The Answer Lab USC Rossier

Educational leaders need to make tough decisions all the time. Often, these decisions could be informed by research, but rarely does this actually happen. The Answer Lab is changing this. We take questions directly from policymakers and find the right experts to answer them using the newest and best evidence. Hard questions. Clear answers. On a timeline that works. That’s our mission.

Brief 001

Kaitlin Anderson

What proactive school and district policies/practices can best promote a positive school climate and reduce the need for student disciplinary referrals?

Supplement 1

September 30, 2019

Brief 002

Douglas Fuchs & Lynn S. Fuchs

Which instructional practices can be used by both special education and general education teachers to improve academic achievement among students with disabilities?

Supplement 1, Supplement 2

September 29, 2019

Brief 003

Heather C. Hill

What is the best way to provide professional learning to teachers when they lack key content knowledge in mathematics?

Supplement 1

October 29, 2019

Brief 004

Mariana Castro

How can school systems use the results of state English Language Proficiency assessments along with progress monitoring tools in the classroom to determine instructional implications to supporting language development for English Learners?

Supplement 1

December 19, 2019

Brief 005

Jobi Lawrence

How can school systems use the results of state English Language Proficiency assessments along with progress monitoring tools in the classroom to determine instructional implications to supporting language development for English Learners?

Supplement 1, Addendums

December 20, 2019

Brief 006

Alan Schoenfeld

How can teachers help students who lack foundational math skills but have been passed into advanced math classes?

March 10, 2020

Brief 007

Paul von Hippel

EVIDENCE FOR COVID-19: What does research say about staggered school calendars?

May 18, 2020

Brief 008

Geoffrey D. Borman

EVIDENCE FOR COVID-19: What can be done to address learning losses due to school closures?

June 1, 2020

Brief 009

TODOS - Mathematics for All

What are the best approaches for teaching mathematics to newcomers to the U.S. who are English learners?

References

June 12, 2020

Brief 010

Susan Brookhart

EVIDENCE FOR COVID-19: What grading and assessment practices could schools use in the year ahead?

September 1, 2020

Kaitlin Anderson

Dr. Kaitlin Anderson is an Assistant Professor at Lehigh University. Her research interests include school choice, teacher labor markets, and student discipline, all with a focus on improving access to high quality educational opportunities for all students regardless of socioeconomic background.

Douglas Fuchs

Douglas Fuchs, Ph.D. is Professor and Nicholas Hobbs Chair in Special Education and Human Development. They are international leaders in the study of learning disabilities.

Lynn S. Fuchs

Lynn Fuchs is the Dunn Family Chair in Psychoeducational Assessment at Vanderbilt University. They are international leaders in the study of learning disabilities.

Heather C. Hill

Heather C. Hill is the Jerome T. Murphy Professor in Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her primary work focuses on teacher and teaching quality and the effects of policies aimed at improving both.

Mariana Castro

Mariana Castro, Ph.D., serves as Deputy Director at the Wisconsin Center for Education Research and as Director of Research, Policy and Evaluation for the WIDA Consortium. Her research focuses on policy, teaching and learning, and advocacy related to the education of multilingual learners.

Jobi Lawrence

Dr. Jobi Lawrence serves as a program manager for ELPA21 at UCLA CRESST. She is a nationally recognized expert in the field of English language learners, and an advocate for all students.

Alan Schoenfeld

Alan Schoenfeld is the Elizabeth and Edward Conner Professor of Education and Affiliated Professor of Mathematics at the University of California at Berkeley. His work focuses on creating learning environments from which students emerge as knowledgeable and resourceful thinkers and problem solvers.

Paul von Hippel

Paul von Hippel is an Associate Professor of Public Affairs at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. He studies evidence-based policy, educational inequality and the relationship between schooling, health and obesity.

Geoffrey D. Borman

Geoffrey D. Borman is transitioning to Arizona State University, where he will be Foundation Professor of Quantitative Methods and Education Policy. His main substantive interests include social stratification and the ways in which educational policies and practices can help address and overcome inequality. His methodological interests concern estimation of the causal effects of interventions implemented on a widespread basis in field settings.

TODOS - Mathematics for All

The authors, Marta Civil, Zandra de Araujo, Carlos López Leiva, Erin Sylves, María del Rosario Zavala are board members of TODOS: Mathematics for All. The mission of TODOS is to advocate for equity and high quality mathematics education for all students—in particular, Latina/o students.

Susan Brookhart

Susan M. Brookhart is professor emerita in the School of Education at Duquesne University and an independent educational consultant and author. Brookhart's interests include the role of both formative and summative classroom assessment in student motivation and achievement, the connection between classroom assessment and large-scale assessment, and grading.

Morgan Polikoff

Getting beyond ‘did it work?’: Proposing a new approach to integrate research and policy

September 25, 2018

Morgan Polikoff

Morgan Polikoff is an associate professor of education at the USC Rossier School of Education and the co-director of the Center on Education Policy, Equity and Governance. He is a national leader in researching the design, implementation, and effects of standards, assessment, and accountability policies, earning the Early Career Award from the American Educational Research Association in 2017. A researcher committed to impact, Morgan regularly writes for nonacademic audiences, speaks to policymakers and practitioners, and communicates research on social media. Find him on twitter @mpolikoff.

The mission of the USC Center on Education Policy, Equity and Governance is to conduct rigorous, practice-relevant research that advances educational equity for California K-12 students–with an emphasis on greater Los Angeles– and to create partnerships that ensure education policies, practices, and governance structures are guided by evidence and careful analysis.

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