December 5, 2013

1. Research, Policy, and Practice: The Role of Research-Practice Partnerships in Promoting Evidence-Based Decisions December 5, 2013 @AYPF_Tweets

2. Today’s Agenda: Dr. Cynthia Coburn, Northwestern University Dr. Amy Gerstein, Stanford University, Executive Director of the John W. Gardner Center for Children and Youth and their Communities Dr. Philip Bell, University of Washington, Executive Director of the UW Institute for Science and Math Education

3. Research-Practice Partnerships:Leveraging Research for Educational Improvement Cynthia E. Coburn, Northwestern University

4. Acknowledgments • William Penuel, University of Colorado, Boulder • Kimberly Geil, Independent Researcher

5. Why Don’t Educational Leaders Use Research? • Not focused on pressing concerns • Not credible • Not timely or useful • Lack of capacity

6. Research-Practice Partnerships Long-term collaborations between practitioners and researchers that are organized to investigate problems of practice and solutions for improving system outcomes

7. Research-Practice Partnerships: What do Advocates say? • Increase relevance • Increase credibility • Increase usability • Brings greater expertise to district decision making • Increase organizational capacity to use research

8. White Paper • Commissioned by William T. Grant Foundation • Reviewed research related to research-practice partnerships • Interviewed key leaders across the country • Conducted case studies on select partnerships

9. Core Features • Focus research on problems of practice • Long-term • Mutualistic • Produce original analyses • Carefully structured and organized

10. Typology of Research-practice Partnerships • Research Alliances • Design Research Partnerships • Network Improvement Communities

11. Research Alliances • Place-based • Primary goal is to inform local policy and practice • Perform research on key policy issues • Develop and maintain data archives • Distinct roles for researchers and practitioners; collaboration at beginning and end of process

12. Examples • John W. Gardner Center for Youth and Their Communities • Consortium for Chicago School Research • Research Alliance for New York City Schools

13. Design Research PARTNERSHIPS • Place-based • Co-design and test strategies for improving teaching and learning locally that also yield general knowledge about teaching and learning • Researchers and practitioners engage in collaboration at every stage of the process

14. EXAMPLES • University of Washington and Bellevue Public Schools • MIST, a partnership of Vanderbilt University with two urban school districts • Strategic Education Research Partnership (SERP)

15. Network Improvement Communities • Constituted as networks • Use form of research called “improvement science” • Focuses on small tests of change and rapid cycles of research and development • Roles of researchers and district staff can become blurred • Goal is to build capacity, “improve improvement”

16. EXAMPLES • Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching • BTEN project on teacher effectiveness and retention • Statway and Quantway, networks for community colleges addressing developmental mathematics

17. Challenges • Researchers and practitioners occupy different cultural worlds

18. Challenges • Researchers and practitioners occupy different cultural worlds • Maintaining mutualism

19. Challenges • Researchers and practitioners occupy different cultural worlds • Maintaining mutualism • High turnover in district leadership

20. Implications for policy makers • Provide funding for partnership infrastructure

21. Implications for policy makers • Provide funding for partnership infrastructure • Consider co-funding researchers and practitioners

22. Implications for policy makers • Provide funding for partnership infrastructure • Consider co-funding researchers and practitioners • Invest in capacity building

23. Implications for policy makers • Provide funding for partnership infrastructure • Consider co-funding researchers and practitioners • Invest in capacity building • Develop infrastructure for spread and scale beyond local districts

24. Copy of White paper • http://www.wtgrantfoundation.org/publications_and_reports/browse_reports/research-practice-partnerships-a-strategy-for-leveraging-research-for-educational-improvement-in-school-districts • Or email: cynthia.coburn@northwestern.edu

25. Research, Policy and Practice: The Role of Intermediaries in Promoting Evidence-Based DecisionsAmerican Youth Policy Forum WebinarDecember 5, 2013 Amy Gerstein, PhD Executive Director John W. Gardner Center Stanford University

26. About the Gardner Center The Gardner Center partners with communities to develop leadership, conduct community-driven research, and effect positive change in the lives of youth RESEARCH CHANGE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT CAPACITY BUILDING

27. The Youth Sector SUMMER PROGRAMS AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAMS HEALTH SERVICES YOUTH FAMILIES SCHOOLS RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS SOCIAL SERVICES NEIGHBORHOODS

28. Deep Partnership is Essential • Deep partnerships underlie a robust youth sector approach to community youth development • Partnerships build trust • This is hard work; it takes TIME

29. Principles and Considerations • Engage stakeholders at every step of the process • Communicate a commitment to using data for action • Consider tensions or conflicting purposes • Cultivate shared responsibility and discourse • Ensure sufficient capacity – human and technology

30. Redwood City 2020 Partnership GOAL Support youth and families and strengthen community KEY PLAYERS 8 public and nonprofit organizations in Redwood City OUR ROLE Since 2000, we have provided capacity building, research, and community engagement across all initiatives

31. YESS Partnership GOAL Improve supports and opportunities for youth in East Palo Alto KEY PLAYERS 33 youth serving organizations convened by One East Palo Alto OUR ROLE Serve as data partner Advise on the steering and youth development committees

32. Educational Outcomes for Court Dependent Youth GOAL Improve the educational success of court-dependent youth collectively served by partner organizations KEY PLAYERS Child Welfare Services, foster youth service providers, four school districts OUR ROLE Link dependency records to educational data to examine the relationship between dependency and school outcomes

33. Bridge to Success Partnership GOAL Double the number of underrepresented students with a workplace applicable postsecondary credential by 2020 KEY PLAYERS Mayor’s Office brought together SFUSD, CCSF, DCYF, the Gardner Center, and others OUR ROLE Support the initiative via data analysis using the YDA

34. Contributions to the Youth Sector & Research Community • Supports efforts to improve youth service & outcomes • Advances inter-agency collaboration • Increases coherence of policy and practice • Shifts how rigorous research is conceived and conducted

35. gardnercenter.stanford.edu@gardnercenter

36. Question and Answer

37. All young people should be able to decide their futures. Design-Research Partnerships: Operating Principles & Strategies Philip Bell Learning Sciences & Human Development University of Washington

38. UW Institute Mission We create partnerships to envision, develop and study equity-focused educational improvements in areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

39. Design Research Uses IterativeCycles to Promote Continuous Improvement Theorize Design&Develop Analysis Enact (and collect data) http://www.designbasedresearch.org/

40. Implementation Underway to Support New Vision for K-12 Science Education The Framework & Standards were reviewed and refined by over 40,000 teachers, scientists, engineers, educational researchers, youth and other stakeholders in K-12 science ed. Info Online: tinyurl.com/ScienceFramework & nextgenscience.org

41. Design Research Partnerships What they focus on… to iteratively Curricula Integrating R+P perspectives co-design, test, refine, and adapt tools, routines, contexts … Assessment Tools PD Experiences Research protocols

42. Design Research Partnerships What they focus on… Schools / Classrooms Districts to iteratively embedded in STEM edimprovement efforts. Integrating R+P perspectives co-design, test, refine, and adapt tools, routines, contexts Informal Science Ed Professional Associations Research Communities

43. Current Research-Practice Partnerships 5. Elementary Science Curriculum Redesign 1. Scaling an Afterschool Science Apprenticeship Program 4. Redesign of a Comprehensive High School 2. Cross-Setting Intervention in 5th Grade Science 3. Multi-District Educational Improvement Effort in K-8 Science Education

44. Bellevue-UW Case Study: Science Curriculum Revision Initiative • Improve existing curriculum materials by leveraging established and exploratory learning principles and practitioner knowledge focused on expanding learner agency • Implement revised units across network of teachers and make improvements across years • Conduct quasi-experimental learning study as part of design-based implementation research (Penuel, Fishman, Cheng & Sabelli, 2011) • NSF-funded (DRK12#1019503 & LIFE SLC#0835854)

45. Bellevue-UW Case Study: Evolution of the Partnership • Formation: Fmr. Superintendent Mike Riley approached John Bransford and his team • Collaborative Project 1: Science curriculum review; redesign and implementation of one science unit • LIFE Science of Learning Center Engaged in Curriculum Redesign Work & Analysis (Bransford, Vye; Bell; Penuel, Harris & Phillips) • Collaborative Project 2: Curriculum adaptation of all 5th grade and 2nd grade science kits • Staff transitions have been made as needed • Currently pursuing follow-on funding