Education And Psychology

Expert typists are able to zoom across the keyboard without ever thinking about which fingers are pressing the keys. New research from Vanderbilt University reveals that this skill is managed by an autopilot, one that is able to catch errors that can fool our conscious brain. Read More

The National Center for School Choice at Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College of education and human development has released a series of five research briefs explaining new findings on charter schools. Read More

Lead author Braden Purcell We know that casting a ballot in the voting booth involves politics, values and personalities. But before you ever push the button for your candidate, your brain has already carried out an election of its own to make that action possible. New research from Vanderbilt… Read More

A group of Peabody College Leadership, Policy and Organizations faculty will travel to Universidade de Sao Paulo in Sao Paulo, Brazil, for an Oct. 4-5 seminar on education policy in Brazil and the United States. The event is the second in a series of collaborations on education research between… Read More

A new report from the National Research Council offers insights into 31 doctoral programs at Vanderbilt University, and finds the programs to be competitive with those at other top research institutions in the United States. The report is based on data collected for the 2005-2006 academic year… Read More

The latest research on the nation’s key K-12 and higher education issues, from No Child Left Behind to charter schools to higher education funding, will be presented by Vanderbilt University Peabody College researchers April 30-May 4 at the American Educational Research Foundation annual conference in Denver, Colo. Read More

Homeowners in community land trusts across the nation continue to have substantially lower delinquency and foreclosure rates than owners of market-rate homes, according to survey results released this month by Vanderbilt University researcher Emily Thaden in partnership with the National Community Land Trust Network. Read More

Although reading and writing have become essential skills for almost every job, the majority of students do not read or write well enough to meet grade-level demands. A new report co-authored by Vanderbilt researchers Steve Graham and Michael Hebert finds that while the two skills are closely connected, writing is an often-overlooked tool for improving reading skills and content learning. Read More

There are two major schools of thought when it comes to educating children and youth with severe learning needs and both are off target, researchers from Vanderbilt and Clemson universities report. The researchers argue a return to the original principles of special education that is informed by modern data and techniques is needed to reform both general and special education. Read More

Professor of Special Education Carolyn Hughes has won a $30,000 grant from the Organization for Autism Research to fund a pilot project that will help high school students with autism become more included and involved in their schools and with their peers. Read More

They’re on the frontline of the workday world – filling our coffee cups, trimming our hair, holding Sunday open houses – but workers in some service jobs in Tennessee are at a higher risk of not having access to health care coverage through their employers, according to a study conducted… Read More

Camilla Benbow, dean of Vanderbilt University's Peabody College, received the National Association for Gifted Children's 2009 Presidential Award at the group's annual convention in St. Louis, which was held Nov. 5-8. Read More

Surveillance doesn't necessarily make schools safer;can negatively impact students. But are students any safer as a result? What is the cost of these measures in terms of student well-being? Read More

Peabody faculty member David Dickinson will be a featured guest speaker at an international conference on child development in Porto Alegre, Brazil, Nov. 24-25. Read More

Performance pay for teachers continues to gain momentum nationally despite the absence of a clear understanding of its impact on students, teachers and schools. A new book from the National Center on Performance Incentives at Vanderbilt University brings together the latest research on the topic to offer guidance for researchers, policymakers and practitioners seeking deeper understanding of the complexities surrounding this issue. Read More

The impact of recognition and rewards on student attendance and performance in afterschool programs is the aim of a new study being launched by the National Center on Performance Incentives at Vanderbilt University and uBoost, a company that manages student reward programs. Read More

Performance pay programs designed by teachers, for teachers have been found to offer small incentives to a large number of teachers, new research indicates. Read More

Even though it's against federal law to grow, sell or possess marijuana, 13 states have recently legalized medical use of the drug. Now California is contemplating taking the next step – legalizing marijuana outright – in the hope that taxing marijuana sales could help ease the state's latest budget crisis. Vanderbilt University Law School professor Robert Mikos, an expert on federalism issues, examined the conflict between state and federal drug laws in a new paper. Read More

In this tough economy, the allure of buying lottery tickets seems like a pretty enticing way to erase financial problems. But new research from Vanderbilt Law School found that people who won between $50,000 and $150,000 did not solve their debt problems and only postponed bankruptcy. Read More

Will Judge Sonia Sotomayor become the next U.S. Supreme Court justice? Vanderbilt faculty Tracey George, Terry Mahoney and Brian Fitzpatrick provide expert insight and commentary. Read More