A December 2015 AIR study finds that Transitional Kindergarten, the first year of a two-year kindergarten program for young five-year-olds in California, appears to improve children’s school readiness in critical areas of academic learning and development. Researchers Karen Manship and Heather Quick explain how and suggest next steps. ...
In June 2018, staff from the Center for English Language Learners facilitated a one-hour webinar featuring the writing component of the ACCELL model. The topic focused on scaffolding writing in connection with close reading activities.
AIR’s early childhood cost and finance team informs state decisions about the true cost of high-quality early care and education, the systems that support it, and revenue sources that can fund it. Our work has focused on childcare subsidies, different preschool models, and support for birth-to-five children with special needs. ...
Turning around our nation’s low-performing schools became a national priority—and central focus of education policy at all levels—in 2001 with No Child Left Behind. Then Race to the Top and School Improvement Grants redoubled the nation’s emphasis on school turnaround, giving states more resources to advance improvement efforts within federal ...
In this blog post, published as part of the work of the Midwest Comprehensive Center, Chris Times and Fausto López describe how educators and students in Chicago are proving that diligence and data-informed decision making can lead to positive changes.
This spotlight takes a look at the history of Title I, how the program has changed over time, and how it affects children, schools, families and education policy. Experts weigh in on the program's past and future in interviews, briefs, and blogs.
According to new AIR analysis of an international survey, a surprisingly large number of adults in the United States cannot apply reading or math skills to solve simple real life problems. In this blog post, Dan Sherman discusses the PIACC results he says educators, researchers, and policymakers need to explore ...
Access to in-prison education and work experience are associated with a reduction in the likelihood of recidivism and provide inmates with a critical element on the path to reshape their personal identities. Could offering prisoners more education and work experience inside prison be a key solution to mass incarceration in ...
An early warning system allows educators to assign and provide appropriate interventions to at-risk students early on, during the 9th grade year, to prevent dropout before it happens. This video from REL Midwest summarizes research on early warning systems and dropout prevention.
In early warning systems, educators systematically identify students who show signs of being at risk for dropping out of school. This video series, a collaborative effort by the Great Lakes Comprehensive Center and the Michigan Department of Education, covers the process of installing the Early Warning Intervention and Monitoring System ...