Should Congress Extend Funding For Department Of Education Research Programs? (S. 227)

What is S. 227?

(Updated March 15, 2018)

This bill would change and reauthorize funding for the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (ESRA) through 2021. Through this funding, money would also be applied to various research activities conducted through the Department of Education.

Among the programs and research activities funded by this legislation, some include:

• The Institute of Education Sciences: an independent research organization that conducts and oversees education research.

• The National Center for Special Education Research: tasked with conducting research into ways to expand knowledge of infants, toddlers, and children with disabilities.

Also funded would be two Department of Education grant programs — one of which offers funding to states for developing and expanding data systems that can track student information over multiple years in multiple schools (i.e. longitudinal data systems). The other program funds local organizations that offer technical assistance and evaluations for compliance issues stemming from the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.

A subtitle of this bill provides funding for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Authorization Act, allowing for the administration and oversight of national student achievement tests that cover mathematics and reading. These tests provide academic achievement information to educational leaders at the state and local level on elementary and secondary school students. The National Assessment Governing Board oversees the administration of the NAEP, and would also receive its funding from this legislation.

Argument in favor

There needs to be continuous research into U.S. educational systems so those in power can see what's working and what's not. The U.S. can get back to being a world education leader.

Argument opposed

For all the noble programs this bill provides funding for, it doesn’t provide measurable goals that these programs are supposed to work towards.

Impact

U.S. students, their families, teachers, school administrators, state and local educational leaders, entities receiving Department of Education research funding, and the Department of Education.

Cost of S. 227

The CBO estimates that implementing this bill would cost around $2 billion over the 2016-2020 period — or $400 million annually. For the 2016 fiscal year, $612 million in appropriations would be authorized, while $3.2 billion would be appropriated for the 2016-2020 period.

Additional Info

Of Note:

The House of Representatives passes a nearly identical version of this bill during the 113th Congress, as did the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions — but the Senate as a whole never voted on it.

The Institute of Education Sciences would be required to identify research topics that focus on ensuring all students have the ability to obtain a high quality education. Additionally, research into improving access to and the quality of early childhood education, strengthening elementary and secondary schools, and increasing access to and completion of postsecondary education would be required.

Privacy protections in education research would be strengthened to prevent breaches of personally identifiable information.

The Department of Education’s comprehensive centers (cohorts in charge of offering technical assistance to states) would be directed to prioritize serving the needs of school districts and schools with higher numbers of low-income students, and schools identified as needing improvement.

Duplication in the federal education research system would be reduced by authorizing the consolidation or elimination of federal research laboratories and centers that aren’t "effective", and increasing coordination between laboratories and centers. The number of Department of Education comprehensive centers would be reduced from 22 to 17.

Regular evaluations of research and education programs run by independent entities would be required to enhance accountability.

Federally funded education research would be required to be distributed to teachers, students, parents, and policymakers at the state and local level to ensure that it is relevant to state and local leaders.

Media:

Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Press Release

CBO Cost Estimate

Triangle Coalition for STEM Education

Pennsylvania Workforce Development Association

(Photo Credit: Flickr user Amy M. Youngs)