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Education Policy

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Education policy includes laws as well as processes and policies that educational organizations, local districts, states, and nations put in place and follow to achieve academic goals. RAND analyses have informed education policy in the United States, United Kingdom, Qatar, and many other countries.

Report

Measuring School and Classroom Climate

Dec 11, 2019

Features of a learning environment, also called school and classroom climate, are associated with higher student achievement. What do educators need to assess these features—and to help create positive, safe, and inclusive environments for students?
Essay

Social and Emotional Learning Prepares Students for Life

Aug 27, 2018

The goal of social and emotional learning is to give students the skills they need to work in teams, communicate their ideas, and manage their emotions. Research can help educators determine which programs work and which ones qualify for federal funding under the Every Student Succeeds Act.

Explore Education Policy

Journal Article

Professional Development Incentives for Oregon's Early Childhood Education Workforce: A Randomized Study

This study used two trials to test whether sending emails and offering different financial incentives to Oregon ECE workforce members increased career lattice sign-up and increased education and training levels or workplace retention.

Sep 24, 2021
Blog

U.S. Failure in Afghanistan, Critical Race Theory Bans, Income Inequality: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on how early mistakes led to America's failure in Afghanistan, the potential effects of critical race theory bans, an art installation that breaks down RAND data on income inequality, and more.

Sep 3, 2021
Commentary

How State Critical Race Theory Bans Could Trickle Down to the Classroom

Given widening achievement disparities in math and reading over the course of the pandemic, and potential blowback to teaching anything related to race or gender, avoiding any lessons on the experiences of women or people of color will be the path of least resistance in many schools. But discussing racism and sexism in a safe environment is crucial for students to become active, knowledgeable citizens.

Aug 31, 2021
Report

The Future of New Jersey's Tuition Aid Grant: A Review of Options and Evidence

RAND Corporation experts prepared this report to address several key issues that are a priority for the New Jersey state government surrounding its Tuition Aid Grant (TAG) program for low-income college students.

Aug 5, 2021
Research Brief

How Does Corequisite Remediation Change Student Experiences? Results from a Randomized Study in Five Texas Community Colleges

Corequisite remediation for non–college-ready students provides early opportunities to earn credit, more-intensive instruction, greater rigor, greater alignment, and increased opportunities to learn from peers.

Mar 24, 2021
Report

Student Experiences in English Corequisite Remediation Versus a Standalone Developmental Education Course: Findings from an Experimental Study in Texas Community Colleges

In this report, researchers use data from a randomized control trial at five community colleges in Texas to examine contrasts in student experiences between corequisite remediation and standalone developmental education courses.

Mar 24, 2021
Journal Article

Constraints, Values, and Information: How Leaders in One District Justify Their Positions During Instructional Decision Making

We investigate how leaders support their interpretations of problems and proposed solutions during closed-door negotiations around three policy decisions, and how they invoke race, class, and language in the process.

Mar 2, 2021
Research Brief

Would Low-Income Students Graduate Faster with a Boost in Financial Aid? Results from a Natural Experiment in New Jersey

New Jersey's Tuition Aid Grant—the nation's most generous state-funded grant program per state resident college student—increased the rate of on-time bachelor's degree completion at public universities for low-income students who received it.

Feb 4, 2021
Report

Cutting the College Price TAG: The Effects of New Jersey's Tuition Aid Grant on College Persistence and Completion

RAND researchers studied more than 450,000 recipients of New Jersey's Tuition Aid Grant to explore whether larger amounts of grant aid led to higher graduation rates for students at varying income levels and types of institutions.

Feb 4, 2021
Journal Article

The Effect of Large-scale Performance-Based Funding in Higher Education

We analyze the effect of large-scale, high-stakes performance funding programs in Ohio and Tennessee. Using a difference-in-differences identification strategy along with a synthetic control approach, we find no evidence that these programs improve key academic outcomes.

Jan 26, 2021
Report

Evaluation of Delaware's Opportunity Funding and Student Success Block Grant Programs: Early Implementation

The authors examine the 2019-2020 implementation of two newly expanded Delaware weighted education funding programs, the Opportunity Fund and Student Success Block Grant, and emerging best practices, as reported by local education agency leaders.

Jan 21, 2021
Report

Using State-Level Policy Levers to Promote Principal Quality: Lessons from Seven States Partnering with Principal Preparation Programs and Districts

The authors examine how seven states are using state-level policy levers to improve the quality of school principals.

Nov 17, 2020
Project

Education Research at RAND Europe

Researchers at RAND Europe explore how different policies can support learning at every stage of life, helping organizations and policymakers develop more effective education practices that are inclusive and equitable for all.

Sep 2, 2020
Research Brief

How Can State Financial Aid Best Meet the Needs of Low-Income Students? The Wisconsin Case

The author of this brief analyzes the policy design, implementation, and outcomes of the Wisconsin Grant program.

Aug 31, 2020
Report

Need-Based Financial Aid in Wisconsin: State Policy and Student Pathways

RAND researchers analyzed the policy design, implementation, and outcomes of the Wisconsin Grant. This grant and other state programs face similar challenges using need-based grant aid to promote college attainment for low-income residents.

Aug 31, 2020
Report

Career Guidance in Schools: Research with schools and providers of career guidance services in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough

This report examines the provision of career guidance in schools and colleges in the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough region.

Jul 21, 2020
Research Brief

How Can Assistant Principals Be Trained as Instructional Leaders? Insights from the PLUS Program

This research brief summarizes study findings of a school leadership program and offers three recommendations for school districts and school leadership training programs to consider as they strive to improve instructional leadership effectiveness.

Jul 7, 2020
Report

Pathways to Instructional Leadership: Implementation and Outcomes from a Job-Embedded School Leader Training Program

The authors describe the initial implementation and impacts on staff and student outcomes of the Pathway to Leadership in Urban Schools program, which focused on newly hired school assistant principals, in one large urban district over four years.

Jul 7, 2020
Report

2019 American Teacher Panel Civic Education Survey: Technical Documentation

As part of the RAND Corporation's Truth Decay initiative, researchers surveyed public-school social studies teachers about approaches to civic education. This report, one in a series of six, provides technical information about the survey.

Jun 29, 2020
Report

Data Access and Use Among Middle and High School Principals

School principals make countless decisions that could benefit from access to data in electronic data management systems. During the 2018–2019 school year, what kinds of student data did principals have access to through these systems? Were the data disaggregated by student race, ethnicity, and income?

Jun 11, 2020

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