Andrea Prado Tuma

@PradoTuma on Twitter

Behavioral/Social Scientist

Boston Office

Education

Ph.D. in human development and social policy, Northwestern University; M.A. in human development and social policy, Northwestern University; B.A. in psychology, Vassar College

Overview

Andrea Prado Tuma is a behavioral and social scientist at the RAND Corporation. Her research seeks to understand how schools and districts implement programs and/or policies to advance equity in education. She has particular expertise in school leadership, research-practice partnerships, and school-community engagement and specializes in qualitative and social network methodology.

Prado Tuma is currently working on projects focused on networked improvement communities (NICs), the enactment of diversity, equity, and inclusion practices in schools, social and emotional learning, and curriculum implementation. Prior to graduate school, she worked at the Mexican Institute of Family and Population Research, where she contributed to the design of a curriculum to increase the academic achievement and middle school enrollment of girls in rural Mexico. Prado Tuma received an M.A. and Ph.D. in human development and social policy from Northwestern University.

Research Focus

Languages

Spanish

Commentary

Choosing Classroom Materials Is Complicated. Here's What Principals and District Leaders Can Do to Support Teachers
What do teachers want when it comes to instructional materials, particularly during the pandemic? Knowing the answer to this question can help district and school leaders select online materials that teachers are more likely to use and guide curriculum developers to create resources with these features in mind.
Feb 12, 2021 The 74

Publications

Report
How States Are Creating Conditions for Use of High-Quality Instructional Materials in K–12 Classrooms: Findings from the 2021 American Instructional Resources Survey
In this report, the authors examine adoption and use of instructional materials using survey self-reports from teachers across the United States and from a network of states that is focused on improving use of standards-aligned materials.
Jun 7, 2022
Tool
Engaging Youth with Public Policy: Middle School Lessons to Counter Truth Decay
This educational tool—a set of five lesson plans for middle school classes—is part of RAND's Countering Truth Decay initiative. The lesson plans introduce students to public policy research and emphasize the importance of media literacy skills.
May 24, 2022
Report
School Leaders' Role in Selecting and Supporting Teachers' Use of Instructional Materials: An Interview Study
The authors examine what school leaders regard as the key dimensions of quality instructional materials and describe the role that school leaders play in guiding the selection and use of instructional materials.
Jul 19, 2021
Research Brief
Supporting Principals to Lead on the Selection and Use of Instructional Materials in Classrooms
This brief discusses findings from several RAND reports on principals' roles with respect to instructional materials. Recommendations describe how stakeholders can prepare and support principals to lead in selecting and using instructional materials.
Jul 19, 2021
Report
Do Teachers Perceive That Their Main Instructional Materials Meet English Learners' Needs? Key Findings from the 2020 American Instructional Resources Survey
In this Data Note, researchers draw on data from the spring 2020 American Instructional Resources Survey to examine teachers' perceptions of how their main materials meet the needs of English learners.
Jan 27, 2021
Report
Teachers' Perceptions of What Makes Instructional Materials Engaging, Appropriately Challenging, and Usable: A Survey and Interview Study
In this report, the authors examine how middle and high school English language arts and mathematics teachers use and perceive their instructional materials in terms of how engaging, challenging, and usable they are.
Jan 14, 2021
Report
Early Lessons from Schools and Out-of-School Time Programs Implementing Social and Emotional Learning
In this report, RAND researchers describe the Partnerships for Social and Emotional Learning Initiative, as well as findings and early lessons from the first two years of implementation in the six participating communities.
Oct 20, 2020
Report
Early Lessons from Schools and Out-of-School Time Programs Implementing Social and Emotional Learning: Executive Summary
In this summary, RAND researchers describe the Partnerships for Social and Emotional Learning Initiative, as well as findings and early lessons from the first two years of implementation in the six participating communities.
Oct 20, 2020
Report
The Education Sector in Puerto Rico After Hurricane Maria: Predisaster Conditions, Hurricane Damage, and Themes for Recovery
Presenting a strategic approach to aid Puerto Rico's recovery from Hurricanes Irma and Maria, the report details prestorm conditions, assesses damage and recovery needs, and describes courses of action for the Education sector.
Sep 30, 2020
Report
American Instructional Resources Surveys: 2020 Technical Documentation and Survey Results
This technical report provides information about the sample, survey instrument, and resultant data for the American Instructional Resources Surveys administered to principals and teachers in spring 2020 via RAND's American Educator Panels.
Sep 24, 2020
Report
How Instructional Materials Are Used and Supported in U.S. K–12 Classrooms: Findings from the 2019 American Instructional Resources Survey
New results from the RAND American Instructional Resources Survey, which was fielded to a national sample of public teachers and school leaders in spring 2019, shed light on how teachers use instructional materials in their classroom.
Aug 31, 2020
Report
Taking Stock of Principal Pipelines: What Public School Districts Report Doing and What They Want to Do to Improve School Leadership
The authors share new findings about the about the presence and potential importance of principal pipeline activities for preparing, hiring, supporting, and evaluating school leaders across the United States as reported by district administrators.
Jun 23, 2020
Report
American Instructional Resources Survey: 2019 Technical Documentation and Survey Results
This technical report provides information about the sample, survey instrument, and resultant data for the American Instructional Resources Surveys administered to principals and teachers in spring 2019 via RAND's American Educator Panels.
Feb 27, 2020
Journal Article
The Organizational Landscape of Schools: School Employees' Conceptualizations of Organizations in Their Environment
Based on my analysis, I extend theory on the role of neighborhood organizations in creating overlap and connection between the school and the community and extend work on organizational members' sense-making about the organizational field.
Feb 1, 2020
Report
Preparing School Leaders for Success: Evaluation of New Leaders' Aspiring Principals Program, 2012–2017
This report analyzes whether schools and students led by graduates of New Leaders‘ Aspiring Principals program outperformed comparison schools and students in the same district.
Feb 25, 2019
Journal Article
Novice School Principals Constructing Their Role Vis-A-Vis External Stakeholders: (Not) Attempting to Be "All Things to All People"
This study examines how novice school principals make sense of different external stakeholders' demands and their own role in relation to external stakeholders during their first year on the job.
Jan 10, 2019
Research Brief
How Do Teachers Perceive Feedback and Evaluation Systems? Findings from the American Teacher Panel
Most teachers surveyed reported receiving useful feedback, although the majority perceived feedback from fellow teachers and from coaches or mentors more positively than feedback from formal observations or from school leaders.
Sep 28, 2018
Report
A Nationwide Look at Teacher Perceptions of Feedback and Evaluation Systems: Findings from the American Teacher Panel
This report draws on a nationally representative survey of educators to examine teacher perceptions about the feedback they receive and the teacher evaluation systems at their schools.
Jul 9, 2018