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Elementary and Secondary Education

A wide variety of educational issues are explored in Westat's projects concerning elementary and secondary education, including educational achievement, comparative studies of achievement, school-level implementation of reform, and program effectiveness and impact.

• Since 1983, Westat has been the sampling and data collection contractor for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), a survey of educational achievement among elementary and secondary school students. For each assessment cycle, our staff performs the following:
  • Samples schools and students,
  • Works with state and local authorities to secure each school's cooperation, and
  • Administers in-school assessments in a variety of academic subjects.
  
  Data are collected at the national level every year and at the state level every 2 years. In order to provide reliable statistics in years for which both national- and state-level data are collected, more than 15,000 schools and 850,000 students participate in NAEP.
• Westat has been the prime contractor for the U.S. component of all but one the international comparative studies of student achievement noted below. These studies are sponsored by NCES and include the following:
  • Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) (2000, 2003),
  • Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) (1995, 1999, 2003, 2007),
  • Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) (2001),
  • Civics Education Study (CES) (1999),
  • International Reading Literacy Study (1991),
  
  Samples ranged from 5,000 to 10,000 pupils in public and private schools. In each case Westat and/or subcontractors conduct the data collection, scoring, preliminary data processing, analysis, and reporting.

• The National Household Education Survey uses RDD and CATI technology to survey household respondents on a range of educational issues, including early childhood educational experiences, parent involvement in education, and adult education. Our role has included the following:
  • Field testing,
  • Ongoing methodologic work,
  • Screening between 34,000 and 64,000 households per survey administration to find eligible household members,
  • Interviewing from 2,250 up to 24,000 people for each topical survey,
  • Writing reports on survey findings, and
  • Producing public-use and restricted-use data files for data analysts.
• Westat provides analytic and technical support to the Comprehensive School Reform (CSR) program. CSR is designed to support schoolwide improvements in low-performing schools, based on scientifically based research and effective practices. Westat assists state CSR coordinators in the following:
  • Collecting data,
  • Producing state-level evaluation reports, and
  • Analyzing results in the areas of program implementation and student achievement.
• Westat is conducting a followup evaluation of the effectiveness of the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) Program. GEAR UP projects are aimed at increasing the enrollment of disadvantaged students in postsecondary education. Westat previously examined the program's effects during students' middle school years. The follow-up study will assess the long-term outcomes. High school seniors and parents will be interviewed via web and telephone regarding the following:
  • Students high school experiences and plans to continue their education, and
  • Enrollment in postsecondary programs after high school graduation.
• Since 2003, Westat has enjoyed a successful partnership with the U.S. Department of Education's (ED's) Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE) Academic Improvement and Teacher Quality (AITQ) programs to undertake a variety of activities to help the nation meet the highly qualified teacher challenge called for under No Child Left Behind (NCLB). Our diverse range of activities under this contract include the following:
  • Teacher-to-Teacher Initiative. In the summers of 2004 and 2005, Westat facilitated 13 regional workshops in core academic content areas reaching 3,500 teachers from around the country. Westat is working with ED to expand outreach to teachers through the Teacher Training Corps (TCC). Westat also supports ED through various outreach activities, including convening roundtables to listen to teachers' concerns, running the American Stars of Teaching program, and maintaining ED's Teacher Update electronic mailing list.
  • Title II, Part A, NCLB Monitoring. Westat has assisted ED in monitoring state implementation of Title II, Part A, teacher quality provisions. Westat staff members are part of the monitoring team conducting the reviews and preparing draft reports.
  • Support to the Title II, Part A, Program Office. Westat continues to support ED by researching promising practices related to teacher quality; collecting and analyzing data on teacher quality; convening national workshops for NCLB, Title II, Part A coordinators; and maintaining a web site to support project outreach.
  • Teacher Assistance Corps (TAC). Westat organized and coordinated TAC visits to all 50 states, Washington, DC, and Puerto Rico. During the visits, teams explained the legislative requirements, answered policy questions, obtained information about innovative state and local initiatives, and learned about unique situations in each state.
• Westat is conducting an evaluation of the DC Choice Scholarship Program, sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences in the U.S. Department of Education and the Washington, DC Mayor's Office. The evaluation includes an impact analysis that compares the outcomes of students who did and did not receive scholarships through a lottery, as well as a performance reporting analysis that compares all students participating in the scholarship program to students in the same grades in the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS). Westat will perform the following:
  • Administer standardized tests to the scholarship recipients and to the applicants that did not receive scholarships;
  • Survey parents of applicants;
  • Survey student applicants in grades 4 through 12;
  • Survey principals in public, charter, and nonpublic schools in DC; and
  • Collect testing and demographic data from DCPS.
• Through the Fast Response Survey System (FRSS), Westat has conducted more than 90 surveys on policy-relevant topics for NCES, such as the following:
  • Distance education,
  • Foods and physical activity in elementary schools,
  • Courses allowing high school students to earn college credits,
  • Internet access in public and private schools,
  • Prekindergarten programs in public schools, and
  • Public alternative schools and programs for at-risk students.
  
  In addition to developing the questionnaires and collecting data by mail, web, and telephone, Westat analyzes the data and prepares survey reports.
• Under a multiyear contract with the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS), Westat evaluates the program impacts of the Peaceable Schools Initiative, a systemic effort to reduce violence and create safe, drug-free schools. Our staff's efforts include the following:
  • Analyzing weapons-related incidents in DCPS senior high schools,
  • Evaluating the impact of student peer-mediation programs, and
  • Conducting follow-up surveys of DCPS teachers who have had specialized training in violence prevention efforts.
• Under contract to CDC, Westat delivers technical assistance to more than 75 state and local education agencies conducting surveys of adolescent risk behaviors and programs designed to reduce those risks. Our services have included the following:
  • Web site development,
  • Training,
  • Survey materials,
  • Sample selection,
  • Data preparation,
  • Data analysis assistance, and
  • Report preparation.
• Westat and its subcontractor are conducting a multiyear evaluation of Ohio's Reading First program designed to improve teaching and enhance literacy in grades K-3. The evaluation study includes the following:
  • Surveys of participating principals and teachers,
  • Case studies of selected districts,
  • Analyses of reading achievement data, and
  • Comparisons of performance between participating and nonparticipating students.
• Westat is evaluating the Vertically Integrated Partnership, a mathematics and science partnership program conducted by the University of Maryland and the Montgomery County Public Schools. The evaluation focuses on changes in science teaching and learning at the high school and postsecondary levels. The study includes the following:
  • Surveys of high school teachers and student interns,
  • Focus groups,
  • Classroom observations at high school and postsecondary levels,
  • Analyses of performance on an end-of-course exams, and
  • Social networking analysis to study the development of new collaborations.
• Westat is conducting an experimental study to assess the impact of providing refurbished computers and Internet access to the families of fifth grade students.
  • The 3-year study, funded through a grant from the U.S. Department of Education to Pennsylvania, randomly assigned 350 families that did not have a home computer to either a treatment or control group.
  • Following a telephone survey to identify appropriate families, households that lacked a home computer were invited to participate in the study.
  • The treatment group households received a refurbished computer with Internet access, a printer, introductory training, opportunities to participate in ongoing enrichment activities, and ongoing technical assistance. (Control group households received the same benefits at the end of the school year.)
  • Data will be used to assess whether providing home computers affects students' interest in schoolwork, students' performance in both the classroom and on statewide assessments, and parental involvement in their children's schoolwork.
• Westat provides assistance to individual school districts, particularly in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area. For example, for several years, Westat has evaluated the District of Columbia's program for limited-English-proficient students. Earlier studies with local school districts include the following:
  • An evaluation of improvements in the Baltimore City Public School System,
  • Conducted and analysis of school improvement surveys for the Howard County Public School System,
  • Satisfaction surveys for the District of Columbia, and
  • A wide range of projects for Montgomery County, Maryland.
• Westat is active in research on school libraries and media centers, including the following:
  • Authored the report School Library Media Centers: 1993-94 using data from the Schools and Staffing Survey;
  • Surveyed public libraries in 1994 on the services provided to children and young adults;
  • Prepared an historical report on public school libraries over the period 1950-2000;
  • Assessed the role of school and public libraries in support of educational reform through commissioned papers, case studies, and surveys; and
  • Evaluating the impact of the Improving Literacy though School Libraries Program.

• Under contract since 2001, Westat has been working with the Maryland State Department of Education to develop a standards-based assessment of fine arts education. Our services include the following:
  • Literature review of the state-of-the-art in large-scale Fine Arts Assessments and Portfolio Assessments (2006);
  • Assessment development in visual arts, music, dance, and theatre;
  • Content review of assessment tasks;
  • Technical support in development of fine arts content standards;
  • Pilot testing of assessment activities;
  • Development of an online Instructional Tool Kit;
  • Development of an online Fine Arts Professional Development Resource Tool that provides opportunities to interface with the Instructional Tool Kit (2006); and
  • Development of Portfolio Assessment Accountability System (2006).

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