Education and Literacy

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RAND research on early childhood, K-12, and higher education covers issues such as assessment and accountability, choice-based and standards-based reform, school leadership, teacher effectiveness, technology, and vocational training. RAND also explores life skills, such as media, health, and financial literacy, as well as how time spent outside the classroom impacts student outcomes.

  • A student listens through headphones to an exercise in a Spanish class in Steveange, UK, photo by Ian Miles/Flashpoint Pictures/Alamy

    Essay

    The Economic Returns of Foreign Language Learning

    Jul 7, 2022

    If just 10 percent more students in the United Kingdom mastered Arabic, Mandarin, French, or Spanish, the economic returns could be measured in billions of British pounds. Removing the language barrier reduces trade costs.

  • People meeting in a career counseling office, photo by BullRun/Adobe Stock

    Report

    Career Services and College-Employer Partnership Practices in Community Colleges

    Jul 6, 2022

    The number of middle-skill jobs in STEM fields that require credentials but not a four-year college degree is growing. Community colleges play a key role in preparing students to fill these positions. How can states support colleges and their partnerships with employers?

Topics in Focus:

Explore Education and Literacy

  • Child wearing a face mask and gloves, holding a binder with Back to School and drawings of coronavirus, photo by Amy Mitchell/Getty Images

    Commentary

    To Reopen Schools Safely, Prepare for New COVID-19 Test Capabilities

    Safely reopening K–12 schools for in-person instruction requires complicated protocols ranging from symptom monitoring to physical distancing, as well as containment of transmission in the community. State policymakers and school leaders could begin planning now to draft, pilot, and evaluate protocols for reopening schools that incorporate rapid testing.

    Aug 28, 2020

  • Journal Article

    Journal Article

    Educational Attainment and Perceived Need for Urgent Care

    This article presents analyses of perceived need for urgent care among seniors.

    Aug 27, 2020

  • An illustration of people from diverse racial backgrounds. Image by Lyubov Ivanova / Getty Images

    Content

    RAND Center to Advance Racial Equity Policy

    RAND's Center to Advance Racial Equity Policy supports a portfolio of innovative, high-impact racial equity research and analysis, creates a clearinghouse to help coordinate related efforts, and collaborates with organizations dedicated to advancing racial equity.

    Aug 25, 2020

  • Universal Studios and CityWalk are closed due to COVID-19 concerns in Hollywood, California, May 14, 2020, photo by Ted Soqui/Reuters

    Commentary

    Industry Mix in L.A. Area Helps Explain Recent Record Unemployment Rates

    The Los Angeles Combined Statistical Area reported more than 270,000 job cuts between March and early August. Considering which industries have cut jobs may provide a window into the area's unique labor market and help explain how the area currently has among the highest unemployment in the nation.

    Aug 25, 2020

  • Teacher writing on a blackboard, photo by Andrea Obzerova/Adobe Stock

    Report

    Social Studies Teachers' Trust in Institutions and Groups

    U.S. social studies teachers do not have a great deal of trust in many public institutions, such as news outlets and the government. This might have implications for how much they draw on or reference such institutions in their instruction.

    Aug 24, 2020

  • NYPD officers distribute face masks in Washington Square Park, New York City, May 10, 2020, photo by nycshooter/Getty Images

    Commentary

    Police Officers: This Article Will Make You Better at Combatting Misinformation

    By deliberately addressing misinformation, police officers can promote safe and healthy behaviors among those in their communities. The actions they take to combat misinformation and improve protections in their communities are a critical part of the collective campaign to end the pandemic and help people return to their normal lives.

    Aug 24, 2020

  • Two children wearing backpacks bump elbows as a greeting during the COVID-19 pandemic, photo by ake1150sb/Getty Images

    Multimedia

    RAND 20/20: Teaching and Learning During a Pandemic

    In this remote video conversation, RAND's Laura Hamilton discusses how teachers, school leaders, and parents are navigating the challenges of educating during a pandemic. Brandon Baker hosts.

    Aug 20, 2020

  • The U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., photo by lucky-photographer/Getty Images

    Blog

    Summer Reading List for Congress

    During the August recess Hill staff should have an opportunity to step back from the fast pace of votes and hearing preparation to examine priorities for the fall and beyond. This list of must-read research and commentary covers some policy issues they will likely be addressing after the break.

    Aug 18, 2020

  • A teacher preparing classroom for social distancing, photo by izusek/Getty Images

    Commentary

    Engaging Learning Spaces Are Important, Even During a Pandemic

    While considering new uses for and formations of school space, planners might also consider whether these spaces will be conducive to learning. Research links the physical condition of learning spaces to improved student physical health and academic performance.

    Aug 18, 2020

  • Male high school student using laptop in class, photo by Monkey Business/AdobeStock

    Report

    High School Teachers' Perceptions and Use of Personalized Learning

    Technology-facilitated personalized learning approaches have become increasingly common in K–12 schools across the United States. How are high school teachers using personal learning practices? And which supports and resources do they need to use them effectively?

    Aug 10, 2020

  • Ballet dancer on stage in an empty theater, photo by vgajic/Getty Images

    Commentary

    The Pandemic Is a Disaster for Artists

    The arts as we know them are likely to be shut down for the foreseeable future and the vast majority of artists have likely lost some or all of their income. How many artists are out of work, and what could be done to help them?

    Aug 4, 2020

  • Female high school teacher standing by student table teaching lesson, photo by Monkey Business/AdobeStock

    Report

    Social Studies Teachers' Perspectives on Key Civic Outcomes in 2010 and 2019

    High school social studies teachers play an important role in fostering the civic knowledge, skills, and dispositions that students need to thrive after graduation. How have these teachers' perspectives on student civic development changed from 2010 to 2019?

    Aug 3, 2020

  • Research Brief

    Research Brief

    A Two-Generation Learning Program Educates and Empowers Parents and Children: An Assessment of Families Forward Learning Center in Pasadena, California

    This brief summarizes how participants in the Families Forward Learning Center (FFLC)'s two-generation learning program perceive its benefits, and also compares FFLC children's educational outcomes through third grade with their peers' results.

    Aug 3, 2020

  • Report

    Report

    Evaluation of Families Forward Learning Center: Participant Perspectives and Student Outcomes

    In this report, the authors examine how participants in the Families Forward Learning Center (FFLC)'s two-generation learning program perceive its benefits and compare FFLC children's educational outcomes through third grade with their peers'.

    Aug 3, 2020

  • Journal Article

    Journal Article

    Not Where You Start, but How Much You Grow: An Addendum to the Coleman Report

    The Coleman Report (1966) first suggested that schools play a relatively small part in shaping students' achievement. The results in this paper suggest a need to update this conventional wisdom.

    Jul 28, 2020

  • Journal Article

    Journal Article

    School's Out: The Role of Summers in Understanding Achievement Disparities

    We use a novel data set with more than 200 million test scores for students across the United States to explore whether the "fanning out" of achievement from Grades 1 to 8 occurs while students are in school or during the intervening summers.

    Jul 28, 2020

  • Students using laptops in class, with a teacher assisting one student, photo by Wavebreakmedia/Getty Images

    Commentary

    What Do Teachers Want to See in Automated Writing Evaluation Systems?

    Automated writing evaluation systems offer a promising approach to relieving the burden of giving formative feedback to students on their writing. What do teachers want to see in these systems so that the technology can be integrated into their teaching?

    Jul 28, 2020

  • Jennifer Panditaratne helps Hazeline with her reading assignments as she is homeschooling in Broward County, Florida, U.S. May 29, 2020. Picture taken May 29, 2020, photo by Maria Alejandra Cardona/Reuters

    Report

    Parents Need Help During School and Child Care Center Closures

    The COVID-19 pandemic has been particularly challenging for parents since schools and child care centers closed or switched to distance learning in the spring. Parents with children in different age groups and those under financial stress need the most support.

    Jul 27, 2020

  • Blog

    Reopenining Schools, Affordable Housing, Unemployment: RAND Weekly Recap

    This weekly recap focuses on the debate about reopening schools, how a decline in commercial real estate demand could help address the housing crisis, challenges facing the U.S. unemployment system, and more.

    Jul 24, 2020

  • Children stand on smiley faces to maintain social distancing in the courtyard of a school in Paris, France, May 14, 2020, photo by Benoit Tessier/Reuters

    Q&A

    How to Reopen Schools: Q&A with RAND Experts

    The debate over opening U.S. schools is growing more heated by the day. In this Q&A, RAND researchers discuss the different approaches for reopening, how online learning went in the spring, ways to help disadvantaged students, and more.

    Jul 23, 2020

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