Hello, my name is Scott Cody and I’m Deputy Director of the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC). I’m also the Associate Director of Human Services Research at Mathematica Policy Research. I’d like to share with you an important resource for researchers, educators, and policy makers. Evaluators know how important study design is to the validity of study results. Valid research can educate the public and empower them to make better decisions about everything from healthcare to education.
Resource: The WWC, founded by the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences, is a central source for comprehensive reviews of education research. Each WWC review takes a thorough look at the research on a particular topic or education program, product, or practice. Our goal is to identify well-designed studies and summarize those studies’ findings for decision-makers. To do this, we measure each study against the WWC research standards. These standards apply to the study methodology, the strength of the study’s data, and the adequacy of the study’s statistical procedures. We then summarize the findings of all studies that meet WWC standards, and develop an overall rating of effectiveness. In this way, WWC reports tell educators what the highest-quality research says about the effectiveness of individual education interventions. The WWC may be accessed online at http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/.
Want to learn more about the WWC? Join Scott for an AEA Coffee Break Webinar, Thursday, May 13, 2:00-2:20 PM EST. He’ll demonstrate how to get the most out of the WWC website and locate important information for decision-making in education. Sign up at http://ow.ly/1IkXX
Want to learn more about the WWC’s standards for research? Join Neil Seftor, Deputy Director of the WWC for an AEA Coffee Break Webinar Thursday, May 20, 2:00-2:20 PM EST. He’ll cover the design and reporting requirements researchers must demonstrate to meet WWC standards. Sign up at http://ow.ly/1IkXX
For members only, the screencast and recording of the Coffee Break Webinar Neil Seftor offered on What Works in Education: The Research Design Standards of the What Works Clearinghouse may be accessed here http://bit.ly/SeftorWWCweb.
For members only, the screencast and recording of the Coffee Break Webinar Scott Cody offered on What Works in Education: Using the What Works Clearinghouse Website may be accessed here http://bit.ly/WWCCodyWeb.
Not a member? His handout on resources for learning more about the What Works Clearinghouse Website may be found in the AEA Public eLibrary here http://bit.ly/b0Wigq. I encourage you to consider joining and thus gaining access to AEA’s webinars archive library (as well as journals, professional development, thought leaders discussions, newsletters…). Join now online at http://www.eval.org/membership.asp.