THIS WEEK'S EDUCATION RESEARCH REPORT
Infants using known verbs to learn new nouns
Before infants begin to talk in sentences, they are paying careful attention to the way a new word is used in conversationsThere is a lot that 19-month-old children can't do: They can't tie their shoes or get their mittens on the correct hands. But they can use words they do know to learn new ones.New research from Northwestern University demonstrates that even before infants begin to talk in sent
Preschoolers can outsmart college students at figuring out gizmos
Preschoolers can be smarter than college students at figuring out how unusual toys and gadgets work because they're more flexible and less biased than adults in their ideas about cause and effect, according to new research from the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Edinburgh.The findings suggest that technology and innovation can benefit from the exploratory learning and p
Head Start more beneficial for children whose parents provide less early academic stimulation
One year of Head Start can make a bigger difference for children from homes where parents provide less early academic stimulation, such as reading to children, helping them recognize and pronounce letters and words, and helping them count. Showing parents how they can help their children with reading and counting may help, too.Those are the conclusions of a new study by researchers at the Universi
Classroom Focus on Social and Emotional Skills Can Lead to Academic Gains
Classroom programs designed to improve elementary school students’ social and emotional skills can also increase reading and math achievement, even if academic improvement is not a direct goal of the skills building, according to a study to be published this month in American Educational Research Journal (AERJ). The benefit holds true for students across a range of socio-economic backgrounds. In
Preschoolers Can Do Algebra, Psychologists Find
Millions of high school and college algebra students are united in a shared agony over solving for x and y, and for those to whom the answers don’t come easily, it gets worse: Most preschoolers and kindergarteners can do some algebra before even entering a math class. In a recently published study in the journal Developmental Science, lead author and post-doctoral fellow Melissa Kibbe and Lisa Fei
MAR 06
How States Use Student Learning Objectives in Teacher Evaluation Systems
This report provides an overview of how states define and apply student learning objectives (SLOs) in evaluation systems. The research team conducted a systematic scan of state policies by searching state education agency websites of the 50 states and Washington, D.C. to identify tools, guidance, policies, regulations, and other documents related to the use of SLOs in teacher evaluation systems. T
Employment Outcomes of Recent College Graduates
One year after graduation, the unemployment rate of 2007–08 bachelor’s degree recipients (9 percent) was higher than that of their counterparts who attained their degrees in 1992-93 and 1999–2000 (4 percent and 5 percent, respectively).This Statistics in Brief investigates the employment outcomes of 1992–93, 1999–2000, and 2007–08 college graduates 1 year after earning a bachelor’s degree. The bri
Condition of America’s Public School Facilities: 2012-13
Among schools with permanent buildings, the overall condition of about 24 percent of the permanent buildings was considered less than good. “Condition of America’s Public School Facilities: 2012-13,” a First Look report from the Fast Response Survey System (FRSS) provides national data on the condition of public school facilities, including the condition of 17 building systems/features, the condit
Requiring all students to tke the SAT increases 4 -year college-going rates by 10-percentage points
To receive federal funding, states are required by the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) to adopt accountability tests intended to measure student and school success. In response to this mandate, several states have adopted a college entrance exam (the SAT® or the ACT Test®) as their statewide accountability test. Requiring students to take these college entrance exams confers several advantages, s
Youngest Kindergarteners Most Likely to be Held Back
For some parents, the decision of when to enroll their children into kindergarten can result in costly consequences such as another year of daycare expenses. In general, children must be five years old to be eligible to be enrolled in kindergarten. However, the developmental differences between a young kindergartener who barely qualifies for the state-mandated age cutoff date compared to a child w
MAR 05
Student Discipline Disparity in Maryland
This study examines whether disproportionate rates of suspensions and expulsions exist for racial/ethnic minority students and special education students in Maryland during the period 2009/10 to 2011/12.Key findings from the report include:• In 2011/12, 5 percent of Maryland students received an out-of-school suspension or expulsion. This was a slight drop from 5.6 percent in 2009/10. • In a
New school meal standards significantly increase fruit, vegetable consumption
New federal standards launched in 2012 that require schools to offer healthier meals have led to increased fruit and vegetable consumption, according to a new study from Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) researchers. The study, the first to examine school food consumption both before and after the standards went into effect, contradicts criticisms that the new standards have increased food wa
Student participation and pass rates in college preparatory transition courses in Kentucky high schools
All Kentucky students in grade 11 are required to take the ACT assessment. Students with scores below benchmarks established by the Kentucky Department of Education are encouraged to enroll in college preparatory transition courses in grade 12 to help equip them with the skills they need for college-level math and English courses. The purpose of this study was to examine Kentucky high school stude
Virtual Schools Continue to Proliferate
Full-time virtual schools continue to have serious problems with respect to education quality, diversity, accountability, and funding, according to a new national study published today by the National Education Policy Center. Virtual Schools in the U.S. 2014: Politics, Performance, Policy, and Research Evidence is the second in a series of annual reports from the NEPC on the full-time online educ
Students with a Disability More Likely to be Restrained, Secluded in Affluent School Districts
The restraint and seclusion of students in U.S. public schools in response to student behavior problems are used much more frequently on students with a disability than on students without a disability, and especially in affluent school districts, according to new research at the Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire.Restraint is a practice that uses physical or mechanical means to r
Twins and Kindergarten Separation: Divergent Beliefs of Principals, Teachers, Parents, and Twins
Should principals enforce mandatory separation of twins in kindergarten? Do school separation beliefs of principals differ from those of teachers, parents of twins, and twins themselves?This survey questioned 131 elementary principals, 54 kindergarten teachers, 201 parents of twins, and 112 twins.A majority of principals (71%) believed that twins should be separated in kindergarten, while only 49%
FEB 28
Kids who are 'held back' contribute to disruptive middle school environment
When students repeat a grade, it can spell trouble for their classmates, according to a new Duke University-led study of nearly 80,000 middle-schoolers.In schools with high numbers of grade repeaters , suspensions were more likely to occur across the school community. Discipline problems were also more common among other students, including substance abuse, fighting and classroom disruption.Public
Homeworks averages 2.9 hours (K-5) to 3.5 hours (HS) (per week, not per day!)
Homework is a source of anxiety in homes across America – students may not want to spend time on it and parents often struggle to help their children with assignments. A recent national survey from University of Phoenix College of Education reveals how much homework K-12 students are assigned and why teachers deem it beneficial.According to the survey, kindergarten through fifth grade teachers rep
FEB 27
Enrollment in elementary and secondary schools rose 5 percent 1997 to 2011
Projections of Education Statistics to 2022 provides projections for key education statistics. It includes statistics on enrollment, graduates, teachers, and expenditures in elementary and secondary schools, and enrollment and earned degrees conferred expenditures of degree-granting institutions. For the Nation, the tables, figures, and text contain data on enrollment, teachers, graduates, and exp
Improving Reading Outcomes for Students with or at Risk for Reading Disabilities
This report describes what has been learned regarding the improvement of reading outcomes for children with or at risk for reading disabilities through research funded by the Institute's National Center for Education Research and National Center for Special Education Research and published in peer-reviewed outlets through December 2011. The synthesis describes contributions to the knowledge base p
Birth Order and School Performance
Does birth order correlate with student performance, and if so, why? In Strategic Parenting, Birth Order and School Performance (NBER Working Paper No. 19542), V. Joseph Hotz and Juan Pantano present both empirical and theoretical evidence on these questions. They study all children born to the female respondents in the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth in families of two, three, or four
FEB 26
Older fathers = higher rates of psychiatric, academic problems in kids
An Indiana University study in collaboration with medical researchers from Karolinska Institute in Stockholm has found that advancing paternal age at childbearing can lead to higher rates of psychiatric and academic problems in offspring than previously estimated.Examining an immense data set -- everyone born in Sweden from 1973 until 2001 -- the researchers documented a compelling association bet
New autism definition may decrease diagnosis by one-third
New diagnosis guidelines for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) issued by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) may reduce by almost one third the total number of people being diagnosed, according to new research from Columbia University School of Nursing published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. The guidelines, released in May 2013 and the first major update to psychiatric
Why breastfed babies are so smart
Loads of studies over the years have shown that children who were breastfed score higher on IQ tests and perform better in school, but the reason why remained unclear.Is it the mother-baby bonding time, something in the milk itself or some unseen attribute of mothers who breastfeed their babies?Now a new study by sociologists at Brigham Young University pinpoints two parenting skills as the real s
No Educational or Health Advatage to Breastfeeding
A new study comparing siblings who were fed differently during infancy suggests that breast-feeding might be no more beneficial than bottle-feeding for 10 of 11 long-term health and well-being outcomes in children age 4 to 14.The outlier was asthma, which was associated more with breast-feeding than with bottle-feeding.The study also included an analysis of outcomes across families of different ra
Integrated Student Support Offers Promising Approach for Closing Education Achievement Gaps
More than 60 percent of America’s black and Hispanic school children are living in poor or low-income families, and more than one in five children overall are in poverty, putting many of these students at risk for educational failure. A new study describes a promising strategy for providing at-risk students the academic and non-academic supports necessary for educational success.Child Trends condu
FEB 25
Barriers Remain for Children with Hearing Loss
Every day, 33 babies are born with hearing loss in the United States. These children and their families face significant barriers to receiving the services and care they need according to a new survey released by the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (http://www.agbell.org) titled Family Needs Assessment: Successes and Challenges, Listening to Their Voices. "T