
researchers from universities and private research
organizations, to study statistical topics to improve
the effectiveness of the federal statistical system.
● Name of Organization: SAIC (EDNET task) CNSTAT monitors the statistical policy and
coordinating activities of the federal government,
Description: To provide technical and web
reviews the statistical programs of federal agencies
development support for the Web site and daily
and suggests improvements, reviews data-handling
operations of the Network hardware facility. As
and privacy and confidentiality policies and
part of the operation and in compliance with the
provides recommendations for best practices,
security plan, SAIC’s data must be backed up and
studies data gaps and recommends additions as
stored at an offsite backup storage facility.
necessary, and reviews extant methodologies and
Amount: $868,186 suggests improved statistical methods.
Period of Performance: 4/17/03-9/30/05 Amount: $150,000
● Name of Organization: Computer Period of Performance: 8/1/05-7/30/06 and
Science Corporation 8/1/06-7/31/07
Description: EDNET task- see SAIC (EDNET
task) (in this section above). ● Name of Organization: American Institutes
Amount: $512,294 for Research (AIR)
Period of Performance: 7/30/06-7/20/07 Description: Education Statistics Services Institute
(ESSI) – This contract conducts a wide range of
activities in support of NCES’s efforts to carry out
a program of over 100 surveys, maintain a Web
Census–FedStats site used by three-quarters of a million customers
Description: FedStats, which has been available to monthly, and assist states and postsecondary
the public since 1997, provides access to the full institutions in building a solid infrastructure for
range of official statistical information produced accurate and timely statistics. The ESSI was created
by the federal government without having to know in 1995 to support NCES’s analytic, research and
in advance which federal agency produces which development activities. Recompeted in 2005.
particular statistic. With convenient searching Amount: $75,000,000
and linking capabilities to more than 100 agencies
that provide data and trend information on such
topics as economic and population trends, crime,
education, health care, aviation safety, energy use, ● Name of Organization: American Institutes for
farm production and more, FedStats is a single Research (AIR)
B-13
Description: ESSI Statistical Activities contract–

Recompeted in 2005, see American Institutes for
Research (AIR) (in this section above).
Amount: $200,000,000
● Name of Organization: Synergy Enterprises, Inc.

Description: NCES Logistics Contract – This
contract provides logistics support and services
to facilitate NCES analysis, publications, and
technical development activities.
Amount: $15,000,000
B-14
Appendix C
National Center for different routes to certification, both alternative

and traditional.
Education Evaluation Amount: $9,449,733
and Regional Assistance Period of Performance: 9/30/03-9/29/07
(NCEE) ● Name of Organization: Mathematica Policy

Research, Inc.
NCEE carries out programs of evaluating
federal programs, synthesizing and Description: Evaluation of Reading Comprehension
disseminating information from evaluation Programs – This study will assess the effectiveness of
and research, and providing technical several promising reading comprehension programs
assistance primarily through contracts. on student achievement.
Amount: $17,380,017
Evaluations
● Name of Organization: Mathematica Policy Institute (RTI)
Research, Inc.
Description: Impact Evaluation of a School-based
Description: Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Violence Prevention Program – This study will
Educational Technology Intervention – This mandated evaluate the effectiveness of a school-based violence
evaluation assesses the impact of using selected prevention program for middle school students.
technologies that are intended to improve student
academic achievement in reading or in mathematics. Amount: $9,988,200
● Name of Organization: MDRC
● Name of Organization: Mathematica Policy Description: Development, Implementation, and
Research, Inc. Impact Evaluation of Academic Instruction for After-
School Programs – This project will test the efficacy
Description: Evaluation of the Impact of Charter of two instructional programs in math and reading
School Strategies – This study will assess the impact implemented in after-school programs.
of application to and attendance at middle charter
schools on academic achievement and parent and Amount: $15,894,071
student satisfaction. The study will also examine Period of Performance: 10/1/03-9/30/07
the relationship between impacts and key policy
characteristics such as school autonomy, funding,
and accountability. ● Name of Organization: Abt Associates
Amount: $5,944,000 Description: Reading First Impact Study – The
study is assessing the impact of the Reading First
Period of Performance: 9/28/03-9/30/08 program on student reading achievement in 17
districts and one state.
● Name of Organization: Mathematica Policy Amount: $30,713,615
Research, Inc. Period of Performance: 9/29/03-9/28/08
Description: Impact Evaluation of Teacher
Preparation Models – This study will assess the
effects of different types and amounts of teacher ● Name of Organization: Westat, Inc.
training on student achievement, taking advantage Description: Even Start Classroom Literacy
of the existing variation in teacher training across Interventions and Outcomes Study (CLIO) is
C-1
testing the relative effectiveness of early childhood ● Name of Organization: American Institutes for
education and parenting education interventions Research (AIR)
with preschool children and their parents in a Description: Evaluation of Conversion Magnet
sample of Even Start projects. Schools – This study will assess the feasibility
Amount: $33,072,060 of evaluating the relationship between magnet
school conversion, minority group isolation, and
student achievement at the elementary school
level. If feasible to conduct the evaluation, a
● Name of Organization: Abt Associates quasi-experimental design will be used to compare
approximately 50 magnet schools and 100
Description: Impact Evaluation of the Student
comparison schools for at least three years before
Mentoring Program – The evaluation will examine
and after schools’ conversion to magnet status.
the impact of student mentoring programs funded
by OSDFS on academic achievement, delinquent Amount: $495,279
behavior, interpersonal relationships, and social Period of Performance: 9/18/06-2/28/08
and personal responsibility.
Amount: $5,600,000 ● Name of Organization: Berkeley
Period of Performance: 3/24/05-9/23/08 Policy Associates
Description: This task order is assessing the
● Name of Organization: Abt Associates feasibility of designing a rigorous, random
assignment evaluation to test the “value added”
Description: Technical Assistance to Local Impact method of measuring teacher performance. A
Evaluations of Striving Readers Projects – To provide technical working group offered guidance on issues
technical assistance to the evaluators of the grants such as random assignment procedures, sample
awarded under the Striving Readers Program who design, data collection, and analysis methods.
are conducting random assignment evaluations.
Amount: $332,458
● Name of Organization: Branch Associates Inc.
● Name of Organization: Abt Associates Description: Evaluation of the Comprehensive
Description: Impact Evaluation of Upward Bound’s Technical Assistance Centers – This evaluation will
Increased Focus on Higher-Risk Students – This evaluate how the Centers have expanded States’
randomized control trial will assess the impact of capacity to address the educational needs of LEAs
the Upward Bound program’s policy initiative to and schools.
target more funds to higher-risk students. Amount: $6,630,084
● Name of Organization: SRI International
● Name of Organization: American Institutes for Description: National Study on Alternate
Research (AIR) Assessments – This study is addressing three sets
Description: Impact Evaluation Of Math Professional of questions that are crucial to understanding
Development – This evaluation will develop and test the development and use of alternate assessments
promising math professional development models to ensure that schools are accountable for the
that focus on content knowledge and pedagogical performance of students with disabilities. In
strategies in grades 4 and 7. particular, the study will evaluate the degree
to which states and schools provide alternate
Amount: $16,634,867 assessments based on grade-level, modified,
Period of Performance: 8/30/05-8/30/10 and alternate achievement standards as a means
C-2
Appendix C
for including students with disabilities in state ● Name of Organization: Westat, Inc.
accountability systems and improving their Description: Data Quality Initiative – To provide
educational outcomes. technical assistance to program offices and their
Amount: $4,410,960 grantees in the collection and analysis of program
Period of Performance: 9/27/05-8/30/09 outcome and impact data.
Amount: $1,980,000
● Name of Organization: RMC Research Period of Performance: 9/20/06-9/19/09
Description: Evaluation of the Impact of Mandatory-
Random Student Drug Testing – To evaluate the ● Name of Organization: Optimal Solutions
impact of mandatory random drug testing programs Group, LLC
on student drug use in high schools. Description: Study of Teacher Preparation in
Amount: $4,174,863 Early Reading Instruction – The study will collect
Period of Performance: 9/20/06-9/19/10 information in spring 2007 from a sample of 2,500
pre-service teachers in a nationally representative
sample of 100 institutions. It will include a pre-
● Name of Organization: Westat, Inc. service teacher survey regarding the content of their
Description: Design of the National Assessment programs as well as an assessment of pre-service
of Progress Under the Individuals with Disabilities teacher knowledge about the essential components
Improvement Act (IDEA 2004) – This project will of reading instruction.
design implementation and impact studies for the Amount: $4,999,643
evaluation mandated by Congress under Section Period of Performance: 8/25/05-2/25/08
664(b) of IDEA.
Amount: $597,399
● Name of Organization: MDRC
Description: An Evaluation of the Impact of
Supplemental Literacy Interventions in Freshman
● Name of Organization: Westat, Inc. Academies – This study will assess the impact of two
Description: Design of the Evaluation of the IDEA supplemental literacy programs for striving readers
Personnel Preparation Program (Part D) – This task in ninth grade smaller learning communities.
will prepare design options for an independent Amount: $6,496,953
evaluation of the Personnel Preparation Program.
The contractor shall review and summarize the
relevant research and program materials, seek the
advice of national experts, and prepare evaluation ● Name of Organization: Mathematica Policy
designs to address key study questions. Research, Inc.
Amount: $324,474 Description: Impact Evaluation of Teacher
Period of Performance: 8/24/06-4/20/07 Induction Programs – Evaluation of the impact
of high intensity teacher induction on teacher
retention, teacher practices, and student test scores.
Amount: $16,793,824
Description: Followup to the Even Start CLIO
Study – This study will assess the longer-
term impacts of the Even Start CLIO Study
interventions as the children complete kindergarten ● Name of Organization: Mathematica Policy
and first grade. Research, Inc.
Amount: $3,249,893 Description: Data Analyses Addressing Teacher
Period of Performance: 9/29/06-9/28/09 Compensation and Teacher Quality – This study will
C-3
assess the feasibility of using secondary data analyses and Improvement Practices Under the Individuals
to provide information about the effectiveness of with Disabilities Education Act – This study is
alternative teacher compensation strategies as well evaluating the effectiveness of state monitoring
as develop the design of a rigorous evaluation of an on key outcomes of Parts B and C of IDEA. As
alternative teacher compensation strategy. state monitoring of IDEA is an evaluation activity,
Amount: $322,146 this study is a meta-evaluation of state monitoring
evaluations; that is, it is an evaluation of states’
own evaluations. This study has three objectives:
(a) to describe the nature and extent of the various
● Name of Organization: Mathematica Policy monitoring activities implemented by states for Parts
Research, Inc. B and C of IDEA; (b) to assess the effectiveness
Description: Evaluation of Math Curricula – This of states’ monitoring efforts and to identify the
study will evaluate the impact of different commercially reasons for good and poor outcomes for children
available math curricula on student achievement in with disabilities; and (c) to identify and develop
early elementary school grades. recommendations for potential best practices in
monitoring that can be shared with states.
Amount: $20,009,692
Amount: $4,078,275
● Name of Organization: Mathematica Policy

Research, Inc. ● Name of Organization: National Academies of
Description: Program Selection and Design for an Science, National Research Council
Evaluation of the Impact of Academically Focused Description: A Study of Teacher Preparation
Career and Technical Education – This study will Programs In The United States – The National
identify and support the refinement of up to three Academy of Science has formed an independent
academically focused vocational programs and to committee of experts to synthesize data and
develop the technical specifications to evaluate research on: (1) the academic preparation and
these programs. educational characteristics of candidates in pre-
Amount: $596,941 service, graduate, and alternative certification
programs; (2) the specific content and experiences
that are provided to candidates for degrees and
alternative certification in education; (3) the
● Name of Organization: Westat, Inc. consistency of the required coursework and
Description: Evaluation of the Impact of the experiences in reading and mathematics across
DC Choice Program – This is a congressionally teacher preparation programs; and (4) the degree
mandated evaluation of a federally funded private to which the content and experiences are based on
school voucher program for low-income residents converging scientific evidence.
of Washington, D.C. The evaluation will assess, Amount: $1,500,000
using a randomized control trial evaluation Period of Performance: 4/30/05-12/31/07
design, the impact of the program on academic
achievement, school safety, student and parent
satisfaction, and other outcomes.
Amount: $3,349,782 What Works Clearinghouse
● Name of Organization: American Institutes
● Name of Organization: Westat, Inc. for Research (AIR)
Description: An Evaluation of States’ Monitoring Principal Investigator: Rebecca Herman
C-4
Appendix C
● Name of Organization: Campbell Collaboration (ERIC) – ERIC Quality Assurance monitors and
Principal Investigator: Robert Boruch measures the performance of the online ERIC system.
Description: To provide educators, policymakers, Amount: $600,658
researchers, and the public with reviews of the best Period of Performance: 9/24/04-9/30/07
scientific evidence on the effectiveness of specific
interventions (programs, products, practices, and
policies) to improve important student outcomes.
The WWC gathers published and unpublished
studies, screens them for relevance to the topic and National Library of Education
validity of the outcome measures, assesses the causal
validity of randomized controlled trials and quasi- ● Name of Organization: Scientific and
experimental design studies, reviews the evidence Commercial Systems Corporation
of effectiveness of the interventions, and releases its
reports to the public through the WWC Web site. Description: Library Technical and Reference
Services – provides cataloging, government
Amount: $23,805,419
documents and collection management and
Period of Performance: 8/1/02-7/31/07 reference services.
Amount: $2,062,525
Education Resources
Information Center (ERIC)
Regional Educational
● Name of Organization: CSC/Professional Laboratories
Services Group
Description: Education Resources Information
Center (ERIC) – The mission of the new ERIC is to Ten Regional Educational Laboratories were funded
provide a comprehensive, easy-to-use, searchable, by the Institute of Education Sciences to bridge
Internet-based bibliographic and full-text database research, policy, and practice so as to serve state and
of education research and information for local education agencies, communities, and schools.
educators, researchers, and the general public. Under the guidance and direction of their governing
Amount: $34,613,434 boards, the laboratories conduct applied research
and development, disseminate knowledge about
Period of Performance: 3/12/04-3/11/09 best practice, and provide technical assistance. The
laboratories also assess the educational needs of their
● Name of Organization: CSC/Professional regions, provide opportunities for state and regional
Services Group gatherings on vital topics, and work jointly as a
Description: Education Resources Information laboratory network.
Center (ERIC) – Increase for the digitization of
about 340,000 full-text microfiche documents to
● Name of Organization: Mid-Continent
digital images.
Research for Education and Learning
Amount: $4,257,816
Description: Mid-Continent Research for Education
Period of Performance: 9/29/06-3/11/09 and Learning – States Served: Colorado, Kansas,
Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota,
● Name of Organization: Information
and Wyoming
International Associates, Inc. Amount: $27,361,014
Description: Education Resources Information Center Period of Performance: 12/13/00-12/12/05
C-5
● Name of Organization: Laboratory for Student Description: Northwest Regional Educational

Success, Temple University Laboratory – States Served: Alaska, Idaho,
Description: Laboratory for Student Montana, Oregon, and Washington
Success – States Served: Delaware, Maryland, New Amount: $33,685,208
Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C. Period of Performance: 12/11/00-12/10/05
Amount: $34,046,948
Period of Performance: 12/13/00-12/12/05 ● Name of Organization: Pacific Resources for
Education and Learning
● Name of Organization: Southwest Educational Description: Pacific Resources for Education and
Learning – States Served: American Samoa, the
Development Laboratory
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,
Description: Southwest Educational Development the Federated States of Micronesia (Chuuk, Kosrae,
Laboratory – States Served: Arkansas, Louisiana, Pohnpei, and Yap), Guam, Hawaii, the Republic of
New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau
Amount: $35,999,856 Amount: $21,154,772
● Name of Organization: Northeast and Islands ● Name of Organization: SERVE, University of

Regional Educational Laboratory at Brown University North Carolina-Greensboro
Description: Northeast and Islands Regional Description: Regional Educational Laboratory at
Educational Laboratory at Brown University – SERVE – States Served: Alabama, Florida, Georgia,
States Served: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina
New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Amount: $37,185,248
Vermont, Puerto Rico, and Virgin Islands Period of Performance: 12/15/00-12/14/05
Amount: $39,466,538
Period of Performance: 12/15/00-12/14/05 ● Name of Organization: AEL, Inc.
Description: The Regional Educational Laboratory
● Name of Organization: Learning Point Associates at AEL, Inc. – States Served: Kentucky, Tennessee,
Virginia, and West Virginia
Description: North Central Regional Educational
Laboratory – States Served: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Amount: $27,135,184
Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin Period of Performance: 12/14/00-12/14/05
Amount: $43,256,912
Period of Performance: 12/13/00-12/12/05 ● Name of Organization: WestEd
Description: Regional Educational Laboratory-
West – States Served: Arizona, California, Nevada,
● Name of Organization: WestEd and Utah
Description: Western Regional Educational Amount: $7,456,478
Laboratory at WestEd – States Served: Arizona,
California, Nevada, and Utah
Amount: $35,639,084
● Name of Organization: Northwest Regional
Period of Performance: 12/13/00-12/12/05 Educational Laboratory
● Name of Organization: Northwest Regional Northwest – States Served: Alaska, Idaho,
Educational Laboratory Montana, Oregon, and Washington
C-6
Appendix C
Amount: $4,961,888 ● Name of Organization: EDC

Period of Performance: 2/1/06-1/31/11 Description: Regional Educational Laboratory-
Northeast & Islands – States Served: Connecticut,
Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York,
● Name of Organization: Edvance Research
Rhode Island, Vermont, Puerto Rico, and
Description: Regional Educational Laboratory- Virgin Islands
Southwest – States Served: Arkansas, Louisiana,
Amount: $7,406,380
New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas

● Name of Organization: SERVE, University of
North Carolina-Greensboro
● Name of Organization: Learning Point Associates
Southeast – States Served: Alabama, Florida,
Midwest – States Served: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa,
Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, and
Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin
South Carolina
Amount: $7,288,340
Amount: $6,954,518
● Name of Organization: The CNA Corporation

● Name of Organization: Pennsylvania
State University
Appalachia – States Served: Kentucky, Tennessee,
Virginia, and West Virginia Description: Regional Educational Laboratory-
Mid-Atlantic – States Served: Delaware, Maryland,
Amount: $5,217,206
New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C.
Amount: $6,222,871
● Name of Organization: Mid-Continent
Research for Education and Learning
Central – States Served: Colorado, Kansas, Other
Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South
Dakota, and Wyoming
● Name of Organization: Mathematica Policy
Amount: $5,144,980
Research, Inc.
Description: Analytic and Technical Support
contract – Technical support activities for (1)
● Name of Organization: Pacific Resources for preparation of papers and analyses in areas such as
Education and Learning cutting-edge evaluation methodologies; statistical
Description: Regional Educational Laboratory- analyses of education issues of national importance,
Pacific – States Served: American Samoa, the expert reviews of major education studies and
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, reports, and design papers on education research
the Federated States of Micronesia (Chuuk, Kosrae, and evaluation; and, (2) technical assistance that
Pohnpei, and Yap), Guam, Hawaii, the Republic of promotes the conduct of scientifically rigorous studies
the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau and the use of information from those studies.
Amount: $4,368,660 Amount: $3,495,741
C-7
Interagency Agreements ● Name of Institution: New York University

School of Medicine
Principal Investigator: Laurie Brotman
● Name of Organization: U.S. Library of
Congress, Fedlink Office Description: Promoting School Success in Children
Attending Pre-K Programs in Poor, Urban
Description: Interagency agreement to provide Schools – This five-year study evaluates a universal,
IES’s National Library of Education with access preventive school- and family-based program for
to an international bibliographic database for pre-kindergarten children from schools in poor,
catablogging and interlibrary loan services, urban communities. The intervention aims to
procurement contracts for library resources and prevent conduct problems and improve academic
services, and staff training in 2005. achievement by promoting effective parenting and
Amount: $275,086 teaching strategies, parent-school involvement, and
child social, emotional, and behavioral competence
Period of Performance: 10/1/04-9/30/05 during the preschool period.
Amount: $3,849,787
● Name of Organization: U.S. Library of Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/10
Congress, Fedlink Office
Description: Interagency agreement to provide
● Name of Institution: University of Nebraska
IES’s National Library of Education with access
to an international bibliographic database for Principal Investigator: Susan Sheridan
catablogging and interlibrary loan services, Description: Evaluation of the Efficacy of CBC
procurement contracts for library resources and for Addressing Disruptive Behaviors of Children
services, and staff training in 2006. At-Risk for Academic Failure – This study involves
Amount: $146,540 an experimental investigation of the efficacy of a
structured, family-school intervention approach,
Period of Performance: 10/1/05-9/30/06 known as Conjoint Behavioral Consultation
(CBC), for addressing disruptive and challenging
behaviors of students at risk of academic failure.
Amount: $1,368,067
Grants Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/08
Field-Initiated Evaluations of ● Name of Institution: Johns Hopkins University

Education Innovations
Principal Investigator: Robert Balfanz
Description: Evaluation of the Computer and Team
● Name of Institution: RAND Corporation Assisted Mathematical Acceleration (CATAMA) Lab
Principal Investigator: John Pane for Urban, High-Poverty, High-Minority Middle
Description: Experimental Field Study of Cognitive Schools – The goal of this project is to evaluate
Tutor Geometry Curriculum – This study will a practical approach for improving the math
concepts and skills of students with math deficits at
help to address a critical need for research-based
urban middle schools servicing high-poverty, high-
mathematics curricula at the high school level.
minority student populations.
Cognitive Tutor Geometry, a curriculum that has
shown promise in quasi-experimental studies, will Amount: $1,148,885
be evaluated in a randomized controlled trial. Period of Performance: 7/1/05-6/30/08
Amount: $1,255,961
Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/08 ● Name of Institution: Oregon Research Institute
Principal Investigator: Barbara Gunn
C-8
Appendix C
Description: Evaluating the Efficacy of Read Description: Evaluation of the SOURCE (Student
Well Kindergarten – The goal of the study is to Outreach for College Enrollment) Program: An
experimentally evaluate the efficacy of a beginning Intervention to Promote College Application and
reading program, Read Well Kindergarten. Enrollment Among Urban Youth – This project
Amount: $1,403,531 is a random assignment impact evaluation of a
Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/08 relatively low-cost demonstration program that
seeks to increase college going among inner-city
youth in the Los Angeles Unified School District.
● Name of Institution: University of Virginia Amount: $1,495,657
Principal Investigator: Laura Justice
Description: Efficacy of Conversational
Responsiveness Preschool Language Intervention –
This is a rigorous randomized clinical trial to test ● Name of Institution: Indiana University
an innovative approach to improving instructional Principal Investigator: Jonathan Plucker
quality in preschoool classrooms to improve early
Description: An Experimental Design Evaluation of
language, literacy and social skills.
Full-Day Kindergarten – This project will conduct
Amount: $1,372,429 a randomized controlled trial comparing the
Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/08 academic development of students who attend
full-day kindergarten classes with those attending
half-day kindergarten classes.
● Name of Institution: University of Maryland
Amount: $802,421
Principal Investigator: Denise Gottfredson
Description: Effects of Enhanced After-
School Programs on Educational Outcomes: A
Randomized Trial – This study will provide ● Name of Institution: Vanderbilt University
evidence about whether an enhanced after-
school program can improve middle school Principal Investigator: Mark Lipsey
students’ academic performance. Description: Evaluation of Ohio’s School Conflict
Amount: $1,499,943 Management Program – This research addresses the
problem of aggressive behavior and interpersonal
Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/08 conflict in middle schools by evaluating the Ohio
School Conflict Management Program.
● Name of Institution: University of Maryland Amount: $1,340,989
Principal Investigator: Sylvia Rosenfeld Period of Performance: 9/1/05-8/31/08
Description: An Experimental Study of the
Effectiveness of Instructional Consultation
● Name of Institution: Chesapeake
Teams – The experiment is designed to learn
whether instructional consultation teams improve Research Associates
elementary school students’ achievement in reading Principal Investigator: Michael Puma
and math, reduce problem behavior, reduce the Description: An Evaluation of ‘Writing Wings’:
assignment of students to special education, and Writing Instruction for Disadvantaged Elementary
reduce retention in grade. School Children – This project evaluates an
Amount: $1,869,878 innovative writing program for 3rd, 4th, and
Period of Performance: 6/1/05-5/31/09 5th graders, called Writing Wings (developed
by the Success For All Foundation) that seeks to
enhance teachers’ skills through a combination of
● Name of Institution: Berkeley Policy Associates clear instructional goals, teacher modeling, and a
Principal Investigator: Tiffani Chin cooperative writing process.
C-9
Amount: $1,238,849 Unsolicited Proposals

● Name of Institution: Educational
Testing Service
English Language Acquisition Principal Investigator: Laura Goe
Evaluation Description: A Scientifically Based Analysis of
Reading Items and Their Alignment with NRP
Domains – IES awarded a grant to ETS in 2005
● Name of Institution: Johns Hopkins University
to examine the alignment of Praxis reading items
Description: Effects of Transitional Bilingual and the National Reading Panel findings. The
Education, Two-Way Bilingual, and Structured work involves convening panels of reading experts
English Immersion Programs and the Literacy to identify existing Praxis reading items that are
and Oracy of Spanish-Dominant Children – This aligned with the NRP domains. The end results
evaluation will test enhanced versions of the will be a set of Praxis assessment items that measure
Success for All structured English immersion, reading content and/or content pedagogy relevant
transitional bilingual and two-way bilingual to the elementary school level that reading experts
programs in 15 high-poverty schools. have judged to be aligned with the NRP report
Amount: $5,395,762 and a set of empirical data that speaks to Praxis test
takers’ understanding of scientifically based reading
Period of Performance: 10/1/03-9/30/08 from historical Praxis data on the items deemed to
be aligned with the NRP report by the experts. A
● Name of Institution: University of Houston report is due in spring 2007.
Principal Investigator: David Francis Amount: $272,408
Description: Optimizing Educational Outcomes for Period of Performance: 6/10/05-12/29/06
English Language Learners – This study will evaluate
enhanced versions of structured English immersion ● Name of Institution: National Conference of
and transitional bilingual education programs that State Legislatures
differ in the amount of Spanish language used for
Principal Investigator: Julie Bell
instruction, compared to typical, existing programs.
Description: Improving Outcomes for Students:
Amount: $8,093,384
Linking Research and Policy – Under this grant,
Period of Performance: 10/1/03-9/30/08 NCSL will work closely with the U.S. Department
of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences to
provide state legislators and key staff opportunities
● Name of Institution: Texas A&M
to (a) learn about findings from rigorous
Research Foundation
research on key education topics, (b) develop an
Description: Project English Language Literacy understanding of how new policies and programs
Acquisition – This study will evaluate enhanced can be implemented in ways that allow evaluation
versions of structured English immersion and of the impact of the policies and programs,
transitional bilingual education programs (c) acquire knowledge about assessments, and
compared to existing programs that are already (d) consider ways of applying this new knowledge
in place. The enhanced versions include the use to policy issues in their states.
of additional strategies in intensive English, Amount: $1,276,952
professional development, and parent training.
Amount: $6,762,115
C-10
Appendix D
National Center for Learners with Language Disorders – The purpose of

this project is to develop and evaluate the potential
Special Education efficacy of VOLAR for preschool Spanish-speaking
children with language disorders within the
Research (NCSER) preschool curriculum. The VOLAR program
was designed to evaluate whether a focused and
NCSER carries out programs of special direct vocabulary and oral language instruction
education research primarily through grants. facilitates academic readiness (i.e., vocabulary, oral
language, phonological awareness, cognitive, and
socioemotional outcomes) in English Language
Assessment for Accountability Learners (ELLs) with language disorders compared
to their peers with language disorders who do not
receive the VOLAR intervention. In addition,
● Name of Institution: Educational Testing Service the effects of the VOLAR intervention will be
Principal Investigator: Cara Cahalan-Laitusis compared across bilingual and English-only
modalities to determine whether the intervention
Description: National Accessible Reading Assessment
presented in a bilingual modality (BIVOLAR)
Projects: Research and Development for Students
leads to greater improvements in vocabulary, oral
with Visual Impairments – Students with visual
language, and academic readiness than the VOLAR
impairments present an ongoing challenge in
intervention presented in English only (EVOLAR).
large-scale assessments of reading proficiency, and
issues persist concerning the valid assessment of Amount: $1,425,540
reading with this population, particularly when Period of Performance: 6/1/06-5/31/09
some type of technology-assisted reading (e.g. text
to speech) is involved. The purpose of this project is
to: (a) examine the psychometric properties of state ● Name of Institution: Georgia State University
assessments for students with visual impairments, (b) Principal Investigator: Amy Lederberg
conduct research on the development of an alternate Description: Improving Deaf Preschoolers’ Literacy
assessment of technology-assisted reading for Skills – The purpose of this study is to develop and
students with visual impairments, and (c) conduct obtain preliminary evidence on the efficacy of a
a field test to examine the validity and reliability curriculum designed to foster emergent literacy
of both an accessible reading assessment and the skills in deaf and hard of hearing preschoolers.
alternate assessment of technology-assisted reading Most deaf and hard of hearing students do not
that includes students with visual impairments. progress beyond a fourth grade reading level by
Amount: $1,992,629 the time they leave high school. However, recent
advances in amplification, early identification,
and reading research has significant potential to
improve literacy curriculum for this population
as well as reading outcomes. Specifically, the
researchers will examine what instructional
Early Intervention, Early strategies and degree of individualization will
Childhood Special Education, improve literacy outcomes taking into account
recent advances relevant to deaf and hard of
and Assessment hearing students.
Amount: $1,468,299
● Name of Institution: San Diego State University
Principal Investigator: Vera Gutierrez-Clellen
Description: Vocabulary, Oral Language, and
Academic Readiness (VOLAR) – A Language ● Name of Institution: Arizona State University
Intervention for Latino Preschool English Language Principal Investigator: M. Jeanne Wilcox
D-1
Description: The Development and Efficacy Amount: $2,995,758

of a Curriculum-Based Language and Early Period of Performance: 6/1/06-5/31/10
Literacy Intervention for Preschool Children with
Developmental Disabilities – The purposes of the
proposed investigation are to (a) determine the ● Name of Institution: Florida State University
efficacy of a language and early literacy curriculum Principal Investigator: Christopher Lonigan
(Trophies Pre-K) adapted for use with preschool
children with developmental disabilities, (b) to Description: A Randomized Trial of Preschool
evaluate the extent to which the addition of an Instructional Strategies to Improve School Performance
explicit oral language teaching protocol (EOLT) and Reduce Use of Special Education – The purpose
further enhances children’s gains in oral language, of this project is to compare the value added
pre-reading, and pre-writing skills, and (c) to impact of an intervention focusing explicitly on
determine the intensity of intentional instruction language, literacy, and cognitive skills, with an
required for all children to progress in the intervention explicitly focused on these skills
curriculum. Secondary purposes are to examine plus self-regulation. Recent research supports
factors that influence children’s response to the the promise of targeted and research-based
interventions, professional development and intervention for preschool age children in language,
intervention fidelity, and the perceived value and early literacy, and cognitive skills as a preventive
feasibility of the interventions from the perspective tool to reduce the number of children in need of
of the preschool classroom personnel. costly special education services in kindergarten
Amount: $1,470,185 and beyond. Research also suggests the potential
need for an additional focus on developing
cognitive and behavioral self-regulatory skills
in preschool children. This research project is
● Name of Institution: Vanderbilt University designed to further examine this relationship.
Principal Investigator: Ann Kaiser Amount: $2,999,598
Description: Improving Language and Literacy Period of Performance: 6/1/06-5/31/10
Outcomes for Preschool Children at Highest Risk for
Reading Problems – Language and early literacy ● Name of Institution: Texas A&M University
skills are foundational to reading and school
Principal Investigator: Deborah Simmons
success. Effective early intervention during the
preschool years for children at highest risk for Description: Project Early Reading Intervention – The
school failure may improve their chances of purpose of this project is to evaluate the efficacy and
learning to read and learning from reading in the study systematic variations of delivery intensity for
early elementary school years. Children who have the Early Reading Intervention (ERI), a commercial
Individualized Education Programs (IEP), children program that is designed for kindergarten children at
with very low language skills, and children with risk of reading difficulty and used in more than 4,000
low language skills and high problem behaviors school districts in all 50 states. Also, the researchers
who are also enrolled in Head Start are of high intend to sample participating schools to capture a
risk for later reading problems. The purpose of this broad range of demographic diversity and to evaluate
project is to examine the differential effects of three ERI’s efficacy in sites distal to ERI developers.
approaches to improving language and literacy Amount: $2,885,628
skills in these very high risk children enrolled in Period of Performance: 6/1/06-5/31/10
Head Start. These approaches are: (1) Opening the
World of Learning (OWL); (2) OWL + Enhanced
Milieu Teaching (EMT), and (3) Creative ● Name of Institution: University of Colorado
Curriculum (CC), a general curriculum model at Denver
which is widely used in Head Start. Principal Investigator: Phillip Strain
D-2
Appendix D
Description: LEAP-USA (Using Science-Based ● Name of Institution: University of Illinois

Approaches) – The purpose of this project is to Principal Investigator: James Shriner
assess the efficacy of LEAP (Learning Experiences,
Description: IEP Quality Improvement: Research
an Alternative Program for Preschoolers and
and Development of Web-based Decision
their Parents)-USA in improving child ( e.g.,
Support – The purpose of this project is to develop
social behavior, cognitive development, and
and test a Web-based IEP Tutorial and decision-
language development) and family outcomes (e.g.
making support system (Tutorial) that will be linked
stress, insularity) for pre-school aged children
to the Illinois State Board of Education’s (ISBE)
identified with autism. LEAP is a comprehensive electronic IEP archiving system. The overall aim is
intervention that blends a behavioral approach to use the developed Web-based informational and
with developmentally appropriate practices. decision making resources to allow IEP teams to
Prior research has demonstrated LEAP reduces craft better quality IEPs that function to support
symptoms associated with autism and improves higher standards-based achievement.
child outcomes but the model has not been
Amount: $1,465,699
evaluated using a randomized controlled trial. The
researchers intend to examine the efficacy of LEAP Period of Performance: 8/15/06-8/14/09
when interventionists are provided different levels
of training and support. ● Name of Institution: University of Hawaii
Amount: $1,809,917
Principal Investigator: Robert Stodden
Description: I in the IEP – The participation of
those of indigenous heritage in the Individualized
Education Program (IEP) process is often less than
optimal because the IEP process is conducted in
Individualized Education a way that lacks cultural sensitivity, students and
Programs families lack an understanding of the IEP process
and its potential benefits, and/or there are cross-
cultural communication problems. The purpose of
● Name of Institution: The State University of
this project is to develop and obtain preliminary
New York at Buffalo
evidence of the efficacy of two interventions
Principal Investigator: Gregory Fabiano designed to equip educators, administrators,
Description: Enhancing Individual Education and parents with the necessary tools to support
Plans for Children with ADHD Disorder Using a students with disabilities from indigenous cultures
Daily Report Card – The purpose of this project is to engage with and benefit from their own IEP
to develop and obtain preliminary evidence of the meetings. One intervention focuses on the
efficacy of an intervention designed to improve the professional development of cultural competence
practices of teachers of children with attention- on the part of education practitioners while the
deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) who have other intervention employs a “cultural brokering”
an Individualized Education Program (IEP) and approach to supporting indigenous families to be
academic and socioemotional outcomes of these knowledgeable and motivated partners in the IEP
children. The researchers will provide preliminary process, both with the goal of promoting the active
evidence of the efficacy of using a daily report card participation of indigenous students themselves.
intervention (DRC), long used as an efficacious Amount: $1,500,000
intervention for children with ADHD, as a means of
linking the child’s IEP goals and objectives to his/her Period of Performance: 7/1/06-6/30/09
daily functioning in the classroom environment.
Amount: $732,436
D-3
Language and Vocabulary this study is to develop an intervention program

that is more culturally relevant and improves the
Development vocabulary, narrative, phonological awareness, and
reading skills of children from different cultures
● Name of Institution: University of Connecticut and for children from low socioeconomic homes.
In a recent clinical trial that assessed the potential
Principal Investigator: Michael Coyne
efficacy of school-age language intervention
Description: Project IVI: Intensifying Vocabulary programs, substantially fewer gains were found
Intervention for Kindergarten Students at Risk of for children from low socioeconomic homes and
Learning Disabilities – The purpose of Project children who were African American, Latino,
IVI is to develop, refine, and evaluate vocabulary or Native American when compared to children
intervention strategies for kindergarten students who were Caucasian and from families of high
at significant risk of learning disabilities. The socioeconomic status.
research team will draw on validated principles
Amount: $770,621
of instructional design and delivery to intensify
vocabulary instruction and to optimize its Period of Performance: 3/1/06-2/29/08
effectiveness with kindergarten students most at
risk of learning disabilities.
Amount: $884,306 Mathematics and Science
● Name of Institution: Mississippi State University
● Name of Institution: Florida State University Principal Investigator: Brenda Cavenaugh
Principal Investigator: Howard Goldstein Description: The Effects of School Climate and
Description: Project ILIAD: Independent Lexical Supports on Mathematics Achievements for Students
Instruction and Development – The purpose of with Visual Impairments – The purpose of this
Project ILIAD (Independent Lexical Instruction project is to examine the effects of school climate,
and Development) is to develop a comprehensive including policies and practices related to teacher
intervention program of vocabulary instruction supports, student supports, and support for
that can be applied reliably and effectively in family involvement, and other contextual and
grades K-3. This research will compare a focus on individual factors on mathematics achievement for
vocabulary enhancement versus a focus on phonics elementary and middle school students with visual
as a means of preventing and intervening with impairments. Students with visual impairments
children with and at-risk for delays in reading, tend to lag behind their sighted peers in math
language, and academic development. These achievement, and there are persistent questions
15-20-minute daily interventions supplement on- about the best approaches for developing math
going literacy instruction in the classroom. proficiency among this population. The majority
Amount: $1,338,773 of students with visual impairments are taught
in regular schools and classrooms. Many school-
Period of Performance: 5/1/06-4/30/09 related variables have been found to impact the
achievement of students in general, but research
● Name of Institution: University of Kansas has not been conducted to determine the effects
of these variables on the achievement of students
Principal Investigator: Diane Loeb with visual impairments. This study is intended to
Description: Development of a Culturally address this research need.
Based Language and Vocabulary Intervention Amount: $257,170
for Elementary School Children with Language
Impairments and Children who are at High Risk for Period of Performance: 10/1/06-9/30/08
Developing Learning Disabilities – The purpose of
D-4
Appendix D
Reading and Writing of narrative text has demonstrated that at-risk

students, when given appropriate instruction,
respond well and show improvement. However,
● Name of Institution: Vanderbilt University much less research has been conducted on
Principal Investigator: Donald Compton expository text, which is necessary for success in
school, the workplace, and the community.
Description: Response-To-Intervention as an
Approach to Preventing and Identifying Learning Amount: $1,117,665
Disabilities in Reading – The purpose of this project Period of Performance: 6/1/06-5/31/09
is to address key measurement issues associated
with the response-to-intervention (RTI) process:
Who should enter the RTI process? How does one
determine whether effective Tier 2 intervention Secondary and Post-
has been conducted? What is a valid and practical
method of monitoring responsiveness to Tier Secondary Outcomes
2 instruction? What is a valid definition of
“nonresponsiveness” (i.e., reading disabled)? ● Name of Institution: University of Wisconsin
Amount: $1,591,071 Principal Investigator: Erik Carter
Period of Performance: 9/1/06-8/31/10 Description: Project Summer: Improving Summer
Employment and Community Inclusion Outcomes
● Name of Institution: Georgia State University for Transition-Age Youth with Disabilities – The
purpose of Project Summer is to develop a
Principal Investigator: Robin Morris
practical, but effective, intervention designed
Description: Multiple-Component Remediation for to improve transition services for youth with
Struggling Middle School Readers – The purpose disabilities and maximize engagement in summer
of this project is to evaluate the efficacy of two employment and other transition-related activities.
multiple component reading interventions While research on transition services for youth
for middle school students with reading typically has focused on educational and vocational
disabilities. Both programs address multiple programming provided during the academic school
sources of dysfluent reading, impaired reading year, little is known about the employment and
comprehension, decoding, reading rate, and community activities of youth with disabilities
comprehension problems. However, the programs
during the summer. Summer offers an opportune
differ in that one includes a fluency component
time to address transition-related goals in
and the other includes a comprehension
community context, employment in particular,
intervention component.
circumventing many of the limitations associated
Amount: $2,882,630 with addressing these goals during the school year.
Period of Performance: 6/1/06-5/31/10 Unfortunately, empirically validated strategies
aimed specifically at promoting the summer
employment of youth with disabilities remain
● Name of Institution: Teachers College,
absent from the literature.
Columbia University
Amount: $915,346
Principal Investigator: Joanna Williams
Description: An intervention to enhance expository
text comprehension via text structure instruction for
primary-grade at-risk students – The purpose of this ● Name of Institution: Portland State University
project is to develop and evaluate an intervention
to improve the expository text comprehension Principal Investigator: Laurie Powers
of second-grade students at high risk for reading Description: Project Success: Improving the
disabilities. Research on the comprehension Educational Outcomes of Youth with Disabilities
D-5
in Foster Care – The purpose of Project Success ● Name of Institution: Idaho State University
is to implement the TAKE CHARGE model for Principal Investigator: Stephanie Peterson
enhancing the self-determination of foster youth
with disabilities and to systematically evaluate the Description: Concurrent Schedules of Reinforcement
efficacy of the model in improving educational and Adjusting Demand Requirements: Effects
outcomes. Statistics reveal that approximately on Communication, Compliance, and Problem
40 percent of foster care youth have a disability, Behavior – The purpose of this project is to develop
and that youth in foster care are three times more an intervention for escape-motivated problem
likely to be referred for special education services. behavior. The intervention will teach children to
Educators are frequently unaware of the unique request breaks from demanding tasks and to comply
issues facing special education students in foster with task requests. Although several interventions
care, and similarly, the disability status/special (e.g., extinction, differential reinforcement of
education needs of foster youth are unknown alternate behavior, functional communication
within the child welfare system. Furthermore, training, demand fading) for escape-motivated
research has confirmed that foster youth with problem behavior in individuals with disabilities
disabilities lag behind their peers in school, are already exist, each has weaknesses that can limit its
suffering educationally, and are at significant risk utility. An intervention strategy that capitalizes on
for academic failure. the strengths of these interventions, but minimizes
their weaknesses, is needed.
Amount: $1,816,782
Amount: $515,385
● Name of Institution: The State University of

Serious Behavior Disorders New York-Buffalo
Principal Investigator: William Pelham, Jr.
● Name of Institution: Vanderbilt University Description: Adaptive Treatments for Children with
Principal Investigator: Kathleen Lane ADHD – The purpose of this study is to investigate
Description: The Effects of Strategy and Self- the efficacy of two forms of ADHD treatment:
Regulation Instruction on Students’ Writing medication and behavioral intervention. Unlike
Performance and Behavior: A Preventative Approach previous research, this study proposes to examine the
(Project WRITE) – The purpose of Project WRITE effect of sequential implementation of the two forms
is to determine the impact of a modified Self- of ADHD treatment on students unresponsive
Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) on the to the primary intervention. By using sequential
writing and classroom behavior of students at high- implementation of either medication followed by
risk for Serious Behavior Disorders (SBD). Prior behavioral intervention or behavioral intervention
research has demonstrated that SRSD improves followed by medication, students with ADHD will
the writing performance of students with learning receive the lowest effective dosage of medication
disabilities and other struggling writers, but its and/or intensity of behavioral intervention;
impact on the writing performance and collateral therefore, costs will be reduced and students will not
impacts on behavior for students at high-risk be subjected to unnecessary interventions.
for SBD is not determined. The development Amount: $2,711,468
of SRSD is particularly important for students Period of Performance: 4/1/06-3/31/10
at high-risk for SBD because they often require
secondary interventions to supplement school-wide
implementation of positive behavior supports (PBS). ● Name of Institution: University of Florida
Amount: $1,431,137 Principal Investigator: Stephen Smith
Period of Performance: 9/1/06-8/31/09 Description: Universal Cognitive-Behavioral
D-6
Appendix D
Intervention for Elementary Students to Reduce Description: Project VIABLE: Validation of

Disruptive/Aggressive Behavior – The purpose of Instruments for Assessing Behavior Longitudinally
this project is to determine whether a cognitive- and Efficiently – Empirical attention to the
behavioral problem-solving curriculum focused on development and validation of viable formative
anger management and implemented by school measures of social behavior is essential if we are to
personnel in classroom settings improves student effectively evaluate the success of positive behavior
behavioral outcomes related to positive social interventions put in place to address challenging
adjustment and school success. Researchers have student behavior. The purpose of this project is to
found that teaching cognitive strategies through develop and validate the Direct Behavior Rating
cognitive-behavioral intervention can decrease (DBR) for use in student progress monitoring that
student disruption/aggression and strengthen is also feasible for use in applied settings. Thus,
pro-social behavior. Many such interventions the goal of Project VIABLE is to develop the DBR
incorporate components difficult for typical schools for use in progress monitoring through three
to sustain without external support. Thus, there is phases of investigation including (1) foundations
a need to determine whether a feasible, sustainable, of measurement, (2) decision making and validity,
cost-effective intervention can effectively alter and (3) feasibility.
negative behaviors and thereby improve social Amount: $1,496,507
outcomes for students at risk.
Amount: $1,625,469
Period of Performance: 8/1/06-7/31/10 ● Name of Institution: University of Georgia
Principal Investigator: Randy Kamphaus
● Name of Institution: SRI International Description: Development and Validation of a
Principal Investigator: Mary Wagner Screener for Behavioral and Emotional Problems in
Description: Early, Evidence-Based Intervention For Elementary and Middle School – The purpose of
Externalizing Behavior Problems in School: From this project is to develop and validate a five-minute
Efficacy to Effectiveness of the First Step to Success screening assessment to be used by teachers to
Program – The First Step to Success Program is a identify elementary and middle school children
school-home intervention with substantial evidence with behavioral or emotional problems that
for its efficacy in achieving secondary prevention predispose them to academic failure. The study
goals and positive outcomes for behaviorally at-risk will build upon pilot research to develop a screener
children in the primary grades. It is packaged for from the longer form of the Behavioral Assessment
System for Children, second edition (BASC-2;
dissemination, is evidence-based, and has been
Reynolds & Kamphaus, 2004), currently used
implemented successfully by a number of districts
widely in the United States and abroad.
across the country during the past decade. The
purpose of this project is to evaluate the effectiveness Amount: $941,141
of First Step to Success under scaled-up conditions. Period of Performance: 5/1/06-4/30/10
Solid evidence is needed that scaled-up interventions
can improve the behavior and academic performance
of children with serious behavior problems early
in their schooling, thereby setting them on a more Unsolicited Proposals
positive educational trajectory.
Amount: $5,857,960
● Name of Institution: University of California
Principal Investigator: William R. Shadish
Description: Meta-Analysis of Single-Subject
● Name of Institution: University of Connecticut Designs – The purpose of this project is to develop
Principal Investigator: Sandra Chafouleas meta-analytic methods for synthesizing one
D-7
kind of nonrandomized experiment, the single- synthesizing the research literature from single-case
subject design. These designs are widely used research designs including traditional literature
in educational research settings (Kazdin, 2003; reviews and meta-analyses.
Kratochwill & Levin, 1992), and are among the Amount: $600,000
strongest nonrandomized experiments (Shadish,
Cook & Campbell, 2002). Although meta-analysis Period of Performance: 10/1/06-9/30/09
has been applied comparatively rarely to these
designs, sufficient literature exists to believe that
the time is propitious for further development of
this approach. Contracts
Amount: $598,744
Period of Performance: 9/1/05-8/31/08 ● Name of Organization: SRI International
Principal Investigator: Mary Wagner
● Name of Institution: University of Texas-Austin Description: The National Longitudinal Transition
Principal Investigator: S. Natasha Beretvas Study-2 (NLTS2) involves a large, nationally
representative sample of 11,276 special education
Description: Methodological Investigation of Effect students, ages 13 to 16 and in at least 7th grade
Size Estimates Used in Meta-Analyses of Single-Case at the outset of the study. The four age cohorts
Research Design Results – The purpose of this project will be followed over a nine-year period until the
is to (1) examine the methods utilized for single- oldest cohort of students is age 24. The purpose
case design meta-analyses to identify effective effect of the study is to provide a national picture of the
size (ES) descriptors, (2) conduct a meta-analytic experiences and achievements of students in special
study of school-based treatments for children education during high school and as they transition
with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), and (3) from high school to adult life. Data are collected on
perform a Monte Carlo simulation to compare the students’ individual and household characteristics;
performance of ES estimates designed to describe characteristics of their schools, school programs,
a treatment’s effectiveness with interrupted time and classroom experiences; secondary school
series data from single-n AB designed studies. performance and outcomes; adult services and
Amount: $167,758 supports; and early adult outcomes in employment,
Period of Performance: 1/15/06-12/31/06 education, independence, and social domains.
NLTS2 is designed with many of the same features
of the original National Longitudinal Transition
● Name of Institution: University of Study (1987-93) in order to identify the nature and
Wisconsin-Madison extent of changes in the special education services
Principal Investigator: Thomas Kratochwill provided to high school students and in their post-
school achievement in the last decade.
Co-Principal Investigator: Joel Levin (University
of Arizona) Amount: $19,343,221
Description: Single-Case Research Design and Period of Performance: 1/2/01-12/31/07
Analysis: Applications in Educational Intervention
Research – The purpose of this project is to ● Name of Organization: Westat, Inc.
review the current state of single-case research
design and data analysis as applied to educational Principal Investigator: Elaine Carlson
intervention research. The review will culminate Description: Pre-Elementary Education
in recommendations to single-case researchers to Longitudinal Study (PEELS) involves a nationally
adopt more scientifically rigorous experimental representative sample of 3,100 children with
designs and statistical analyses, thereby enhancing disabilities who are receiving preschool special
the validity of the researchers’ conclusions. In education services in a variety of settings. This
addition, the researchers will consider methods for six-year study examines the preschool and
D-8
Appendix D
early elementary school experiences of children Interagency Agreements

with disabilities and their performance over
time. Specifically, the study will describe the
characteristics of children receiving preschool ● Name of Organization: National Institute of
special education, children’s transitions from Child Health and Human Development
early intervention to preschool and preschool Description: Interagency agreement to support
to kindergarten, and children’s educational
research on the development of outcome measures
experiences and outcomes (including academic
for young children.
achievement, social development, and participation
in the classroom and community). Amount: $500,000
Period of Performance: 9/30/04-9/29/08 ● Name of Organization: National Institute of
Child Health and Human Development
● Name of Organization: SRI International Description: Interagency agreement to support
research on the development of outcome measures
Principal Investigator: Mary Wagner
for young children.
Description: National Behavior Research
Coordination Center (NBRCC) is coordinating Amount: $500,000
data from behavior research centers (BRCs) at four Period of Performance: 8/29/06-8/28/07
leading universities. The BRCs are investigating
the efficacy of evidence-based interventions with
students who exhibit severe behavior problems in ● Name of Organization: National Institute of
grades one to three. With SRI leadership and in Child Health and Human Development
partnership with the four BRCs, the NBRCC will Description: Interagency agreement to support
produce and actively disseminate new knowledge research on the effects of exposure to violence on
for the special education and mental health fields children with disabilities.
regarding “what works” in improving the behavior
and, through it, the academic performance of Amount: $100,000
children and youth with severe behavior problems. Period of Performance: 9/27/05-9/26/06
Children with emotional/behavioral disorders have
among the worst outcomes of all groups of children
● Name of Organization: National Institute of
with disabilities.
Amount: $1,320,026
Description: Interagency agreement to support
research on the effects of exposure to violence on
children with disabilities.
● Name of Organization: Optimal Solutions
Amount: $100,000
Group, LLC
Description: Logistical and administrative support
for NCSER.
Amount: $3,000,000 ● Name of Organization: National Institute of
research grants in three areas: adolescent literacy;
effectiveness of early childhood programs, curricula
and interventions in promoting school readiness;
and, mathematics cognition and specific learning
D-9
disabilities. Includes $1.0 million from ED’s National

Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research.
Amount: $3,000,000

research grants in three areas: adolescent literacy;
effectiveness of early childhood programs,
curricula and interventions in promoting school
readiness; and, mathematics cognition and
specific learning disabilities. Includes $1.0 million
from ED’s National Institute on Disability and
Rehabilitation Research.
Amount: $3,000,000

Mental Health
an evaluation of a family/school intervention for
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Amount: $100,000

Mental Health
an evaluation of a family/school intervention for
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Amount: $100,000
D-10

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Toward a Learning Society

Director’s Biennial Report to Congress

Accomplishments of the Centers………………………………...………..3

Grant and Contract Awards…………………………………………..…...26

Toward a Learning Society

Office of the Director

Management Outreach & Grants Standards &

Teaching & Early Childhood Evaluation

Policy & Elementary/ Knowledge

Table 1 – Current NCEE Evaluation Studies

Supplemental Literacy Interventions Evaluate the eﬀectiveness of two promising supplemental

Reading First Assess the eﬀectiveness of Reading First on reading instruction

Reading Comprehension Examine the eﬀectiveness of promising reading

Teacher Induction Evaluate the eﬀectiveness of two promising teacher induction

Table 1 – Current NCEE Evaluation Studies Continued

Educational Technology Evaluate the eﬀectiveness of 17 educational technology

Math Curricula Evaluate the eﬀectiveness of mathematics curricula in early

Magnet Schools Evaluate the eﬀectiveness of magnet schools on academic

Charter Schools Evaluate the eﬀectiveness of charter middle schools on

School-Based Violence Prevention Evaluate the eﬀectiveness of a promising schoolwide program to

Upward Bound Evaluate the eﬀectiveness of Upward Bound on higher-risk students

The newly released March 2007 report on

The Regional Educational Washington—are using external facilitators

WWC identified 93 studies of 41 programs

75 studies of 27 programs did

National Center for Education Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems

The Net Price of Attendance and Federal Education

$30,000 $28,300 $20,300

Percentage of students at or above Basic and at or above

50* 59* 64* 63* 65* 77* 80

Accommodations not permitted Accommodations permitted

NCSER launched the Congressionally The proportion of students with

PEELS Profile of Primary Disabilities Among Children

Speech or Language Impairment (SLI)

Development Delay (DD)

28% Learning Disability (LD)

(DD) Orthopedic Impairment (OI)

Emotional Disturbance (ED)

Growth in Reading Comprehension Comparing Treatment,

in grade equivalents between the groups at the Organization, Stafﬁng,

2006 IES Budget (millions)

Research, development, and dissemination ($162.6)

$65.5 $162.6 National assessment of educational progress ($88.1)

$71.8 Special education research ($71.8)

$90.0 Special education studies and evaluations ($9.9)

In pursuit of its goals, IES will support research,

In its 2006 report to Congress, the IES Board IES’s Foci

Web-Based Dissemination topic(s) that are most appropriate for

Since the Institute has and continues to meet

National Center for model for new principals in several Greater

Description: Numbers Plus-A Comprehensive ● Name of Institution: Miami Museum

● Name of Institution: Biological Sciences ● Name of Institution: New York University

● Name of Institution: University of Illinois

National Research and

Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, Amount: $9,897,290

Principal Investigator: David Francis Amount: $673,189

Description: National Research and Development Period of Performance: 6/1/06-5/31/10

● Name of Institution: University of North Description: PIRT Program to Increase Research

Amount: $4,399,467 theories and data-gathering methods in education-