education research
Education Research
Department of Education Issues Request for International Research and Studies Program Applications
The Department of Education issued a request for fiscal year (FY) 2017 applications for the Title VI International Research and Studies Program. The program supports surveys, studies, and development of instructional materials to improve and strengthen instruction in modern foreign languages, area studies, and other international fields. Priorities for funding in FY 2017 include research, surveys, or studies about U.S. school-based dual language immersion programs or about outcomes of international education programs for U.S. postsecondary students. This request for applications marks the first time the International Research and Studies Program has been funded since FY 2011. Applications are due by…
Academies Report Examines Impact of Social Competencies on College Success
On April 13, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education released a report, Supporting Studentsâ College Success: The Role of Assessment of Intrapersonal and Interpersonal Competencies. Supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the report âexamines how to assess interpersonal and intrapersonal competencies (e.g., teamwork, communication skills, academic mindset, and grit) of undergraduate students for different purposes.â It also establishes âpriorities for the development and use of assessments related to the identified intrapersonal and interpersonal competencies that influence higher education success, especially in STEM.â Central themes of the report include diversity and…
AAA&S Report Makes Recommendations for Improved U.S. Language Education
On February 28, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAA&S), a COSSA member, released, Americaâs Languages: Investing in Language Education for the 21st Century, the final report of the Commission on Language Learning. A bipartisan group of U.S. Members of Congress requested that AAA&S establish the Commission in order âto examine the current state of U.S. language education, to project what the nationâs education needs will be in the future, and to offer recommendations for ways to meet those needs.â The Commission found that only 10 percent of the U.S. population speaks a second language proficiently, a number insufficient…
AERA Releases “Ed-Talks”
The American Educational Research Association (AERA), a COSSA governing member, has released over thirty “Ed-Talk” videos, which feature discussions of cutting-edge research on education and learning. Additionally, AERA released research fact sheets to provide more details on the findings and research presented in the “Ed-Talks”. These presentations were given at a forum held in Washington, DC as well as the AERA annual meeting in April of 2016. More details can be found here. Back to this issue’s table of contents.Â
IES to Hold Webinars on FY 2017 Funding Opportunities
The Department of Educationâs Institute of Education Sciences (IES) has scheduled a series of webinars for individuals interested in fiscal year (FY) 2017 funding opportunities. IESâ National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER) and the National Center for Education Research (NCER) are hosting the free webinars, which will cover a variety of topics, including teachers and instructional personnel, basic overview of research grants, researcher-practitioner partnerships in education, funding opportunities for minority serving institutions, special education research training for early career development and mentoring, the IES application process, research networks focused on critical problems of policy and practice, and grant writing,…
AERA Holds Congressional Briefing on LGBTQ Issues in Education, Shares Research Agenda
On July 9, four distinguished scholars shared the results of an initiative and subsequent publication, LGBTQ [Lesbian, Gay Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer] Issues in Education: Advancing a Research Agenda, by the American Educational Research Association (AERA), a COSSA Governing Member. The report âexemplifies one of the most important objectives of AERA as a scientific and scholarly association: to bring rigorous and relevant knowledge to bear on salient issues in education and to help chart future directions of inquiry,â states Felice Levine, AERA executive director, in the preface of the recently released report and moderator of the congressional briefing held on…
How People Learn II: The Science and Practice of Learning
On June 10, the National Research Council (NRC) Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education (DBASSE) Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences (BCSS) held its inaugural meeting to update and extend the 2000 NRC report, How People Learn. The ad hoc committee is chaired by Cora Marrett, former Deputy Director of the National Science Foundation. Marrett observed that many things have changed since the original report was released and acknowledged the “phenomenal group of volunteersâ tasked with updating the report.
HELP Committee Approves Strengthening Education through Research Act
On January 28, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee passed the Strengthening Education through Research Act (S. 227). The bill reauthorizes the Education Sciences Reform Act (ESRA). ESRA authorizes funding for the research activities of the U.S. Department of Education, including the Institute for Education Sciences (IES). The legislation would authorize an appropriation of $612 million for fiscal year (FY) 2016 and $3.2 billion between 2016-2020 to support federal educational research, statistical analysis, and other activities.
NSF: Science of Learning Collaborative Networks
The National Science Foundation (NSF) invites proposals for the creation of new research networks to address important questions in the Science of Learning (SL). The networks are intended to âfoster the creation of new networks of investigators who will integrate scientific ideas across disciplines and professions to conduct novel, exploratory research that has the potential to provide transformative advances in our understanding of learning.â The solicitation and NSFâs new Science of Learning Program represent the next phase in NSFâs support for SL after the recent sunsetting of its Science of Learning Centers (SLC) program, which launched in 2003. The goals…
Academies Board Seeks Nominations for âHow People Learn IIâ Study Committee
The National Academiesâ Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences (BBCSS) is seeking nominations for individuals to serve on the study committee for a new project, âHow People Learn II: The Science and Practice of Learning.â The study, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, will build on the 2000 National Research Council report How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School âby reviewing and synthesizing research that has emerged across the various disciplines that focus on the study of learning from birth through adulthood in both…
Education Research, NCES Bill Clears Senate Panel
On September 17, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee marked up and reported out the Strengthening Education through Research Act, or SETRA (H.R. 4366). The bill, which was passed by the full House of Representatives in May, would amend and reauthorize the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (ESRA) through 2020. ESRA serves as authorizing legislation for the Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Research, National Center for Education Statistics, and other components within the U.S. Department of Education. COSSA joined the American Educational Research Association (AERA), a COSSA Governing Member, and other groups on…
IES Seeks Input to Guide Future Education Research Activities
The Institute of Education Sciences of the Department of Education has issued a âDear Colleagueâ letter soliciting public input to guide the future activities of the agencyâs two research centers, the National Center for Education Research (NCER) and the National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER). The letter states that the effort is intended to âmake sure that the two centers are contributing to significant advances in research and building knowledge that is useful to education policymakers and practitioners.â Comments are due October 31, 2014. Back to this issueâs table of contents.