How can we support districts to design and implement academic acceleration programs aligned to evidence-based design principles to improve outcomes for students?
Overview: Districts in Rhode Island and across the country are allocating relief funds to test strategies to support students’ academic success and emotional well-being. It is perhaps more important than ever that they use data and evidence to inform these decisions – and that we as a nation find ways to capture the learning associated with these innovations. Because much of the research on the spread of evidence in education highlights the role of peer networks and trusted advisors, the EdResearch for Recovery project launched the Research to Practice Network in RI, to first engage in discussion about research-driven approaches and then pilot high-leverage strategies in ways that generate learning about how to scale these approaches across contexts.
Background: The goal of the Research to Practice network is to create space for district leaders to build shared learning about how to implement research-based interventions in ways that both align with the design principles of the strategy as derived from research but also take into account the challenges of doing this work across different contexts.
This network facilitates participants' understanding of catalysts and barriers to effective implementation on a local level to work towards scaling implementation more broadly. This network is uniquely positioned to produce usable and accessible research using local data that builds on what we’ve already learned in the broader field. This type of research has high value given that actual institutional realities are taken into account compared to traditional research.