education r&d

A recent New York Times editorial painted a damning portrait of learning loss from COVID-19 school closures, arguing it “may prove to be the most damaging disruption in the history of American education” setting “student progress in math and reading back by two decades.” The Institute for Education Sciences is a federal agency within the Department of Education with a modest budget and a daunting mandate—figure out what works and what doesn’t, including how to reverse and mitigate learning loss. 

IES Director Mark Schneider has led the agency since 2017. In that time, the agency has funded an array of million-dollar programs and faced the unprecedented disruptions of COVID-19. Evan and Director Schneider discuss the challenges facing students and educators, what we can learn from COVID-19 and the government’s response, and how artificial intelligence could help individualize education.

When it comes to science and math education, America’s report card has been in decline. According to the National Science Foundation, U.S. students have lagged their peers for over ten years, ranking dead last in math among our closest economic competitors. With the U.S. seeking to lead the world in artificial intelligence, how will the country’s math and science literacy impact jobs and economic growth? The federal government has invested billions of dollars in improving STEM education in K-12 schools. What works? What doesn’t? And how can research and development play a role in achieving America’s education goals? 

Evan is joined by Melissa Moritz, Senior Fellow for the Social Innovation Team at the Federation of American Scientists, and Dan Lips, Head of Policy and Senior Fellow at FAI. You can check out their co-authored paper on this subject here.