1.This Act may be cited as the &short-title1;
.
2.The Congress finds as follows:
(1)Knowledge utilization allows information generated by scientifically valid research to be available to, and usable by, educators in the classroom.
(2)Limited knowledge utilization has impeded the progress of schools in increasing academic achievement of students.
(3)Research shows that student achievement increases when education practices based on scientifically valid research are used by classroom teachers.
(4)To facilitate the coordination and use of research-based practices by classroom teachers, effective knowledge utilization is essential, including the development and use of products and strategies based on scientifically valid research.
(5)The active involvement of teachers, principals, district administrators, and chief State school officers in knowledge utilization activities is essential to the effective application of research-based knowledge to policy and practice.
(6)Although the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (which amended the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.)) requires educators to use instructional practices and innovations supported by scientifically valid research, such practices and innovations are in short supply and not widely available and coordinated for use in classrooms.
(7)Given that a significant percentage of public schools in the United States are not making adequate yearly progress under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, steps must be taken to coordinate the use of knowledge utilization by classroom educators.
(8)Particular subgroups of students are not making adequate yearly progress, as defined by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, including economically disadvantaged students, students from major racial and ethnic groups, students with disabilities, and students with limited English proficiency. Such students require targeted efforts to ensure that they are receiving instruction supported by scientifically valid research.
(9)More instructional activities and practices supported by scientifically valid research need to be developed to meet the current and expected demands of educators in schools.
(10)Although existing federal research, development, dissemination, and technical assistance programs have been proven to be effective, these programs need to be brought to national scale and coordinated through a national, knowledge utilization initiative.
(11)Effective knowledge utilization in education brings together the professional wisdom of practitioners and the best available empirical evidence generated through scientifically valid research.
(12)Too often exemplary innovations in teaching, curriculum, and assessment are demonstrated to be effective, but have minimal impact because they are not brought to scale.
(13)Educational practices that are supported by scientifically valid research need to be brought to greater scale in school districts across the country in order to have broad influence on student achievement.
(14)National leadership is needed to provide targeted initiatives, collaboration, and coordination of knowledge utilization programs to ensure that classroom educators have access to, and utilize practices supported by, scientifically valid research.
(15)A national leadership office intended to coordinate Department of Education programs and promote knowledge utilization in education will facilitate the effective implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.
3.National leadership office for knowledge utilization in education
(a)There shall be in the Department of Education the National Leadership Office for Knowledge Utilization in Education (in this section referred to as the Office
), to be headed by a Director appointed under subsection (c).
(b)The duties of the Office shall be the following:
(1)Promoting the use of scientifically valid research in education practice and innovation.
(2)Providing leadership to the Nation in developing and promoting policies, practices, and investments that result in the provision of instruction supported by scientifically valid research to elementary and secondary school students.
(3)Developing and promoting policies, practices, and investments that result in bringing to scale successful educational practices that are based on scientifically valid research.
(4)Informing the public about the significance of using scientifically valid research in education.
(5)Encouraging the use of new technologies in appropriate knowledge utilization efforts.
(6)Supporting the effective coordination of current federally supported knowledge utilization programs, including regional educational laboratories, research and development centers, technical assistance centers and consortia, national clearinghouses, and other entities involved in research, development, dissemination, technical assistance, and evaluation.
(7)Administering the partnership established pursuant to subsection (e).
(8)Producing the biennial report required by subsection (f).
(9)Using the expertise of existing knowledge utilization programs to assist in the implementation of this section.
(c)
(1)The Secretary of Education shall appoint the Director of the Office.
(2)The Director of the Office shall be selected from among individuals who are experts in—
(A)knowledge utilization, including promoting the effective implementation of the results of research in the classroom; and
(B)managing large institutions or consortia that conduct a broad array of research applications.
(3)The Director of the Office shall—
(A)report directly to the Secretary;
(B)be responsible for the duties of the Office described in subsection (b); and
(C)perform such additional functions as the Secretary may prescribe.
(4)Section 5315 of title 5, United States Code, relating to level IV of the Executive Schedule, is amended by adding at the end of the list in such section the following new item:
Director of the National Leadership Office for Knowledge Utilization in Education..
(5)The Director of the Office may select, appoint, and employ such officers and employees as may be necessary to carry out the functions of the Office, subject to the provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing appointments in the competitive service, and the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title, relating to classification and General Schedule pay rates.
(d)
(1)To promote coordination and cooperation among Federal departments and agencies administering knowledge utilization programs and activities, the Director of the Office shall convene the Interagency Task Force on Knowledge Utilization in Education (in this subsection referred to as the Task Force
).
(2)The Task Force shall—
(A)identify and review Federal programs, activities, and projects with respect to knowledge utilization in education (including any plans for such programs, activities, and projects); and
(B)prepare, for inclusion in the biennial report under subsection (f), recommendations on ways to improve the coordination and collaboration of such programs, activities, and projects.
(3)The Task Force shall be composed of the following members:
(A)The Director of the Institute of Education Sciences.
(B)The Director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
(C)The Director of the National Science Foundation.
(D)The Director of the Office.
(E)Such Assistant Secretaries and other officials from the Department of Education as the Secretary may designate.
(F)Such other members as the President, the Secretary, or the Director of the Office may invite.
(4)The Director of the Office shall serve as the Chairperson of the Task Force.
(5)The Task Force shall terminate 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, subject to renewal at the discretion of the Director of the Office.
(e)Knowledge Utilization Partnership in Education
(1)The Director of the Office shall establish a network of private and public entities throughout the Nation, to be known as the Knowledge Utilization Partnership in Education (in this subsection referred to as the Partnership
).
(2)The purpose of the Partnership is to promote and advance knowledge utilization in education in conjunction with private and public organizations and entities throughout the Nation.
(3)The Partnership shall—
(A)encourage private-public venture partnerships for knowledge utilization;
(B)identify needs in relation to knowledge utilization programs, activities, and projects supported by the Federal Government;
(C)provide general advice to the Office; and
(D)provide ambassadors to the elementary and secondary education community to encourage the adoption of education practices supported by scientifically valid research.
(4)
(A)The Director of the Office may establish a Partnership Advisory Panel (in this paragraph referred to as the Panel
).
(B)The Director shall select the members of the Panel from among individuals who represent entities participating in the Partnership and have expertise in knowledge utilization.
(C)The duties of the Panel shall be the following:
(i)To provide advice to the Director regarding the opportunities and challenges of promoting knowledge utilization activities at the local, State, and Federal levels through the Partnership.
(ii)To offer suggestions to the Director for promoting knowledge utilization policies and strategies in the future through the Partnership.
(f)
(1)The Director of the Office shall—
(A)conduct a biennial analysis of the state of knowledge utilization in education practice and innovation; and
(B)submit a report on the results of each such analysis to the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate.
(2)Each report submitted under this subsection shall—
(A)include an assessment of efforts to increase the use of education practices supported by scientifically valid research;
(B)include the recommendations of the Interagency Task Force on Knowledge Utilization in Education prepared pursuant to subsection (d)(2); and
(C)recommend changes in policies to further promote progress in knowledge utilization.
(3)The Director of the Office shall submit the first report under this subsection not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
4.Grants to promote knowledge utilization in education
(a)The Secretary of Education shall make competitive grants to, and enter into contracts with, eligible entities to support projects that promote knowledge utilization in education.
(b)The Secretary may not make a grant to an eligible entity under this section unless the entity agrees to use the grant for 1 or more of the following:
(1)Helping educators become more informed consumers of research-based knowledge utilization programs and services through sustained professional development activities, including annual conferences, summer teacher academies, on-line seminars, and school-based workshops.
(2)Creating incentives for States and districts to expand and coordinate their investments in knowledge utilization initiatives.
(3)Focusing special knowledge utilization efforts on high-need, low-capacity areas such as rural schools.
(4)Developing a national corps of regionally based research-to-practice coordinators to work in schools on the effective implementation, utilization, and dissemination of education practices supported by scientifically valid research.
(5)Targeting efforts to classroom educators working with subgroups whose test scores indicate that they need improvement under the adequate yearly progress calculation required by section 1111(b)(2) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(2)), including economically disadvantaged students, students from major racial and ethnic groups, students with disabilities, and students with limited English proficiency.
(6)Conducting research on knowledge utilization.
(7)Coordinating and enhancing existing federally supported knowledge utilization programs, including regional educational laboratories, research and development centers, technical assistance centers and consortia, national clearinghouses, and other entities involved in research, development, dissemination, technical assistance, and evaluation.
(8)Supporting efforts to identify and disseminate promising practices in the implementation of education innovation that are supported by scientifically valid research.
(9)Promoting entrepreneurship in developing new solutions, innovations, and choices in education for consumers that are supported by scientifically valid research.
(10)Establishing fellowship programs to encourage expert capacity in knowledge utilization.
(11)Using Internet-based technology to enable classroom teachers to access, in all content areas, instructional practice and innovation that are grounded in scientifically valid research.
(12)Developing means and methods for making the information from the What Works Clearinghouse and other clearinghouses available to, and accessible by, classroom teachers.
(13)Developing strategies to support the use of scientifically valid research by classroom teachers and school administrators in managing and improving student behavior and school climate.
(c)To seek a grant or a contract under this section, an eligible entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time and in such manner as the Secretary may reasonably require.
(d)In this section, the term eligible entity
—
(1)means a private or public, for-profit or nonprofit organization, institution, agency, institution of higher education, or partnership of such entities, that has demonstrated expertise in knowledge utilization in education; and
(2)includes existing federally supported knowledge utilization programs, such as regional educational laboratories, research and development centers, technical assistance centers and consortia, national clearinghouses, and other entities involved in research, development, dissemination, technical assistance, and evaluation.
5. In this Act:
(1)The term applied research
has the meaning given to that term in section 102 of the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (20 U.S.C. 9501).
(2)The term knowledge utilization
—
(A)means the interactive processes involving research, development, dissemination, technical assistance, and evaluation in which research-based knowledge is applied to improving instructional practice; and
(B)includes such activities essential to school improvement as—
(i)development and evaluation of practical applications of research, such as procedures, policies, practices, programs, materials, and training;
(ii)the use of research-based technical assistance and professional development for policymakers, practitioners, and other stakeholders;
(iii)collection and dissemination of information, data, and statistics;
(iv)initiatives for building linkages among research, policy, and practice; and
(v)an infrastructure for increasing capacity for the use of research and its applications.
(3)The term Office
means the National Leadership Office for Knowledge Utilization in Education established by section 3.
(4)Scientifically valid researchThe term scientifically valid research
has the meaning given to that term in section 102 of the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (20 U.S.C. 9501).
(5)The term Secretary
means the Secretary of Education.
6.Authorization of appropriationsThere are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this Act for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2008.