A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

OERI Newsletter

We need your ideas.

The Office of Educational Research and Improvement's (OERI) authorizing legislation calls for the Assistant Secretary to work collaboratively with the National Educational Research Policies and Priorities Board to recommend priorities for the investment of resources over the next 15 years, including those areas of inquiry in which further research, development, and dissemination are needed.

OERI is very aware that in order for the plan to be considered a national one, it must include the broadest possible public outreach and reflect the active participation of teachers and policymakers, the academic community, foundations and other sponsors of research, and public and private groups.

At its core, the document must provide a rationale for not only future federal government investments but also guidance for the investments of others.

The Research Priorities Plan will only be valuable if it

• Responds to real needs, as articulated by the consumers of educational research: most notably the practitioner and policy community, and

• Connects these needs with emerging "scientific opportunities" (powerful new ideas about how learning takes place and under what conditions).

We have already gone a long way to define the first phase of that plan by launching a 5-year program of Research Centers, Regional Laboratories, and Regional Technology Consortia. We intend to draw upon the same extensive level of public comment and discussion to build the plan for the subsequent 10 years.

We need you to contribute to this Research Priorities Plan. Please join in the conversation.

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Last update December 30, 1999 (lvb)