The School Survey Dashboard provides insights into learning opportunities offered by schools during the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey collected data five times, once a month from January through May of 2021 and will contribute to the Institute of Education Sciences' response to the Executive Order on Supporting the Reopening and Continuing…

Researchers explored how 13 states in which policymakers have adopted an A-F school letter grade accountability system performed on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) post-policy implementation. Researchers found mixed results, with approximately half of these 13 states increasing achievement post-policy, and the other…

Reading motivation plays an important role in students' reading development. This study examined the effect of grade, gender, and reading ability on students reading motivation. A total of 261 students in grades 5, 8, and 11 from a public school in North central Florida participated in the study. They completed the Motivation to Read Survey…

Recent literature on high school graduation and drop out have shifted the focus from identifying causes of drop out to identifying students who are at risk of dropping out. The Early Warning Systems (EWS) used to identify students seek to use existing data to predict which students have a greater risk of dropping out of school so that schools can…

"I CAN Learn"® is a computer-based math curriculum for students in middle school, high school, and college. It provides math instruction through a series of interactive lessons that students work on individually at their own computers. Students move at their own pace and must demonstrate mastery of each concept before progressing to the…

Using student survey data from six U.S. school districts, we estimate how assignment to a demographically similar teacher affects student reports of personal effort, happiness in class, feeling cared for and motivated by their teacher, the quality of student-teacher communication, and college aspirations. Relying on a classroom fixed-effects…

The Florida Department of Education (FDOE) identified increasing the graduation rate of students with disabilities and decreasing the graduation gap between students with disabilities and all students as its state-identified measurable result (SIMR). To make progress toward the SIMR, the state sought to build the capacity of local education…

Evidence that teachers' short-term instructional effects persist over time and predict substantial long-run impacts on students' lives provides much of the impetus for a wide range of educational reforms focused on identifying and responding to differences in teachers' value-added to student learning. However, relatively little research has…

Business leaders in Florida cannot find the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) talent they need to stay competitive. Students' lagging performance in K-12 is a critical reason why. The good news is that the nation's most effective STEM education programs can help turn the tide. Students in Florida have made some progress in…

This study examines the use of cross-classified random effects models (CCrem) and cross-classified multiple membership random effects models (CCMMrem) to model rater bias and estimate teacher effectiveness. Effect estimates are compared using CTT versus item response theory (IRT) scaling methods and three models (i.e., conventional multilevel…

This study explored the relationship between the reading ability and science achievement of students in grades 5, 8, and 9. Reading ability was assessed with four measures: word recognition, vocabulary, syntactic knowledge, and comprehension (23% of all passages were on science topics). Science achievement was assessed with state…

While most states require testing in social studies or civic education, two states attach consequences for students and schools based on required statewide civics exams. Lawmakers in Florida, in 2010, and in Tennessee, in 2012, approved legislation that holds students accountable for their civics knowledge. Students are taking the tests for the…

As an organization made up of Michiganders, we know well how our parents once prided themselves on the quality of our state's public schools. Sadly, we have little to be proud of today. Our state's educational performance is lackluster by practically any reliable measure. In this report, we lay out a common-sense agenda to raise Michigan's…

The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) is an international comparative study of student achievement. TIMSS 2011 represents the fifth such study since TIMSS was first conducted in 1995. Developed and implemented at the international level by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement…

The Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2011 is the fifth administration of this international comparative study since 1995 when first administered. TIMSS is used to compare over time the mathematics and science knowledge and skills of fourth- and eighth-graders. TIMSS is designed to align broadly with mathematics and…