| Measuring a School District's Investment in Professional Development Can Be Challenging San Antonio: The Regional Educational Laboratory Southwest (REL Southwest), run by Edvance Research, has released education research that examines context and challenges in measuring investment in professional development. The report is a case study of six school districts in Southwest region. Why this study?
The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001 places special emphasis on ensuring that every child has access to highly qualified teachers. States and districts decision makers have encouraged and funded strategies for professional development to support NCLB targets. To be successful, however, investment in professional development must be managed and implemented properly. Key findings include: - The study estimated annual spending of approximately $150-600 per pupil or 2-9 percent of total spending; however, these figures likely underestimate the full investment in professional development due to tracking challenges.
- A promising strategy for tracking professional development expenditures was highlighted in the study. This strategy utilizes online data systems that might improve the accuracy of spending estimates and the tracking of expenditures.
REL Southwest, at Edvance Research, is one of ten educational laboratories in the Regional Educational Laboratory Network (REL Network), under the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) of the U.S. Department of Education. REL Southwest serves the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas and works for the benefit of over 7 million students and 500,000 teachers in approximately 14,500 schools in grades pre-kindergarten through college in this five-state region. The REL Network encompasses ten geographical regions that span the nation with its primary mission being to serve the educational needs of designated regions. The REL Network uses applied research, development, dissemination, and training and technical assistance to bring the latest and best research and proven practices into school improvement efforts. http://edlabs.ed.gov/RELSouthwest
Educators in the southwest region may obtain technical assistance through the REL Reference Desk by calling 1-877-EDVANCE (1-877-338-2623) or e-mailing RELinfo@edvanceresearch.com.
Founded in 2005, Edvance Research, Inc. is a women and minority owned business, specializing in rigorous product and market research, in the education market. Edvance Research is dedicated to improving outcomes by supporting organizations in learning about evidence-based practices and using that information to improve their work and results. Edvance Research is headquartered in San Antonio, Texas www.edvanceresearch.com | 
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