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Education Research by RAND Europe

RAND Europe's research in education helps inform the making of more effective educational policies, programmes and practices that are inclusive and equitable for all.

Our interdisciplinary and international research examines the evidence behind how policies and practices can support learning: from building strong foundations in the early years, to improving school effectiveness and ensuring that young people have the right skills in preparation for the future.

One of the biggest areas of our current education work is in randomised controlled trials (RCTs). The benefit of using RCTs is well known and we are excited to be using this methodology to generate robust, objective evidence on the impact of different educational practices, spanning a range of ages and subjects

Featured Research

  • Female teacher with a multiracial group of preschool children, sitting around a table and playing a game

    Teaching, pedagogy and practice in early years childcare

    Disadvantaged children in England are more likely to fall behind academically, so researchers identified the knowledge gaps concerning effective early years practice. As most of the available data comes from the US, more UK research is needed.

Methods

Our education research benefits from a wide range of multi-disciplinary expertise and capabilities across the organisation and our large network of collaborators.

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Randomised controlled trials

We have a growing portfolio of projects using rigourous experimental (randomised controlled trials) and quasi-experimental designs to evaluate complex education interventions.

survey-design

Survey design & analysis

We bring methodological expertise to design high-quality surveys and conduct complex analyses with large scale administrative data.

lit-review

Literature reviews

We conduct robust systematic reviews of evidence using the global resources available in RAND's professional library.

Policy analysis

We are experienced in providing education policy advice based on the best international evidence available.

Selected Research

  • Young students conduct a planting experiment in science laboratory class

    Evaluating Primary Science Quality Mark

    21 Dec 2018

    A randomised controlled trial (RCT) evaluating the impact of PSQM aims to understand the impact of the intervention on pupils and teachers. The study will also examine how the intervention is implemented.

  • Children reading in a park

    Evaluating the impact of a program to promote early childhood development

    20 Nov 2018

    RAND Europe is undertaking a three-year independent evaluation of the impact of a philanthropic ECD programme in France. Researchers will assess the extent to which the programme-level objectives have been achieved, and understand how and why they were achieved.

  • School children perform a chemistry experiment

    Evaluating 'Aspire to STEM'

    14 Aug 2018

    Researchers are evaluating an intervention aimed at improving STEM teaching and learning in UK schools in disadvantaged areas. The project aims to understand what impact the intervention has on children’s learning and teacher retention.

  • Little girl blows and brings out letters of words

    Evaluating NELI, the evidence-based Nuffield Early Language Intervention

    13 Aug 2018

    RAND Europe is conducting a randomised controlled trial into the effectiveness of NELI, a language support programme designed to improve children’s vocabulary, listening and narrative skills. The study aims to understand both the impact of the intervention and how effectively it is implemented.