Federally funded educational knowledge production is a recent phenomenon, having expanded exponentially during the 1960's and 1970's. Accordingly, in response to current public scrutiny of the use of federal funds and of education itself, a historical review and assessment of the role of the federal government in relation to educational knowledge producing organizations is presented. After an overview of the immediate origins of the present proliferation of federally funded agencies in the 1960's and the assumptions behind that expansion, a historical background is provided, tracing earlier initiatives and the federal government's past connections to education. Topics include the original Bureau of Education (est. 1867); the intellectual origins of educational knowledge production (1900-1945); the Eight Year Study, a pioneer government-sponsored research and followup study of curriculum reform (1932-40); the evolution of the Bureau, Office, and finally the Department of Education; the emphasis on science in the 1950's; the "bureaucratic-professional complex"; an overview of the rapid proliferation of federally sponsored educational research and development from 1964-79; and the formation and purpose of the National Institute of Education. The review concludes with recommendations for clearer understanding and greater coordination of educational knowledge production. (TE)