1. Using Large-Scale Databases for Research and Grant Writing
Gina M. Pannozzo, CEURE
Reva M. Fish, Educational Foundations
April 22, 2011

2. National Center for Education Statistics
Federal government entity
Housed jointly within the U.S. Department of Education and the Institute of Education Sciences (IES).

3. National Center for Education Statistics
Conducts and reports educational research
Provides researchers with data for secondary analysis
Provides statistical data on education to government officials and the general public

4. Research Programs And Data Products

5. Elementary/Secondary
Beginning Teacher Longitudinal Study (BTLS)
Follows a cohort of teachers who started in 2007
Private School Study (PSS)
Data collected every two years since 1989
School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS)
Data collected from public school principals
Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS)
Follows students from tenth grade through adulthood

6. Elementary/Secondary
High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09)
Follows a cohort of more than 25,000 9th graders
Career/Technical Education Statistics (CTES)
Secondary, postsecondary, and adult learners
School District Demographics System (SDDS)
Characteristics of school districts and K-12 students
Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS)
Data on teachers, principals, schools, school districts, and library media centers

7. Elementary/Secondary
State Education Reforms (SER)
Major developments in state-level education policies
Common Core of Data (CCD)
Administrative data from all public schools
Education Finance Statistics Center (EDFIN)
Explores issues related to education finance
Rural Education in America (Rural)
Conditions in education in rural America
National Household Education Survey (NHES)
Educational activities of the U.S. population

8. Postsecondary Baccalaureate and Beyond (B&B)
Education and employment of students who complete a baccalaureate degree
Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (BPS)
Student characteristics, school and work experiences, persistence, transfer, and degree attainment

9. Postsecondary Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS)
Data from all primary providers of postsecondary education
National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS)
How students and families pay for education
National Study of Postsecondary Faculty (NSOPF)
Data about faculty and instructional staff

10. International
NCES coordinates the participation of the U.S. in international studies, including:
Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS)
Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS)
Program for International Student Assessment (PISA)

11. Early Childhood/Elementary
Early Childhood Longitudinal Study
Kindergarten cohort (ECLS-K)
21,000 children who entered kindergarten in 1998
Followed through 8th grade
Birth cohort (ECLS-B)
14,000 children born in 2001
Followed through kindergarten

12. Database Training and Funding Opportunities

13. Database Training Opportunities
Conferences for researchers, policy makers, education officials and administrators on a wide-range of topics.
Workshops and Training Seminars for researchers to learn about different databases and receive individual support for their research.
Personnel Exchange offers travel funds to allow state or local elementary/secondary education agency staff the opportunity to share information about education data collection, management, and usage across educational agencies.
Travel costs/funding associated with attending conferences and workshops/training seminars are typically covered by NCES!
For Information on Training Opportunities, go to:

14. Other Database Training Opportunities
AERA (American Educational Research Association)
Mini-courses (usually 2-6 hours) sponsored and facilitated by NCES. These are designed as introductions to understanding the basic design of databases, available information, and sample research questions.
Pre-conference workshops/statistical institutes (usually 1-2 days) on specific databases.
Annual Institute on Statistical Analysis for Education Policy in Washington, DC. The next one is May 24-26, Application deadline will be early January 2011.
AERA Statistics Instituted for Faculty is a 3-day training designed to work with faculty who teach graduate research methods in the integration of the analysis of large-scale datasets into their courses. The next one will be held in Summer Application deadline will be early January 2011.
For Information on Training Opportunities, go to:

15. Funding Opportunities
Institute of Educational Sciences (IES)
Grants programs on multiple topics offered annually
Research grant programs specifically look for integration of secondary data analysis of NCES data with new data collection
Professional development/training grants look for the use of NCES data and reports in funding proposals

16. Funding Opportunities
AERA Grants Program
Supported by grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and NCES
Designed specifically to foster the use of large-scale databases from NCES, NSF and other federal agencies for research on education issues
Awards small grants ($10,000 - $35,000) for one or two year projects
Grants are typically awarded three times per year (January, June, September)

17. How Can CEURE Help???
Library of Public-Use databases and training manuals from NCES
Working with faculty to identify specific databases that would provide opportunities to pursue research interests
Assisting in the design and development of workshop/ training and grant proposals
Providing data analysis support to faculty