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. ...
Since 2016, AIR’s apprenticeship team has supported states to expand the use of Registered Apprenticeship as a key workforce development strategy. Partnering with the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL), AIR is the national technical assistance provider for state agencies receiving state apprenticeship expansion grants from USDOL. In this role, we work ...
The Ohio Department of Education wanted to assess the quality of the literacy instruction received by students in state-funded early learning and preschool programs and to provide teachers with information to improve their practice. AIR conducted more than 1,400 observations of early learning environments across the state using the Early ...
First responder fields—including law enforcement, firefighting, and emergency management services—serve a crucial role in the safety and well-being of communities around the country. Public citizens and officials have placed a renewed focus on improving agencies’ relations with their local communities by ensuring that first responders reflect the populations they serve. ...
The Communication Toolkit: Using Information to Get High Quality Care is based on AIR's rigorous study of the challenges involved in disseminating information about evidence-based health care.
Career and technical education (CTE) continues to gain traction with state and national policymakers, researchers, and educators across the country—evidenced by the creation of a federally funded center investigating CTE programs: the Career and Technical Education Research Network. AIR is leading this research network partnership under the direction of principal ...
The needs of adults with disabilities are frequently overlooked in the marketplace and when businesses are designing and promoting products and services. But a new report from the AIR finds that inclusive hiring practices and involving people with disabilities in product development and advertisement can help businesses access a market ...
Programs that attempt to fill workforce shortages and ease college prices by “forgiving” or repaying college loans are increasingly popular politically, but a new report shows that the jury is still out on their effectiveness. Known as workforce-contingent financial aid, these programs provide money for college in exchange for an ...
The initiatives to enhance adult learning program accountability and assessment systems of the following states are described in this paper: Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Oregon, Texas, Washington, West Virginia.
The American Institutes for Research will participate in the 2015 annual conference of the Comparative and International Education Society, being held March 8-13 in Washington, D.C. AIR experts are scheduled to speak about a variety of topics, including education and the Ebola crisis in Liberia, research using large-scale international data, ...