Archived Information

**Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC)**

**Goal Area:** Building a Research Base

**Organizational Accomplishments:** Through dozens of projects and
publications, EDC contributes original research findings to
practitioners and the education research community. Our research
initiatives range from targeted field tests and pilot studies of
promising practices to long-term evaluations of national school reform
programs. EDC researchers contribute to the research base through
presentations at national conferences, journal articles, and several
full-length books.

**Purpose:** EDC works at the intersections of research and practice. We
seek to develop, identify, and disseminate effective approaches to K-12
mathematics education for all students. Our research projects help to
build a better understanding of student learning, teacher learning and
practice, and the critical role of education administrators. We also
study the wider contexts that affect mathematics learning, including
school and district structures, state and federal policies, and the
relationships among schools, communities, and families.

**Activities and Results:**

-   *Creating Better Frameworks for Implementation Evaluations in
    Mathematics and Science Partnerships:* EDC, in collaboration with
    SRI International, Policy Studies Associates, and a team of senior
    consultants, is creating a set of conceptual and practical tools to
    improve implementation evaluation in targeted and comprehensive
    MSPs.

-   [*Finding Principles for K--6 Curriculum Materials that Promote
    Rather than Require Professional
    Development:*](http://main.edc.org/search/projectView.asp?bcn=1&bcl=Return+to+results&ProjectID=2766)
    The goals of this NSF-funded study are to provide a proof-of-concept
    that classroom materials can support the development of profound
    understanding of fundamental mathematics for teachers who currently
    lack it, and to identify criteria for developing effective K--5
    curriculum materials.

-   [*Handheld Diagnostics: Enhancing and Scaling Rigorous Observational
    Reading and Mathematics Assessments Through Handheld
    Computing*](http://main.edc.org/search/projectView.asp?bcn=1&bcl=Return+to+results&ProjectID=3132)
    : EDC is examining the educational benefits handheld devices can
    provide teachers and students. Working with Wireless Generation, we
    are researching and aiding in the development of educational
    handheld tools for assessing reading and early mathematics learning.

-   *Linking Data with Learning---the Grow Network Study:* We are
    conducting a two-year independent research study of the
    implementation of the Grow Report in the New York City school
    system. The Grow Report is a web-based test reporting system
    designed to help educators gather and use assessment data to support
    meaningful standards-based teaching and learning. Funded by the
    Carnegie Foundation.

-   *IBM\'s Reinventing Education Evaluation:* IBM's Reinventing
    Education initiative promotes broad-based systemic change in public
    schools. EDC's current evaluation of Reinventing Education is a
    comprehensive, three-year investigation of how the solutions are
    being implemented and the impact they are having on schools.

-   *Union City: Innovation Exchange---Exploring the Portability of
    Systemic Reform:* Through a National Science Foundation IERI
    planning grant, EDC and three partners will explore how innovative
    and effective models of technology-anchored teaching and learning
    can transfer across other contexts and how teachers, administrators,
    and researchers can collaborate to support, sustain, and gain
    knowledge from such endeavors.

-   *Upping the Numbers: Using Research-Based Decision Making to
    Increase Diversity in Quantitative Disciplines:* The study,
    co-authored by EDC and [Campbell-Kibler
    Associates](http://www.campbell-kibler.com/), is among the first to
    gather data on what really works to increase under-represented
    students\' interest and success in careers in science, engineering,
    and technology these fields. In response to the report, the GE Fund
    has pledged \$1.3 million to the National Action Council for
    Minorities in Engineering (NACME), Inc. The money will go towards
    strengthening mathematics preparation for all students.

**Plans for next 12 months:** All of these activities are ongoing.