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Seeking Funding from the Institute of Education Sciences

Seeking Funding from the Institute of Education Sciences. A Guide for WCER Researchers. Russ Whitehurst and the IES Revolution. IES is the research arm of the U.S. Department of Education IES is authorized by congress and operates semi-independently

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Seeking Funding from the Institute of Education Sciences

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  1. Seeking Funding from the Institute of Education Sciences A Guide for WCER Researchers

  2. Russ Whitehurst and the IES Revolution • IES is the research arm of the U.S. Department of Education • IES is authorized by congress and operates semi-independently • IES has a dramatically different approach to funding than its predecessor, OERI

  3. Russ Whitehurst and the IES Revolution • Many think IES is focused on a particular methodology • But the real change is not the advancement of one method over another • Rather: a narrowing of the question • What works in education? • Generally: what works to raise test scores?

  4. Russ Whitehurst and the IES Revolution • If “what works” is the question, it’s a short step to the randomized controlled trial as the optimal methodology • This is an important question (though not the only important question) • This is the question IES wants to answer

  5. Russ Whitehurst and the IES Revolution • Other designs permitted when RCTs are not feasible • Regression discontinuity • See lecture by Howard Bloom • http://www.wcer.wisc.edu/itp/videoevents.php • Quasi-experiments with well-controlled comparison groups • RCTs are preferred to answer the “what works” question

  6. Diverse Methodologies in IES-Funded Research • RCTs are NOT a starting point • IES recognizes that a lot of work must be done before an intervention is ready for a full-scale effectiveness trial • Every IES program area allows 5 goals

  7. Goals of IES-Funded Research Projects • Goal 1: Analysis of large-scale data bases to generate hypotheses • Goal 2: Development of interventions • Qualitative methods often appropriate • Goal 3: Efficacy trials • Mixed methods often appropriate • Goal 4: Large-scale RCTs • Goal 5: Measurement (Instruments)

  8. IES Program Areas • Reading and Writing • Mathematics and Science Education • Cognition and Student Learning • Teacher Quality—Reading and Writing • Teacher Quality—Mathematics and Science Education • Social and Behavioral Context for Academic Learning • Education Leadership • Education Policy, Finance, and Systems • Early Childhood Programs and Practices • Middle and High School Reform • Interventions for Struggling Adolescent and Adult Readers and Writers • Postsecondary Education • Education Technology

  9. IES Program Areas: Special Education Research • Early Intervention and Early Childhood Special Education • Reading, Writing, and Language Development • Mathematics and Science Education • Social and Behavioral Outcomes to Support Learning • Transition Outcomes for Special Education Secondary Students • Cognition and Student Learning in Special Education • Teacher Quality • Related Services • Systemic Interventions and Policies for Special Education • Autism Spectrum Disorders

  10. IES Program Areas: New or Unique Topics • Statistical and Research Methodology • Evaluation of State and Local Programs and Policies • National Center on Teacher Effectiveness • National Center on Rural Education • National Center on Turning Around Chronically Low-Performing Schools

  11. What Goes into an IES Proposal? • Depends somewhat on the goal • E.g., more emphasis on “theory of change” in goal 2 than in goal 4 • Goals 3 and 4 requires power analysis • All require clear research questions, a well-defined sample (with commitment of participants), a detailed research design, and description of measures

  12. When are IES Proposals Submitted? • Letter of Intent • Optional but helpful • Proposal deadlines: Generally summer and fall • In 2008: June 26 and October 2 • See: http://ies.ed.gov/ncer/funding/

  13. Recent Examples of IES Awards • EDUCATION POLICY, FINANCE, AND SYSTEMS • Creating an Integrated Resource Information System to Assess Student, Teacher, Classroom, and School Effects on Value-Added Student Learning Gains and to Support More Cost-Effective Budgeting (University of Wisconsin, Robert Meyer)

  14. Recent Examples of IES Awards • POST-SECONDARY EDUCATION • Improving Postsecondary Preparation in Urban Public High Schools: An Evaluation of AVID in Chicago(University of Chicago, Melissa Roderick) • MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE EDUCATION • A Longitudinal Study of Gender and Mathematics Using ECLS-K Data (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Sarah Lubienski) • Early Learning in Mathematics: Efficacy in Kindergarten Classrooms (Pacific Institutes for Research, Scott Baker) • See http://ies.ed.gov/ncer/projects/08awards.asp

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