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Come and See Us in 2020

For a 13th consecutive year, we will be presenting research topics of interest at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA). This year, the meeting will be held in our very own San Francisco. Some of our presentation topics include: Strategies for Teacher Retention, Impact Evaluation of a Science Teacher Professional Learning Intervention, and Combining Strategic Instruction Model Routines with Technology to Improve Academic Outcomes for Students with Disabilities. We’ll also be making our unprecedented appearance at AERA’s sister conference The National Council on Measurement in Education (NCME). Our topic will be about connecting issues of measurement to accuracy of impact estimates.

In addition to our numerous presentations at AERA and NCME, we will also be traveling to Washington DC in March to present at the annual conference of the Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness (SREE). We’re included in three presentations as part of a symposium on Social and Emotional Learning in Educational Settings & Academic Learning, and we have one presentation and a poster that report the results of a randomized trial conducted as part of an i3 validation grant, and address certain methodological challenges we have faced in conducting RCTs generally. In all, we will be disseminating results of, and discussing approaches to addressing technical challenges, from three i3 projects. We have either presented at or attended the SREE conference for the past 14 years, and look forward to the rich program that SREE is bound to put together for us in 2020.

We would be delighted to see you in either San Francisco or Washington DC. Please let us know if you plan to attend either conference.

Spring 2018 Conference Season is Taking Shape

We’ll be on the road again this spring.

SREE

Andrew Jaciw and Denis Newman will be in Washington DC for the annual spring conference of the The Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness (SREE), the premier conference on rigorous research. Andrew Jaciw will present his paper: Leveraging Fidelity Data to Making Sense of Impact Results: Informing Practice through Research. His presentation will be a part of Session 2I: Research Methods - Post-Random Assignment Models: Fidelity, Attrition, Mediation & More from 8-10am on Thursday, March 1.

SXSW EDU

In March, Denis Newman will be attending SXSW EDU Conference & Festival in Austin, TX and presenting on a panel along with Malvika Bhagwat, Jason Palmer, and Karen Billings titled Can Evidence Even Keep Up with EdTech? This will address how researchers and companies can produce evidence that products work—in time for educators and administrators to make a knowledgeable buying decision under accelerating timelines.

AERA

Empirical staff will be presenting in 4 different sessions at the annual conference of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) in NYC in April, all under Division H (Research, Evaluation, and Assessment in Schools).

1. For Quasi-experiments on Edtech Products, What Counts as Being Treated?
2. Teacher evaluation rubric properties and associations with school characteristics: Evidence from the Texas evaluation system
3. Indicators of Successful Teacher Recruitment and Retention in Oklahoma Rural Schools
4. The Challenges and Successes of Conducting Large-scale Educational Research

In addition to these presentations, we are planning another of our celebrated receptions in NYC so stay tuned for details.

ISTE

A panel on our Research Guidelines has been accepted at this major convention, considered the epicenter of edtech with thousands of users and 100s of companies, held this year in Chicago from June 24–27.

National Forum to Advance Rural Education 2017

We are participating in 2 discussions at the National Forum to Advance Rural Education, organized by Battelle for Kids on Thursday, October 12, 2017.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 12 | 1:15–2:15pm
Quality Teachers in Rural Schools: Lessons Learned in Oklahoma
Join a discussion with the Regional Educational Laboratory Southwest (REL Southwest) and practitioners in the Oklahoma Rural Schools Research Alliance about their research focused on two areas of high need in rural schools: teacher recruitment and retention, and professional development. This informal discussion with the researchers and Oklahoma practitioners will focus on how you can use the information from these studies in your own state and school district.
Presenters:
Pia Peltola (REL Southwest, American Institutes for Research)
Susan Pinson (Oklahoma State Department of Education)
Kathren Stehno (Office of Educational Quality & Accountability)
Megan Toby (Empirical Education)
Haidee Williams (REL Southwest, American Institutes for Research)

Rosa Ailbouni Room, Third Floor

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 12 | 2:30–3pm
Recruiting and Retaining Quality Teachers in Oklahoma
Learn about research conducted in partnership with the Regional Educational Laboratory Southwest (REL Southwest) and practitioners in the Oklahoma Rural Schools Research Alliance. The research identified teacher, district, and community characteristics that are predictors of successful teacher recruitment and retention in rural Oklahoma which can inform future policy and practice. Join the researchers and alliance members who guided the research and discover how you can use the information in your school district.
Presenters:
Kathren Stehno (Office of Educational Quality & Accountability)
Megan Toby (Empirical Education)
Haidee Williams (REL Southwest, American Institutes for Research)

Great Hall Meeting Room 2, First Floor

We Are Participating in the Upcoming REL Webinar on Teacher Mobility

Join Regional Educational Laboratories Midwest and Southwest for a free webinar on October 4 to learn how states can address teacher demand and mobility trends. As a partner in REL Southwest, we will be reporting on our work on teacher recruitment and retention in rural Oklahoma.

Teachers and administrators change schools for a variety of reasons. Mobility can be a positive if an educator moves to a position that is a better fit, but it can also have serious implications for states. Mobility may harm schools that serve high-need populations, and mobility can also create additional recruitment and hiring costs for districts.

This webinar focuses on research addressing the teacher pipeline and the mobility of teachers between schools and districts. Presenters will discuss two published REL Midwest research studies on teacher mobility trends and strategies for estimating teacher supply and demand. Following each presentation, leaders from the Oklahoma State Department of Education and the Minnesota Department of Education will respond to the presentations and share state initiatives to meet teacher staffing needs. Presenters also will briefly highlight two upcoming REL Southwest studies related to teacher supply and demand that are expected to be released later this year.

The studies that will be discussed are:
- An examination of the movement of educators within and across three Midwest Region states (REL Midwest, AIR)
- Strategies for estimating teacher supply and demand using student and teacher data (REL Midwest, AIR)
- Indicators of successful teacher recruitment and retention in Oklahoma rural schools (REL Southwest, Empirical Education)
- Teacher mobility in Texas: Trends and associations with student, teacher, and school characteristics (REL Southwest, AIR, Empirical Education)

This webinar is designed for state education staff, administrators in schools and districts with significant American Indian populations, American Indian community leaders, research alliance and community of practice members, and education researchers. If you cannot attend the live event, register at the link below to be notified when a recording of the webinar is available online.

Exploring Educator Movement Between Districts
October 4, 2017
10:00–11:30 a.m. PT

The Regional Educational Laboratories (RELs) build the capacity of educators to use data and research to improve student outcomes. Each REL responds to needs identified in its region and makes learning opportunities and other resources available to educators throughout the United States. The REL program is a part of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) in the U.S. Department of Education. To receive regular updates on REL work, including events and reports, follow IES on Facebook and Twitter.

You can register for this event on the REL website.