THIS WEEK'S EDUCATION RESEARCH REPORT
Musical training offsets some academic achievement gaps
Learning to play a musical instrument or to sing can help disadvantaged children strengthen their reading and language skills, according to research presented at the American Psychological Association's 122nd Annual Convention.The findings, which involved hundreds of kids participating in musical training programs in Chicago and Los Angeles public schools, highlight the role learning music can ha
AUG 07
A Compendium of Research on the Common Core State Standards
The Center on Education Policy has released A Compendium of Research on the Common Core State Standards, which includes over 60 studies focused on a range of issues and topics related to the Common Core. This user-friendly compendium summarizes each study on a single page, highlighting important details about topic, scope and timeline, and includes URL links to the original study documents. Rese
AUG 06
Requiring More Math and Science Courses Doesn't Improve College and Career Readiness
Although several states have mandated more advanced coursework for high school students, the stricter graduation guidelines alone may not be enough to prepare students for college and careers, according to a report released by ACT.The report, Missing the Mark, follows the first few waves of high school graduates affected by Public Act 94-0676, enacted by Illinois in 2005. According to the law, Ill
AUG 05
Grade 4 Writing Computer-Based Assessment: 14 percent demonstrated competent or effective writing skills
Computers are becoming increasingly important in today’s classrooms as tools for both teaching and learning, but little is known about the knowledge and skills of elementary students in large-scale computer-based writing assessments. The Grade 4 Writing Computer-Based Assessment (WCBA) study was conducted to determine if fourth-grade students could effectively demonstrate their writing knowledge a
AUG 02
The Relationship Between Classroom Observation Scores and Teacher Value Added on Multiple Types of Assessment
The Test MattersThis study examines how the relationships between one observation protocol, the Protocol for Language Arts Teaching Observation (PLATO), and value-added measures shift when different tests are used to assess student achievement.Using data from the Measures of Effective Teaching Project, the reseachers found that PLATO was more strongly related to the Stanford Achievement Test (SAT-
AUG 01
Postsecondary Tuition, Fees and Degrees
Between 2011-12 and 2013-14, the average tuition and required fees at 4-year public institutions (after adjusting for inflation) increased more for in-state students (4 percent increase) than for out-of-state students (3 percent increase). During that same time period, 4-year nonprofit institutions increased overall at 4 percent. However, for-profit institutions reported a 3 percent decrease.This
JUL 30
Dyscalculia: Burdened by blunders with numbers
Between 3 and 6% of schoolchildren suffer from an arithmetic-related learning disability. LMU researchers now show that these children are also more likely to exhibit deficits in reading and spelling than had been previously suspected.Addition and subtraction, multiplication and division are the four basic operations in arithmetic. But for some children, learning these fundamental skills is partic
JUL 29
First Grade Reading Suffers in Segregated Schools
A groundbreaking study from the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute has found that African-American students in first grade experience smaller gains in reading when they attend segregated schools—but the students’ backgrounds likely are not the cause of the differences.According to the Center for Civil Rights, although the United States is becoming more racially and ethnically diverse,
JUL 28
How effective are Federal student employment subsidies?
Student employment subsidies are one of the largest types of federal employment subsidies, and one of the oldest forms of student aid. Yet it is unclear whether they help or harm students' long term outcomes. This paper presents a framework that decomposes overall effects into a weighted average of effects for marginal and inframarginal workers. The authors then develop an application of prope
JUL 25
Low Teacher Pay Keeps Experienced Educators Out of the Middle Class
A new report, Mid- and Late-Career Teachers Struggle With Paltry Incomes, released by the Center for American Progress reveals that low teacher pay is keeping experienced educators out of the middle class. The report highlights the growing problem of paltry mid- and late-career teacher salaries and proposes options to increase teacher salaries and keep talented teachers in the profession.“Far
Fourth-Grade Students Ready for Computer-Based Writing
An innovative pilot study administered as part of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) has demonstrated that fourth-grade students can meaningfully participate in a computer-based writing assessment. The study, conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), presents lessons learned that can inform educators’ and policymakers’ efforts to develop computer assess
Stronger early reading skills predict higher intelligence later
A new study of identical twins has found that early reading skill might positively affect later intellectual abilities. The study, in the journal Child Development, was conducted by researchers at the University of Edinburgh and King's College London."Since reading is an ability that can be improved, our findings have implications for reading instruction," according to Stuart J. Ritchie,
Principal Attrition and Mobility
Results From the 2012–13 Principal Follow-up SurveyOf the 114,330 school principals (public and private) who were principals during the 2011–12 school year, 78 percent remained at the same school during the following school year (“stayers”), 6 percent moved to a different school (“movers”), and 12 percent left the principalship (“leavers”). In addition, 5 percent of principals were from schools th
JUL 23
An extra daily math class has little long term benefit
For students whose math skills lag expectations, public schools often increase the fraction of the school day spent on math instruction. Studying middle-school students and using regression discontinuity methods, this paper (http://cepa.stanford.edu/sites/default/files/E%20Taylor%2C%20More%20Math%20Class.pdf) estimates the causal effect of requiring two math classes—one remedial, one regular—inst
JUL 21
Brain waves show learning to read does not end in 4th grade, contrary to popular theory
Teachers-in-training have long been taught that fourth grade is when students stop learning to read and start reading to learn. But a new Dartmouth study in the journal Developmental Science tested the theory by analyzing brain waves and found that fourth-graders do not experience a change in automatic word processing, a crucial component of the reading shift theory. Instead, some types of word
Teaching first graders with manipulatives/calculators, movement/music) is no help to those with math difficulty
New research published in the journal EDUCATIONAL EVALUATION AND POLICY ANALYSIS June 25, 2014 (http://epa.sagepub.com/content/early/2014/06/20/0162373714536608.full.pdf+html?ijkey=J2BxFXoAWRPSo&keytype=ref&siteid=spepa) investigated the use of mathematics instructional practices by first-grade teachers in the United States. The researchers identified four types of instructional activit
JUL 18
Teacher Attrition Costs United States Up to $2.2 Billion Annually, Says New Alliance Report
Report Includes State-by-State Teacher Attrition Costs, Says Comprehensive Induction Programs Can Improve Teaching Effectiveness and Retain High-Quality TeachersRoughly half a million U.S. teachers either move or leave the profession each year—attrition that costs the United States up to $2.2 billion annually, according to a new report from the Alliance for Excellent Education. This high turnover
Students from Low-Income Families Have High College Aspirations
Nearly all ACT-tested students from low-income families in the United States aspire to go to college—at an even higher rate than students overall—but many lack the academic preparation to reach this goal, according to new report released today by ACT and the National Council for Community and Education Partnerships (NCCEP). While 95 percent of ACT-tested students from low-income families said they
