THIS WEEK'S EDUCATION RESEARCH REPORT
Home schooled children leaner than traditionally schooled kids
The results of a recent study show kids that are home-schooled are leaner than kids attending traditional schools. The results challenge the theory that children spending more time at home may be at risk for excessive weight gain.The study was published in the journal Obesity and conducted by researchers from University of Colorado's Anschutz Health and Wellness Center (AHWC) and University of Ala
Video instruction could transform how schools serve teens with autism
Video-based teaching helps teens with autism learn important social skills, and the method eventually could be used widely by schools with limited resources, a Michigan State University researcher says.The diagnosis rate for Autism Spectrum Disorder for 14- to 17-year-olds has more than doubled in the past five years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Yet previous resear
Report details status of US secondary Earth science education
The Center for Geoscience Education and Public Understanding at the American Geosciences Institute has released a landmark report on the status of Earth Science education in U.S. middle and high schools, describing in detail significant gaps between identified priorities and lagging practice.The report, "Earth and Space Sciences Education in U.S. Secondary Schools: Key Indicators and Trends,&
Low Income Students Predominate in the South and the Southwest
The Southern Education Foundation ’s latest report, A New Majority: Low Income Students in the South and the Nation, analyzes where low income children go to school, what the trends are for low income in the schools, and what the policy implications of these trends are.Key findings:• A majority of public school children in 17 states, one-third of the 50 states across the nation, were low income st
OCT 17
Selected Statistics from the Common Core of Data: School Year 2011–12
This First Look report presents findings on the numbers and types of public elementary and secondary schools and local education agencies and public school student enrollment and staff in the United States for school year 2011–12.Findings include:• There were 98,328 operating public elementary/secondary schools in the school year 2011–12 that included 1,517 new schools that opened for the first ti
America’s Ninth Graders Two Years Later
High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09) First Follow-up: A First Look at Fall 2009 Ninth-Graders in 2012 introduces new data from the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 collected in the spring of 2012 when most sample members were in their 11th-grade year. The analyses examine students’ educational expectations; students’ math performance on an algebra assessment, including gains sinc
OCT 16
New Analysis of US Elementary School Mathematics Finds Half-Century of Problematic 'Strands' Structure
During the "New Math" movement of the 1960s, a team of mathematicians developed a new structure for elementary mathematics. Instead of having a single subject, namely, school arithmetic, as its central core, this new structure instead had eight "strands" that were supposed to tie together elementary mathematics content. The strands structure has persisted to this day. In an art
Charter schools pose greatest fiscal challenge to school districts in economically weak urban areas
The dramatic rise in charter school enrollments over the past decade is likely to create negative credit pressure on school districts in economically weak urban areas, says Moody's Investors Service in a new report. Charter schools tend to proliferate in areas where school districts already show a degree of underlying economic and demographic stress, says Moody's in the report "Charter School
NYS Teacher Evaluation Flawed Says Study
New York’s first attempt to grade teachers on their students’ progress was flawed in several key ways, a new study commissioned by the Lower Hudson Council of School Superintendents says.The state’s formula gave less credit to teachers serving disadvantaged students, judged some teachers on the performance of too few students, failed to measure key variables such as student mobility and did not cl
Differences in cognitive ability between low-income rural, urban children
Kids in rural poverty score lower on visual, higher on verbal tests of working memory than urban counterparts Studies have long shown a difference in cognitive ability between high- and low-income children, but for the first time, scientists have found a difference between low-income children growing up in rural areas and those growing up in urban environments.Researchers at Dartmouth College have
Teachers More Likely to Have Progressive Speech and Language Disorders
Mayo Clinic researchers have found a surprising occupational hazard for teachers: progressive speech and language disorders. The research, recently published in the American Journal of Alzheimer's Disease & Other Dementias, found that people with speech and language disorders are about 3.5 times more likely to be teachers than patients with Alzheimer's dementia. MULTIMEDIA ALERT: For audio and
Investing in our future: The evidence base on preschool education
The expansion of publicly-funded preschool education is currently the focus of a prominent debate. The research brief "Investing in Our Future: The Evidence Base on Preschool Education," authored by an interdisciplinary group of early childhood experts, reviews rigorous evidence on why early skills matter, which children benefit from preschool, the short- and long-term effects of prescho
74 percent of students agree that too many students in the local public schools are falling through the cracks
The Chalkboard Project partnered with DHM Research to survey 400 high school students across the state to gauge their opinions on education in Oregon. The survey asked a broad range of questions about their educational experiences and their thoughts about what is needed to strengthen the education system. The survey builds upon previous focus groups with students.“The voices of advocates, educator
OCT 15
Higher income, high minority schools enroll more into college than low income, low minority schools
For the first time, a national level report has been developed that offers benchmarks for public high schools to compare their graduates’ college transition rates nationwide, including those serving low income and minority students. The High School Benchmarks Report: National College Progression Rates, expected to be released annually, was created by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Cen
Education Outcomes of Students in Foster Care
A new analysis of students in foster care who attend California public schools reveals a previously invisible achievement gap between students in foster care and other students, including those from low-income and other at-risk backgrounds. The research also makes clear that students in foster care in California comprise a distinct educationally at-risk sub group.The Invisible Achievement Gap, Par
OCT 14
The Effects of E-Mentoring on Beginning Teacher Competencies and Perceptions
There is a critical need to mentor novice special education teachers to meet the current and projected teacher shortages. However, due to the various skill-levels of beginning special education teachers in schools and the small number of current special educators in each school who could serve as mentors, there is difficulty finding induction-level mentors that possess similar or the same teaching
OCT 12
New approach urged for 'abysmal' K-12 writing instruction
Writing instruction in U.S. classrooms is "abysmal" and the Common Core State Standards don't go far enough to address glaring gaps for students and teachers, a Michigan State University education scholar argues.In a new study, Gary Troia calls for a fresh approach to professional development for teachers who must help students meet the new writing standards. His research, funded by the
Video captions improve comprehension, professor finds
A simple change -- switching on captions -- can make a big difference when students watch educational videos, an SF State professor has discovered.Robert Keith Collins, an assistant professor of American Indian studies, found that students' test scores and comprehension improved dramatically when captions were used while watching videos. The tool is often utilized for students with learning disabi
Peer-Mediated Academic Interventions for Secondary Struggling Learners Are Successful
This study presents a synthesis of the extant research on peer-mediated reading and math interventions for students in regular or alternative education settings with academic difficulties and disabilities in Grades 6 to 12 (ages 11–18. Interventions conducted between 2001 and 2012 targeting reading and math were included if they measured effects on at least one academic outcome measure. A total of
Literacy and Numeracy Are More Heritable In Elementary Students Than Intelligence
Because literacy and numeracy are the focus of teaching in schools, whereas general cognitive ability (g, intelligence) is not, it would be reasonable to expect that literacy and numeracy are less heritable than g. This study directly compares heritabilities of multiple measures of literacy, numeracy, and g in a United Kingdom sample of 7,500 pairs of twins assessed longitudinally at ages 7, 9, an
Preparation for Students with Disabilities Inclusion in Teacher Education Curricula
Inclusion of students with disabilities has been practiced and advocated for more than two decades in the United States. This practice involves the placement of students with disabilities in a general education classroom for part or all of the day, and the primary instructor is a general education teacher in collaboration with a special education teacher. This article reviews coursework related to
OCT 11
Associates Degree Is A Good Investment
A national review of community colleges and their graduates’ financial return on investment finds that California and Texas have the most institutions with graduates in the top tier of wage earners. Thirty states have some community colleges whose graduates’ median net lifetime earnings trail those of the state’s high school graduates.The median earnings of associate’s degree holders during their
OCT 10
Teachers Should Refrain from Self-Deprecation When Trying to Engage Students
A new study finds teachers need to thread the needle between chilly distance and over-exposure of their own foibles if they want to gain the confidence of their students and avoid disruptions in the classroom. The study, "The Relationship of Instructor Self-Disclosure, Nonverbal Immediacy, and Credibility to Student Incivility in the College Classroom," was published online today in the
US school superintendents peer pressure's influence\
A mathematician has calculated how peer pressure influences society.Professor Ernesto Estrada, of the University of Strathclyde's Department of Mathematics and Statistics, examined the effect of direct and indirect social influences – otherwise known as peer pressure – on how decisions are reached on important issues. Using mathematical models, he analysed data taken from 15 networks – including U
Changes In The Early Childhood Care and Education Workforce 1990 - 2010
Historically, the early childhood care and education (ECCE) workforce has been characterized as a low-education, low-compensation, low-stability workforce. In recent years, considerable investments have been made to correct this, but evidence is lacking about the extent to which these investments were accompanied by changes in the characteristics of the workforce. Using nationally representative d
Incorporating Access to More Effective Teachers into Assessments of Educational Resource Equity
To address gaps in achievement between more- and less-affluent students, states and districts need to ensure that high-poverty students and schools have equitable access to educational resources. Traditionally, assessments of resource equity have focused on per-pupil expenditures and more proximal inputs, such as teacher credentials and class size, despite the inconsistent and/or weak relationship
School-Based Accountability and the Distribution of Teacher Quality Across Grades in Elementary School
This study uses North Carolina data to explore whether the quality of teachers in the lower elementary grades (K–2) falls short of teacher quality in the upper grades (3–5) and to examine the hypothesis that school accountability pressures contribute to such quality shortfalls. The concern with the early grades arises from recent studies highlighting how children's experiences in those years have
The Determinants and Implications of Teacher Layoffs
Over 2,000 teachers in the state of Washington received reduction-in-force (RIF) notices across the 2008–09 and 2009–10 school years. This study links data on these RIF notices to an administrative data set that includes student, teacher, school, and district variables to determine the factors that predict the likelihood of a teacher receiving a RIF notice. Not surprisingly, the study finds that a
OCT 09
Time for the US to Reskill: What the Survey of Adult Skills Says
Simultaneous with the publication of the results from the Survey of Adult Skills, the OECD published a special report on the U.S. entitled, Time for the US to Reskill: What the Survey of Adult Skills Says, at the request of OVAE in the U.S. Department of Education.The report describes the main findings of the Survey of Adult Skills for the United States and compares them with the results from a se
Larger proportions of adults in the United States than in other countries have poor literacy and numeracy skills
This first OECD Skills Outlook presents the initial results of the Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC), which evaluates the skills of adults in 24 countries. It provides insights into the availability of some of the key skills and how they are used at work and at home. A major component is the direct assessment of key information-processing skills: literacy, numeracy and problem solving in the context
OCT 08
Gender Barriers, Not Families, to Blame for Shortage of Women in STEM Careers
Researchers at the University of Texas-Austin and Cornell University have published a new study examining the factors behind the shortage of women in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. They find no evidence that women are opting out of the STEM workforce to start families, in contrast to the widespread perception that family factors account for the lack of women in STEM-relat
Study looks at attitudes toward drug use among high school seniors
High school seniors who frown upon the use of drugs are most likely to be female, nonsmokers or hold strong religious beliefs, according to a study by Joseph Palamar of New York University. Palamar examines how teenagers’ attitudes toward marijuana influenced their thoughts on the further use of other illicit drugs. The work appears online in the journal Prevention Science, published by Springer.T
School Debit Accounts Lead to Less Healthy Food Choices and Higher Calorie Meals!
Many school cafeterias adopt debit account payment systems as quick, convenient ways to keep lunch lines moving, but according to this study conducted by Cornell University’s Food and Brand Lab researchers, putting it on the debit account may impact the health of kids’ meals. Schools use debit systems without the option of paying with cash, students’ lunches contained fewer fruits and vegetables,
Is Beginning a BA Program a Good Investment?
Using data from California’s higher education systems, this paper estimates individuals’ and society’s economic returns to a Bachelor’s (BA) degree and evaluates the quality as an investment of a beginning a BA program . Most studies of the rate of return to college use a best-case scenario in which students earn a degree with certainty in four years. More realistic calculations that account for s
E-books and printed books in parent–child reading as support for children’s language
Early shared book reading activities are considered to be a promising context for supporting young children’s language development. In this study ninety low socioeconomic status preschoolers and their mothers were randomly assigned to one of three groups: (1) e-book reading; (2) printed book reading; (3) regular kindergarten literacy program (control). Mothers of children in the intervention group
Advocates for “Portfolio School Districts” Oversell their Product
‘Portfolio district’ reform is among the most dramatic and fast-growing changes to public schooling over the past decade. But its growth has not been matched by supporting research evidence. In fact, little research evidence is available at all to help policymakers consider the value of this highly promoted reform. Into this vacuum have stepped advocates offering sales-pitches, most notably in th
OCT 07
A Critique of NCTQ's Review of Teacher Preparation Programs
The National Council on Teacher Quality’s (NCTQ) recent review of university-based teacher preparation programs concluded the vast majority of such programs were inadequately preparing the nation’s teachers. According to this article, that study has a number of serious flaws that include narrow focus on inputs, lack of a strong research base, missing standards, omitted research, incorrect applicat
The Effects of Teacher Entry Portals on Student Achievement
The current teacher workforce is younger, less experienced, more likely to turnover, and more diverse in preparation experiences than the workforce of two decades ago. Research shows that inexperienced teachers are less effective, but we know little about the effectiveness of teachers with different types of preparation. This study classifies North Carolina public school teachers into portals—fixe
OCT 03
Reading literary fiction improves 'mind-reading' skills
Heated debates about the quantifiable value of arts and literature are a common feature of American social discourse. Now, two researchers from The New School for Social Research have published a paper in Science demonstrating that reading literary fiction enhances a set of skills and thought processes fundamental to complex social relationships—and functional societies.Ph.D. candidate David Comer
California lawsuit has significantly improved conditions in schools throughout the state
The ACLU of Southern California has released a report, “Williams v. California: Lessons From Nine Years of Implementation.” that examines the continuing impact of Williams, a class action lawsuit filed in 2000 by the American Civil Liberties Union, Public Advocates, and other civil rights organizations, along with the law firm Morrison & Foerster LLP, on behalf of public school students in Cal