Education And Psychology

A new national survey of high school writing instruction finds it lacking, with 50 percent of teachers reporting they are not prepared to teach students how to write well and rarely assign complex writing tasks. Read More

Urban school districts across the country have shifted back to managing segregated schools following the recent lifting of court-ordered desegregation plans, a new book finds. Read More

Early data from a project evaluating the first-year impact of New York City's performance pay program, the School-Wide Performance Bonus Program (SPBP), finds no discernable impact on student achievement thus far. However, the report's authors caution that it is too soon to draw any overall conclusions about the program's impact. Read More

K-12 and higher education experts from Vanderbilt University's Peabody College of education and human development will present their latest research April 12-18 in San Diego, Calif., at the American Educational Research Association's annual conference. Read More

As parents and policymakers increasingly worry about the quality of public schools, alternatives such as charter schools, magnet schools and vouchers appear more attractive. But experts wonder: What difference do schools of choice make? Read More

Comparing different ways of solving math problems is a great way to help middle schoolers learn new math concepts, researchers from Vanderbilt and Harvard universities have found. Read More

New research from Vanderbilt University has found students benefit more from being taught the concepts behind math problems rather than the exact procedures to solve the problems. The findings offer teachers new insights on how best to shape math instruction to have the greatest impact on student learning. Read More

New research from Vanderbilt University's Peabody College offers guidance for teachers to help them improve writing instruction in the primary grades and develop stronger student writers. Read More

Former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist today announced the establishment of a collaboration that seeks to make education a top priority for Tennessee. The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE), a nonpartisan initiative, hopes to jumpstart education reform efforts across the state. Vanderbilt will serve as a research partner to SCORE. Read More

Students helping other students learn has been proven to boost academic achievement and social skills in students with and without disabilities. A new book by Vanderbilt University researchers, Peer Support Strategies for Improving All Students' Social Lives and Learning, based on over 20 years of research in the field, offers teachers practical guidelines for implementing these peer support strategies in the classroom. Read More

Paying teachers for their performance was supported by both presidential candidates in the 2008 election and is being tried in school districts across the nation. But the question remains—does it work? A second-year evaluation of Texas' statewide performance pay program, the largest in the nation, released Dec. 1 reveals insights into whether these programs are beneficial and attractive to teachers. Read More

Vanderbilt higher education policy expert William Doyle is available to comment on a new report released Dec. 3 by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., that finds states are making little or no progress in providing affordable college opportunities or improving college completion rates for their residents. Read More

Vanderbilt University's Peabody College of education and human development, in partnership with Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools and other community agencies, has won a three-year, $3.4 million federal grant to enhance language and literacy skills in pre-kindergarten classrooms. Read More

The best state financial aid policies focus on students who would not otherwise go to college and make aid simple to apply for and keep, a new research review by Vanderbilt University higher education researcher William Doyle finds. The review has implications for federal financial aid policies. Read More

The Center for Community Studies at Vanderbilt University's Peabody College of education and human development is hosting its fall conference Friday, Sept. 19, to showcase and discuss research on key topics affecting communities, including Nashville. Read More

Vanderbilt University Learning Sciences Institute researchers Stephen N. Elliott, Peter A. Beddow and Ryan J. Kettler have developed a decision-making instrument called the Test Accessibility and Modification Inventory (TAMI) to address the issue of accessibility for students with special needs. Read More

Calculators are useful tools in elementary mathematics classes, if students already have some basic skills, new research has found. The findings shed light on the debate about whether and when calculators should be used in the classroom. Read More

Vanderbilt University experts are available to comment on the issues and policies addressed by the reauthorized Higher Education Act, expected to be finalized by Congress in the next several days. Read More

The impact of the nation’s current economic downturn on low- and moderate-income students was the topic of an all-day national roundtable discussion June 13 at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College of education and human development. Listen to audio of afternoon session. Watch video. Read more. Read More

Discovery Education and Vanderbilt University are partnering to launch a new research-based evaluation tool that measures the effectiveness of school principals. The Vanderbilt Assessment of Leadership in Education (VAL-ED), which is being exclusively distributed by Discovery Education, was created at Vanderbilt University through a grant from the Wallace Foundation. Read More