Understanding Students’ Needs Through Longitudinal Studies

Image

For more than 25 years, AIR experts provided design and analytic support for large nationally representative longitudinal studies conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). These studies collectively follow cohorts of students from birth through postsecondary education and beyond. 

Longitudinal education studies help to paint a picture of how different factors at various points in students’ lives relate to their development and later life outcomes. These studies uniquely show how environment and policy inform key life transitions (e.g., entry into kindergarten, postsecondary completion, entry into the workforce) and students’ life trajectories.

AIR’s Contributions to Education-Related Longitudinal Studies

AIR provided data collection support, analysis, and reporting for NCES’s longitudinal studies, as highlighted below.

• Developing surveys with participants and researchers in mind. NCES was able to collect the right information in a clear and efficient way because we designed surveys on important topics that were useful for both participants and researchers. used different survey formats, including online, paper, and phone interviews, offering flexibility in how people could respond.
   
• Reviewing assessments to ensure they accurately measure student growth. Students from young children to high schoolers were measured fairly and accurately because AIR helped to design and review student assessments that accurately measured and tracked the progress of student skills at different ability levels.
   
• Convening expert panels to review utility and burden of studies. AIR helped plan and organize expert review panels that brought together people from colleges, government agencies, associations, and research organizations to discuss content and study design to ensure NCES’s longitudinal data are valuable for users but not too burdensome for participants.
   

• Developing effective, high-quality data collection procedures. Longitudinal studies include complex data collections that require significant training of data collection staff. AIR engaged in quality assurance (QA) activities at all stages of data collection to establish confidence in the quality of the data collected by these staff.
   
  • To standardize reporting on site visits conducted during data collection periods, we developed a site observation template. Using this template provided a clear snapshot of QA activities so NCES could then convey actionable items and issues to the data collection team immediately.
     

• Analyzing data and developing publications on topics relevant to various audiences. With AIR’s support, NCES shared key findings and important information widely with researchers and policy makers, as well as with teachers, principals, parents, and caregivers.
   
  • We conducted innovative analyses on pressing education and home learning topics using data from various NCES longitudinal studies.
     
  • To meet the needs and interests of different audiences, we developed a variety of publications—from in-depth statistical reports (like our examination of the postsecondary enrollment, completion, and financial aid outcomes of students who were in ninth-grade in 2009), analytic memos, and research reviews to data points, blog posts, and infographics showcasing more nuanced findings. 
     

• Ensuring accurate and appropriate data use. AIR helped NCES promote data use and provide guidance to data users in a variety of ways.
   
  • We provided recommendations for developing composite variables for key constructs.
     
  • We ensured users had access to easy-to-use, accurately coded variables for high-interest data points by reviewing variable specifications.
     
  • We provided support to data users (e.g., researchers, graduate students, journalists) by developing tip sheets and FAQs and responding to users’ inquiries. We also conducted data trainings at conferences to promote best practices for using NCES longitudinal data with complex sampling designs.