-------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------
  **ESRA: Research in        
  Special Education**        

  **FY 2006 Program          
  Performance Report**       

  Strategic Goal 4           

  Discretionary              

  ESRA, Part E               

  Document                   
  Year 2006 Appropriation:   
  \$71,840                   

  CFDA                       84.324: Special Education_Research and Innovation to Improve
                             Services and Results for Children with Disabilities
  -------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------

  -------------- --------------------------------------------------------
  **Program      **Transform Education into an evidence-based field.**
  Goal:**        

  -------------- --------------------------------------------------------

  -----------------------------------------------------------------------

  -----------------------------------------------------------------------

  ------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------
  ***Objective 1 of 2:***   *Raise the quality of research funded or conducted by
                            the Department.*

  ------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------

  ----------------------- ----------------- ------------------- -------------------------
  **Measure 1.1 of 2:**                                         
  Of new research and                                           
  evaluation projects                                           
  (group evaluations)                                           
  funded by the                                                 
  Department\'s National                                        
  Center for Special                                            
  Education Research that                                       
  address causal                                                
  questions, the                                                
  percentage of projects                                        
  that employ randomized                                        
  experimental designs.                                         
    (Desired direction:                                         
  increase)                                                     

  **Year**                **Target**        **Actual\           **Status**
                                            (or date            
                                            expected)**         

  2006                    Set a Baseline    (December 2006)     Pending

  2007                    BL+10%            (October 2007)      Pending

  2008                    BL+20%            (October 2008)      Pending
  ----------------------- ----------------- ------------------- -------------------------

**Source**. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education
Sciences, program report.

**Frequency of Data Collection**. Annual

**Data Quality**. 

IES researchers evaluate all research and evaluation proposals newly
funded by IES to identify projects that address causal questions and, of
those projects, those that use randomized experimental designs to answer
those questions.

**Explanation**. The target for 2007 of the lower of
the-baseline-plus-ten-percent or 75%, and for 2008 of the lower of
the-baseline-plus-20-percent or 75%, recognizes that some high quality
research addressing causal questions will not be able to employ
randomized experimental designs.  This may particularly be the case for
special education research involving children with low-incidence
disabilities.  Presence of a causal question is defined as instances in
which the investigation is designed to examine the effects of one
variable on a second variable. A causal relation might be expressed as
one variable influencing, affecting, or changing another variable. A
randomized experimental design is defined as instances in which there
are (a) an experimental (treatment) group and one or more comparison
groups, and (b) random assignment of participants to treatment and
comparison groups, or random assignment of groups (e.g., classrooms or
schools) to treatment and comparison conditions. If a proposal includes
a design in which two or more groups of participants are compared, but
the PI does not explicitly indicate that random assignment procedures
will be used, the proposal is recorded as not using a randomized
experimental design.

  ----------------------- ----------------- ------------------- -------------------------
  **Measure 1.2 of 2:**                                         
  The percentage of new                                         
  research proposals                                            
  funded by the                                                 
  Department\'s National                                        
  Center for Special                                            
  Education Research that                                       
  receive an average                                            
  score of excellent or                                         
  higher from an                                                
  independent review                                            
  panel of qualified                                            
  scientists.   (Desired                                        
  direction: increase)                                          

  **Year**                **Target**        **Actual\           **Status**
                                            (or date            
                                            expected)**         

  2006                    Set a Baseline    89                  Target Met

  2007                    90                (September 2007)    Pending

  2008                    90                (September 2008)    Pending
  ----------------------- ----------------- ------------------- -------------------------

**Source**. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education
Sciences, expert panel review.

**Frequency of Data Collection**. Annual

**Data Quality**. Evaluations are only as good as the qualifications of
the peer review panel. Inclusion of senior scientists who are leading
researchers in their fields ensures the quality of the data.

  -----------------------------------------------------------------------

  -----------------------------------------------------------------------

  ------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------
  ***Objective 2 of 2:***   *Increase the relevance of our research in order to meet
                            the needs of our customers.*

  ------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------

  ----------------------- ----------------- ------------------- -------------------------
  **Measure 2.1 of 1:**                                         
  The percentage of new                                         
  research projects                                             
  funded by the                                                 
  Department\'s National                                        
  Center for Special                                            
  Education Research that                                       
  are deemed to be of                                           
  high relevance by an                                          
  independent review                                            
  panel of qualified                                            
  practitioners.                                                
    (Desired direction:                                         
  increase)                                                     

  **Year**                **Target**        **Actual\           **Status**
                                            (or date            
                                            expected)**         

  2006                    Set a Baseline    (December 2006)     Pending

  2007                    BL+10%            (November 2007)     Pending

  2008                    BL+20%            (November 2008)     Pending
  ----------------------- ----------------- ------------------- -------------------------

**Source**. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education
Sciences, independent review panel.

**Frequency of Data Collection**. Annual

**Data Quality**. Evaluations are only as good as the qualifications of
the peer review panel.  Inclusion of experienced practitioners and
administrators in education and special education assures the quality of
the data.

**Explanation**. The target for 2007 of the lower of
the-baseline-plus-ten-percent or 75% and for 2008 of the lower of
the-baseline-plus-20-percent or 75% recognizes that some important
research may not seem immediately relevant but will make important
contributions over the long term.