Library

Looking for new and notable information to help you dig deeper into an issue? Start with these featured reports and web sites, and then browse through our full selection by topic.

Reports: Featured

Help wanted: Projections of jobs and education requirements through 2018
Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce, June 2010, 122 pp.
Provides detailed national forecasts of educational demand from 2008 through 2018, including educational demand by education level, occupation, and industry. Minnesota is ranked among the top five states that will lead the nation in job openings requiring postsecondary education.

Listening to new voices: Youth voices on staying in school & dropout prevention in Minnesota
The Konopka Institute and Minnesota Department of Education, June 2010, 14 pp.
Results of listening groups with middle and high school aged youth in Minnesota about why students dropout.

Early warning: Why reading by the end of third grade matters
Annie E. Casey Foundation, April 2010, 62 pp.
Disparities in reading achievement persist across racial and ethnic groups. This report examines the failure of many children in American, particularly low-income children, to reach the “proficient” level in reading by fourth grade. It explores factors that undermine grade-level reading proficiency and offers recommendations for improvement.

The ACCESS system: Achieving college and career-readiness for every student's success: A proposal for a new high school assessment and accountability system for Minnesota
College and Career-Ready Policy Institute Assessment Working Group, March 2010, 33 pp.
Report from a task force charged with developing a recommendation for a new high school assessment and accountability system for Minnesota. Looks at research on the consequences of high-stakes graduation policies and presents a detailed look at the proposed system.

U.S. economic and social trends since 2000
Population Reference Bureau, February 2010, 20 pp.
Presents social and economic data from the American Community Survey.

Global neighbors: Identifying diverse populations in northwest Hennepin County using school district enrollment data
November 2009, 57 pp.
Maps and analyzes regional demographic trends using data on race, ethnicity and language spoken at home from schools in northwest Hennepin County.

Strengthening community colleges' influence on economic mobility
Economic Mobility Project, October 2009, 43 pp.
This paper examines the role community colleges play in enhancing the upward mobility of their students. The study looks at the various pathways through which students can increase their earnings, including transferring to a four-year college and completing an associate degree or certificate in a range of high-return fields.

The Consequences of dropping out of high school: joblessness and jailing for high school dropouts and the high cost for taxpayers
Center for Labor Market Studies, Northeastern University, October 2009, 16 pp.
This research paper outlines the employment, earnings, incarceration, teen and young adult parenting experiences and family incomes of the nation’s young adult high school dropouts and their better educated peers in 2006 to 2008.

Structuring out-of-school time to improve academic achievement
Institute of Education Sciences, July 2009, 98 pp.
Presents five recommendations intended to help district and school administrators, out-of-school program providers, and educators design out-of-school time programs that will increase learning for students. Each recommendation is accompanied by supporting research, implementation steps and ways to address potential roadblocks.

Educating Minnesota's immigrant students
Citizens League, February 2009, 44 pp.
This report represents the work of the Study Committee on Immigration and Higher Education. It includes findings and recommendations on how Minnesota can increase immigrant student readiness and success in higher education.

Minnesota's future: World-class schools, world-class jobs
The Minnesota Business Partnership and The Itasca Project, February 2009, 18 pp.
Examines how Minnesota's education system compares with the best in the world and identifies four areas for improvement: improving traditional teacher preparation programs, recruiting top talent to teaching, providing leadership development for principals, and ensuring data is available and useful for continuous improvement.

High school dropouts in America
Alliance for Excellent Education, February 2009, 3 pp.
Profile of high school dropouts: who is dropping out, why they do it, and the associated costs.

The Cost burden to Minnesota K-12 when children are unprepared for kindergarten: Prepared for the Bush Foundation
Wilder Research, December 2008, 27 pp.
Estimates the cost burden to the Minnesota K-12 system due to children entering kindergarten unprepared for school success. The study also provides estimates of the dollars already in the K-12 system that could be used differently by the state and school districts to ensure more school readiness and, therefore, less spending at the K-12 level.

Student enrollment language data
Minnesota Department of Education, October 2008
Data table of enrolled students and language spoken in the home. Numbers are presented by Minnesota school district.

Smart investments in Minnesota's students: A research-based investment proposal
Growth & Justice, October 2008, 32 pp.
Shows how to apply what is known about cost-effective investments in education to address a looming shortage of educated workers that could undermine the state’s economic well being.

Protective factors for academic achievement in homeless and highly mobile children: CURA Reporter
Center for Urban and Regional Affairs, August 2008, 12 pp.
Researchers analyzed school data on homeless students in the Minneapolis Public Schools and studied young children in a homeless shelter. The results provide a picture of the academic achievement and school attendance of homeless students and identify protective factors for school success among this population.

Web sites

Education Policy Research
Education section of Mathmatica Policy Research. Provides research information about topics including curriculum, teacher quality, at-risk youth, technology and school choice.

The Educator's reference desk
Resources on all aspects of education.

The Campbell Collaboration
International collaboration that is compiling a database of effective programs and practices in the areas of crime and justice, education and social welfare.