CARE – Examples of Our Work

What is the impact on students civic engagement and performance in high school, as well as the implementation, and cost-effectiveness, of a program that helps teachers to facilitate discussion of current and contested topics with their students?

What is the study about? The purpose of this study is to learn how to improve the quality and quantity of students’ discussion of current issues. Funded by the Institute of Education Sciences’ Education Research Grants program, this randomized controlled trial study seeks to provide rigorous evidence of the impact of the “TALCCS” program—including instructional resources and professional learning supports for teachers–on students’ classroom discussion engagement, civic and ELA knowledge, school attendance, civic behavior (i.e., 2022 midterm voting), and longer-term persistence with learning (i.e., high school graduation and college enrollment).

What did we find so far? We will release our interim report in 2027 and our final report in 2029.

Where can you learn more? ies.ed.gov, dornsife.usc.edu/news

What is the impact of this project-based learning curriculum and professional learning intervention on students’ civic engagement and performance in high school?

What is the study about? In partnership with NORC at the University of Chicago the purpose of this study is to learn how to improve student-driven civics education. Funded by the Institute of Education Sciences’ Education Research Grants program, this randomized controlled trial study seeks to provide rigorous evidence of the impact of the Generation Citizen (GC) “action civics” curriculum on students’ critical thinking, civic knowledge, engagement, and behavior (i.e., 2022 midterm voting), and engagement with learning.

What did we find so far? We are currently analyzing data examining implementation, cost effectiveness, and impact. Results will inform educators’ and policymakers’ decisions regarding whether and how to implement civic education.

Where can you learn more? ies.ed.gov

What have we learned about key topics facing the public education system today from a nationally-representative panel of households?

What is the study about? We continuously leverage the UAS to ask households with K-12 children about their experiences with their students’ school systems, how their students are doing academically, socially, and psychologically, and to learn insights about best ways for schools to focus on improvements. We also ask households with or without children for their opinions and attitudes towards controversial or mission-critical current school topics, like book banning, LGBTQ topics in the curriculum, and about the chronic absenteeism crisis.

What did we find so far? Our work has revealed many critical findings key to informing education policy. We have measured adults perspectives on COVID-related school closings, controversial topics in school classrooms, student mental health, absenteeism, cell phone policies, the value of postsecondary education, among many others. Recently published reports and articles include:

Reports

•  A Deep Exploration of Chronic Absenteeism: Causes, Consequences, and Potential Solutions. Volume I Beyond the Numbers: Parent Perspectives on Chronic Absenteeism (July, 2025)

•  Agreement across the aisle: Schools should prepare students for the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.USC Center for Applied Research in Education. (February, 2025)

•  A Nation’s Children at Risk: Insights on Children’s Mental Health from The Understanding America Study. (August, 2024)

•  Searching for Common Ground: Widespread support for public schools but substantial partisan divides about teaching contested topics. (February, 2024)

•  The Kids Are All Right? What Parents Really Think About How COVID Affected Children. (December, 2023)

Articles:

•  What do adults know about public education? Research has shown that US adults know little about education policy and practice. This should worry us. Phi Delta Kappan, (2024)

•  Who wants to say “gay?” Public opinion about LGBT issues in the curriculum. Journal of LGBT Youth (2024)

•  The subjective value of postsecondary education in the time of COVID: Evidence from a nationally representative panel. Peabody Journal of Education. (2022)

•  The Impact of a Messaging Intervention on Parents’ School Hesitancy During COVID-19. Educational Researcher, (2022)

•  Disparities in Educational Access in the Time of COVID: Evidence From a Nationally Representative Panel of American Families. AERA Open. (2021)

Where can you learn more? See more of our UAS-related work in commentaries, opinion pieces, blogs, news stories, and other media outlets here.

What is the impact of the newest Great Minds math and science curricula on student achievement?

What are these studies about? This pair of studies evaluates the effects of adopting Eureka Math Squared curriculum on math achievement and the effects of adopting the PhD Science curriculum on science achievement. We compare achievement on end-of-grade math and science exams in 3^rd through 5^th grade in focal states (North Carolina for math, Louisiana for science) before and after curriculum adoption using a difference-in-differences framework.

What did we find? We found no impact of PhD Science adoption on science achievement in 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th We found positive, moderate impacts of Eureka Math Squared adoption on math achievement in 3^rdand 5^th grades (0.11 and 0.15 standard deviations, respectively) but no impacts in 4^th grade. Both analyses were limited by a relative lack of post-adoption data and, in some cases, by adoption coinciding with the Covid-19 pandemic.

How do students and teachers experience a project-based learning approach to math and social studies supported by PBLWorks’ curriculum-based professional learning units?

What is the study about? PBLWorks curriculum-based professional learning units support teachers’ instruction of their state-standards based curriculum through project-based learning pedagogy. CARE researchers, along with partners at Gibson Consulting Group, are using surveys, interviews, and analysis of administrative data to conduct a formative evaluation of PBLWorks’ program. Results will shed light on challenges, and bright spots, informing program development. We will also describe correlations between students’ participation in classrooms using PBLWorks materials and their academic performance and social-emotional learning outcomes.

What did we find? This study is in progress through spring 2026.

Where can you learn more? Learn more about PBLWorks on their website https://www.pblworks.org and return to this page to learn more about the study results in spring 2026.

What is this study about? PLTW is a STEM curriculum designed to empower preK-12 students. OpenSciEd is a set of science instructional materials and associated curriculum-based professional learning. One8 Foundation supports work to help scale access to these programs across Massachusetts along with an evaluation of the effectiveness of these programs. Our team supports One8’s evaluation efforts through administering annual teacher and student surveys for both PLTW and OpenSciEd users. Surveys are designed to inform the evaluation by measuring program strengths and areas for growth. We also create data dashboards allowing teachers and school leaders to see their students’ data in real-time, allowing them to use formative feedback to inform local decisions and improvements.

Where can you learn more?  Read more about One8’s efforts to support students through applied learning programs here: https://one8appliedlearninghub.org/

What can we learn about school attendance decisions and experiences from a nationally representative sample of adults and teens that will help reduce the current absenteeism crisis in America?

What is the study about? This mixed-methods study aims to a) strengthen the evidence base documenting root causes of absenteeism, the prevalence of those causes, and for which students, b) examine how individual and family characteristics relate to absenteeism patterns, and c) inform the design of effective attendance interventions through surveys and interviews with a nationally representative panel of adults and teens across the country.

What did we find? This study is in progress. We will be releasing results as they become available.

•  Volume I: Beyond the Numbers: Parent Perspectives on Chronic Absenteeism

Where can you learn more? Learn more about the chronic absenteeism crisis and how funding from the Center for Reinventing Public Education is supporting work to solve this critical problem facing education systems: https://crpe.org/call-for-proposals-research-to-help-finish-the-work-of-pandemic-recovery/

What is the impact of a partnership between several CA school districts and the California Collaborative for Educational Excellence’s (CCEE) system of improvement practices to support struggling students?

What is the study about? CCEE has been working with 5 California school districts for three years, implementing improvement practices to support struggling students with professional development provider Solution Tree. This evaluation, in collaboration with PACE at Stanford University, seeks to identify scalable solutions for enhancing teaching and learning. USC CARE’s role is to examine the impact of the partnership on student performance on statewide tests and on student attendance.

What did we find? This study is in progress. PACE will be releasing results upon conclusion of the evaluation.

Where can you learn more? Learn more about PACE’s work in improving education outcomes for students here: https://edpolicyinca.org/

What is the impact of this project-based learning curriculum and professional learning intervention on student learning and performance on the AP exam?

What was the study about? CARE researchers, along with partners at Penn State University and Gibson Consulting Group, used a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the Knowledge in Action (KIA) project-based learning (PBL) approach to Advanced Placement (AP).

What did we find? The study found that KIA students outperformed non-KIA students on AP exams, including within subgroups. Though the shift to PBL required considerable pedagogical changes, teachers and students perceived benefits beyond AP performance, and the majority of teachers planned to continue using PBL after the study. The pattern of results was consistent for two years and in two courses, AP U.S. Government and AP Environmental Science. Results support teacher-driven adoption of KIA for students from both lower- and higher-income households, and in both courses.

Where can you learn more? Read more about our findings: Saavedra et al, 2021. Saavedra et al, 2022

How well do students judge the credibility of online information?

What was the study about? In partnership with the Stanford History Education Group(SHEG) and Gibson Consulting Group, CARE researchers administered an assessment to more than 3,000 students in 16 districts across the country. Districts varied by region, urbanicity, size and demographic composition to create a sample approximating the demographic profile of high school students across the United States. The SHEG-developed assessment gauged students’ ability to evaluate digital sources on the open internet.

What did we find? Nearly all students floundered. Ninety percent received no credit on four of six tasks. These results informed SHEG’s development of curriculum designed to teach U.S. students how to be critical consumers of online information.

Where can you learn more?

•  Students’ Civic Online Reasoning: A National Portrait (Educational Researcher)

•  Students’ Civic Online Reasoning: A National Portrait (SSRN)

•  Digital Inquiry Group

How do teachers and students experience this project-based curriculum teaching about the Rule of Law?

What was the study about? In partnership with the Street Law , the purpose of this study was to evaluate the implementation of Street Law’s “Rule of Law” curriculum, lessons, materials and professional learning program in one east-coast school district as well as among teachers from various other nearby districts. Funded by the Annenberg foundation, our evaluation examined changes in students’ understanding of the concept of “Rule of Law” gained through Street Law’s “Rule of Law” curriculum, as well as participating teachers’ experiences and perceptions of student engagement.

What did we find? Results are informing continued program development, associated professional development, and more generally are informing the national conversation about needs to improve students’ ability to evaluate online source credibility.

Where can you learn more? Read more about this study here.

How did English learners’ English proficiency in Texas fare during COVID-induced school disruptions?

What was the study about? As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, students across Texas had limited and disrupted access to typical educational contexts and services during the 2020-21 school year. Changes to remote or hybrid instruction raise risks for student progress and learning, especially for English learner students, who need extensive opportunities to practice speaking and hearing English to develop English oral language proficiency as well as literacy skills. In partnership with American Institutes for Research, Gibson Consulting Group, and the Texas Education Agency(TEA) as part of the Southwest Regional Education Laboratory,

What did we find? We found that rates of reclassification from an English learner student to an English proficient student declined between 2017/18 and 2020/21, and trends in the characteristics of reclassified students changed. Of students reclassified to English Proficient during that period, fewer were a) enrolled in major urban areas, b) eligible for the National School Lunch Program, c) coming from homes where Spanish is the first language, and d) identified as Hispanic. Students being reclassified as English Proficient were morelikely to come from non-urban areas, be from higher income households, speak languages other than Spanish, and not be Hispanic but be from another race/ethnicity. Regarding English proficiency, we found that English learner students in elementary grades in 2020/21 earned meaningfully lower scores on the listening, speaking, and reading domains of the Texas English Language Proficiency Assessment than similar students earned before the pandemic, particularly in speaking. The findings for secondary grades were mixed; middle school students earned lower scores in listening, and high school students earned higher scores in speaking.

Where can you learn more? Read more about this study here.

How did a whole-school strategic staffing reform affect student achievement and teacher mobility?

What was the study about? Beginning with the 2017-18 school year, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) established grant programs to provide financial support to Title I schools. The purpose of the grants is to design and implement strategic school improvements. One whole-school improvement model, “School Restart,” requires schools to develop a new academic program and replace school leadership and instructional staff. This study, in partnership with American Institutes for Research, Gibson Consulting Group, and TEA as part of the Southwest Regional Education Laboratory, was conducting an evaluation of the effects of school restart on student, teacher, and principal outcomes.

What did we find? We found that nearly 80% of teachers left restart schools before the first year of implementation and that educators who arrived were more likely to have over three years of experience and advanced degrees compared to those who left or stayed. We also found that the restart strategy positively impacted student achievement in reading and math. Student attendance improved in the first year, but the effect was not sustained in subsequent years.

Where can you learn more? Read more about this study here.

Is a free five-week district summer enrichment and academic instruction camp helping students improve in reading and math?

What was the study about? In partnership with Gibson Consulting Group, our research team conducted an evaluation of Pittsburgh’s Summer BOOST program in 2023 and 2024 with the primary goal of helping to inform district decisions regarding future programming.

What did we find? Analysis of interview and program data revealed district and program staff believed the BOOST program benefits students through building confidence, increasing self-efficacy as learners, building relationships (with students and with teachers), and increasing exposure to role models reflective of students’ communities. Areas in need of improvement included low student attendance, transportation challenges, and supporting students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). Our quasi-experimental quantitative study found no meaningfully-sized positive effects in math and reading from summer 2023, but some promising subgroup results in the emotional regulation domain of Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) for boys in Grade 5. These results mostly persisted in the summer 2024 programming period, though leveraging improved attendance record-keeping we found a positive, statistically significant association between higher attendance and improvement in math scores, though the magnitude of the effect was substantively small.

Where can you learn more? Read more about PPS’ summer program here.

How does one program in Buffalo, New York incentivize local community members to return to school to become a certified teacher? During the program’s first two years, what worked well and what could be improved?

What is this study about? The Cullen Foundation funded a scholarship program for local-area residents to attend residency-style educator-preparation program in the region to earn a graduate degree and educator certification in efforts to grow the local teacher workforce. Goals included increasing the number of well-prepared educators committed to teaching in Buffalo, increasing the proportion of educators in the community who are Persons of Color, and increasing the number of teachers who are certified in high-need areas. Our study examined the program’s design and implementation during its first two years to provide formative feedback to program partners on the extent to which recruitment and implementation efforts were meeting program goals.

What did we find? Our formative research study uncovered ways for the program to improve outreach and recruitment efforts, improve program messaging and communication, and improve the application process. Bright spots included successful and rewarding mentor relationships, high-quality curriculum, and high-impact residency experiences. Continued areas for improvement include standardizing mentor expectations, narrowing the breadth of program modifications across participating institutions, and better defining key program parameters.

Where can you learn more? Learn more about the BUTF program here.

How, and in what ways, do two selected NTN schools’ teaching and learning practices and experiences align with current PBL best practices?

What is this study about? We used mixed methods to learn students’ and teachers’ experiences implementing whole-school project-based learning models in two NTN partner schools. One school was mature, in their 13th year of operation, and a small magnet school. The other, new in its second operational year at the time of this study, is a large comprehensive high school. In addition to learning about how, and in what ways the two selected NTN schools’ teaching and learning practices and experiences align with current PBL best practice, we also sought to learn about similarities and differences between practices at a mature versus a new NTN school, to substantiate recommendations for how to best support experienced and new NTN schools to optimize their alignment with PBL best practices.

What did we find? Beyond results related to each of nine features of high-quality PBL, two additional emergent themes across both schools included 1) broad consensus supporting PBL’s benefits for students and 2) teachers’ need for more and different professional learning supports and materials beyond what was currently available.

Where can we learn more? Learn about New Tech Network schools here.