Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons^™

State Of Illinois Model Programs Of Study Overview Guide, Education Systems Center

Reports, Analyses, and other Publications

This guide provides foundational information that underpins all of the State of Illinois Model Programs of Study Guides, including their purpose, intended audiences, key terminology, the development process for identifying high-priority occupations and credentials, cross-sector competencies, the work-based learning continuum, and how to implement the guides.

Four Year Reflection: Scaling Transformative Advanced Manufacturing Pathways (Stamp), Benjamin Boer, Rouzbeh Rahai

Reports, Analyses, and other Publications

This data brief presents a four-year cumulative reflection on the Scaling Transformative Advanced Manufacturing Pathways (STAMP) initiative, tracking student participation, industry credential attainment, and projected long-term economic impacts across 19 participating Illinois school districts. Authored by Rouzbeh Rahai and Benjamin Boer of the Education Systems Center at Northern Illinois University (EdSystems) in partnership with the Illinois Manufacturers' Association (IMA) Foundation, the report examines student-level data from 10,424 unique participants. Findings highlight that students with high economic needs out-attain their peers—representing 69% of credential earners—and that earned credentials account for $57.8 million in potential additional lifetime earnings.

Kta System Manual, Cayden Garcia

Systems Manuals - 2026

The purpose of this document is to explain the ins and outs of KTA. This includes but not limited to:

- The problem that colleges face when it comes to data analysis and collection

- The history of data analytics at a collegiate level

- Software and hardware requirements for KTA – Developer and User

- The overall design of KTA, how the software is structured and how the stack interacts with one another

- How to install KTA on your machine

- Sample Sessions – including issues that the user may run into and how to fix them

Teaching Learning Newsletter Vol 6 Issue 1, Sastra Deemed To Be University

TLC Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Making Data Usable For Schools And Colleges: The Regional Data Collaboratives Approach, Benjamin Boer

Reports, Analyses, and other Publications

This white paper outlines a strategic initiative by the Education Systems Center (EdSystems) to establish regional data collaboratives that improve how schools and colleges use information. Unlike traditional top-down accountability models, these collaboratives focus on longitudinal data sharing to help administrators understand student transitions from ninth grade through postsecondary completion and into the workforce. The framework relies on four core competencies: legal data agreements, secure management, linking analytics, and meaningful presentation of results. By examining factors like dual credit, pathway participation, and 9th-grade performance, these partnerships aim to identify and eliminate educational inequities. Ultimately, the initiative seeks to create a …

Comparing Two Emergent Literacy Screeners: The Reading House And Star Early Literacy In A Florida Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten (Vpk) Program, Jaime D. Swenbeck

Poster Presentations

Emergent Literacy (EL) refers to the foundational skills that develop from birth through the preschool years and support later reading success (National Early Literacy Panel, 2008; Levy et al., 2006). These include basic Print Concepts, Phonological Awareness, Vocabulary, Letter-Sound Knowledge, and Emergent Writing (Piasta et al., 2021; Puranik et al., 2011). Because they serve as predictors for later literacy success, accurate identification of children struggling to learn EL skills is important. There are various types of tools, ranging from screening tools to diagnostic assessments, that measure children’s EL skills, with assessment times ranging from 10-15 minutes to 45-60 minutes. In …

Chicago Southland Work-Based Learning Report, Alexia Santiago

Reports, Analyses, and other Publications

In 2025, Education Systems Center (EdSystems) at Northern Illinois University partnered with Prairie State College, South Suburban College, and local school districts to build a strong and comprehensive system of work-based learning opportunities. This report shares information collected on existing opportunities and identifies opportunities to scale work-based learning across the region.

Piloting A Pediatric Screener For Assessing Emergent Literacy With Preschool Children, Nafia Sarhadi

Poster Presentations

From infancy, children develop literacy knowledge, which provides them with the needed skills for reading in primary school (Castillo-Rabanal &Heitmayer, 2025). Before children start to read, they develop skills that involve increasing their rhyming, alphabet, and vocabulary knowledge. Literacy is considered a social determinant of health as it plays a role in one's physical, social, and emotional maturity (Lesauxet. al, 2007). The Bay Area Women Coalition, (BAWC) Inc. has partnered with the Autism, Pediatric Language & Literacy (APLL) Lab to implement PEEL, following modifications identified by the community. The current pre-to-posttest assessment is unsuitable for community participation. An efficient method …

Learning With Ai: A Structured Approach To Student-Ai Collaboration, April Ursula Fox

UNLV Best Teaching Practices Expo

The rapid integration of generative artificial intelligence (AI) into higher education has created an urgent need for instructional models that move beyond tool use toward intentional, pedagogically grounded practice. This study presents a structured assignment design that positions AI as a scaffolded collaborator within undergraduate educational psychology courses. Across a multi-part, semester-long sequence, students engage in concept explanation, self-directed inquiry, AI-supported knowledge construction, and reflective documentation of their learning process. Findings from recurring student artifacts indicate progressive gains in conceptual understanding, integration of research sources, and transfer of knowledge to personally meaningful contexts. Students demonstrate increased capacity for self-regulated learning …

Understanding And Evaluating The Impact Of Pathway Programs, Benjamin Boer

Reports, Analyses, and other Publications

A brief by Educatoin Systems Center (EdSystems) on the outcomes and lessons learned from the data collection processes and analysis for the Accelerated Model Pathways for Information Technology (AMP-IT) initiative, including an overview of the scaling of IT college and career pathways in the participating school districts, an understanding of the “milestones” that students meet prior to graduation, and how these milestones can be used to evaluate the program and assess longer-term outcomes. Additionally, the summary explores the challenges faced in collecting data and how EdSystems is adapting its data collection and analysis approach to improve understanding and evaluation of …

The Impact Of The Accelerated Model Pathways For Information Technology (Amp-It) Initiative, Meagan Mitchell Phd

Reports, Analyses, and other Publications

This report from Education Systems Center details the impact and strategic outcomes of the Accelerated Model Pathways for Information Technology (AMP-IT) initiative. Launched to strengthen Illinois' IT talent pipeline, the initiative focuses on expanding dual credit coursework, work-based learning, and strategic partnerships between school districts, higher education, and industry.

Motivational Systems In Education That Encourage Academic Achievement & Student Leadership, Hannah A. Lockhart, Angela Elsass

2026 Honors Symposium

This research examines how school-based motivational systems influence academic achievement, student engagement, and leadership development in K–12 educational settings. Grounded in contemporary motivational theory, the project explores motivation as a multidimensional construct shaped by autonomy, competence, relatedness, and belonging. Using an expanded review of literature as the primary methodological framework, the research synthesized 97 scholarly sources retrieved through multiple academic databases, including the University of Arkansas Libraries system, and integrated qualitative insight from a semi-structured professional interview with educator Ron Clark. Findings suggest that intentionally designed motivational systems, including schoolwide frameworks that foster belonging, recognition, and student agency, have a …

Using Research-Focused Llms, David Farnsworth, Elizabeth Stone

Faculty Presentations on AI

This hands-on workshop introduces university faculty to practical AI tools that support the full academic research workflow, from initial discovery to synthesis and writing. Participants explore the “Big 5” research tools—Perplexity.ai, Scite.ai, Elicit.com, ResearchRabbit, and SciSpace.com—along with Google’s Gemini extensions and NotebookLM, a source-grounded AI designed to analyze uploaded documents while maintaining privacy and providing live citations. The session demonstrates how these tools can accelerate literature reviews, fact-checking, visual mapping of citations, and deep synthesis of complex sources. Faculty also learn strategies for integrating AI responsibly into teaching, including helping students manage bibliographies, using AI for rubric-based feedback, and creating …

Ai Strategies For Effective Teaching & Learning, Dr. Jared Johnston, Prof. Adrian Caraballo

Faculty Presentations on AI

This presentation discusses strategies for effectively integrating artificial intelligence into college classrooms, with a focus on developing AI literacy among students and faculty. Core principles highlight AI as a tool for augmentation rather than replacement, with faculty maintaining oversight while supporting learner preparation, clinical reasoning, and reflective practice. The session stresses the need to rethink course and activity design in the AI era, training students to strategically offload tasks without cognitively offloading thinking. Practical guidance includes questions for intentional integration, experiential learning approaches, and real-world classroom examples from operational leadership courses in which students apply AI within authentic educational leadership …

Ai In The Classroom, Dr. Adrian E. Hinkle, Dr. Amanda Wilson, Dr. Jan H. R. Wörner

Faculty Presentations on AI

This presentation examines how educators can thoughtfully integrate artificial intelligence into the classroom while upholding academic integrity, ethical engagement, and the core mission of education. It draws on historical parallels—from ancient concerns about writing to later fears surrounding typing—to frame AI as a double-edged sword that can offload routine cognitive tasks yet risks eroding the mental discipline and critical thinking essential for deep learning. Centered on the guiding question of what students truly need to learn and how technology can help them achieve it, the session offers practical assignment frameworks, such as designing an AI-supported ministry plan and developing a …

Ai In Scholarship, Dr. Tim Hart

Faculty Presentations on AI

This presentation explores the appropriate role of artificial intelligence in scholarly work, distinguishing between uses that support academic rigor and those that undermine intellectual responsibility. While cautioning against reliance on AI for original argumentation, unverified literature reviews, data interpretation, and normative judgments, it highlights practical applications across the research lifecycle, including ideation, literature exploration, argument refinement, structural analysis, reviewer simulation, and manuscript preparation.

Linking Illinois High School To College Data And Beyond, Benjamin Boer

Reports, Analyses, and other Publications

This brief examines the challenges and opportunities in linking high school, postsecondary, and workforce data in Illinois. Despite significant investments in education pathways, career programs, and dual credit initiatives, there is no central source of data showing whether Illinois high school graduates are enrolling in college, persisting through their programs, and securing quality employment. The brief explores why data linking is technically and structurally challenging, reviews existing efforts at state and national levels, and provides specific recommendations for improving data infrastructure. Using the STAMP (Scaling Transformative Advanced Manufacturing Pathways) program as a case study, the authors demonstrate how linked data …

Human-Centered Leadership Coaching For School Redesign & Career Connected Learning, Monica White

Bank Street Education Center

Focusing on the Bank Street Principal Innovation Fellowship’s first cohort, this report examines how coaching supported principals as they implemented FutureReadyNYC, the district’s career-connected learning initiative. Through case studies of four principal-coach pairs, the report identifies an emerging leadership coaching model—including key principles, practices, and outcomes—that contributed to meaningful school-level progress and offers insights for school systems seeking to use coaching to strengthen principals’ capacity to lead complex change.

Policy: District, State, And National: A Selected Annotated Bibliography For English Learner Research, Policy, And Practice, Center For Equity For English Learners

Annotated Bibliographies

Policy: District, state, and national: A Selected Annotated Bibliography for English Learner Research, Policy, and Practice is comprised of 26 annotations from recent and seminal literature regarding policies across various levels impacting the education of English Learners (ELs) and Multilingual Learners (MLs). These annotations build on the annotations regarding policy in CEEL’s 2022 annotated bibliography, Ensuring Equity and Excellence for English Learners: An Annotated Bibliography for Research, Policy, and Practice (Center for Equity for English Learners, 2022) to include publications from 2022-2025. This selected annotated bibliography serves as a resource for researchers, policymakers, educators, and advocates who are working for …

English Language And Literacy Development/Proficiency: A Selected Annotated Bibliography For English Learner Research, Policy, And Practice, Center For Equity For English Learners

Annotated Bibliographies

English Language and Literacy Development/Proficiency: A Selected Annotated Bibliography for English Learner Research, Policy, and Practice is comprised of 16 annotations from recent and seminal literature English language and literacy development and proficiency for English Learners (ELs) and professional development for teachers of ELs. These annotations build on the annotations regarding English language and literacy development and proficiency in CEEL’s 2022 annotated bibliography, Ensuring Equity and Excellence for English Learners: An Annotated Bibliography for Research, Policy, and Practice (CEEL, 2022) to include publications from 2022-2025. This selected annotated bibliography serves as a resource for researchers, policymakers, educators, and advocates who …

Comprehensive National Research: A Selected Annotated Bibliography For English Learner Research, Policy, And Practice, Center For Equity For English Learners

Annotated Bibliographies

Comprehensive National Research: A Selected Annotated Bibliography for English Learner Research, Policy, and Practice is comprised of 4 annotations from national research publications regarding English Learners (ELs) and Dual Language Learners (DLLs). These annotations build on the annotations of comprehensive national research in CEEL’s 2022 annotated bibliography, Ensuring Equity and Excellence for English Learners: An Annotated Bibliography for Research, Policy, and Practice (Center for Equity for English Learners, 2022) to include publications from 2022-2025. This selected annotated bibliography serves as a resource for researchers, policymakers, educators, and advocates who are working for equity and excellence for ELs and DLLs.

The …

Biliteracy And Bilingualism: A Selected Annotated Bibliography For English Learner Research, Policy, And Practice, Center For Equity For English Learners

Annotated Bibliographies

Biliteracy and Bilingualism: A Selected Annotated Bibliography for English Learner Research, Policy, and Practice is comprised of 25 annotations from recent and seminal literature regarding biliteracy and bilingualism. These annotations build on the annotations regarding biliteracy and bilingualism in CEEL’s 2022 annotated bibliography, Ensuring Equity and Excellence for English Learners: An Annotated Bibliography for Research, Policy, and Practice (Center for Equity for English Learners, 2022) to include publications from 2022-2025. This selected annotated bibliography serves as a resource for researchers, policymakers, educators, and advocates who are working for equity and excellence for ELs.

The contributors provide a comprehensive selection of …

Teaching/Professional Development: A Selected Annotated Bibliography For English Learner Research, Policy, And Practice, Center For Equity For English Learners

Annotated Bibliographies

Teaching/Professional Development: A Selected Annotated Bibliography for English Learner Research, Policy, and Practice is comprised of 36 annotations from recent and seminal literature regarding teaching English Learners (ELs) and professional development for teachers of ELs. These annotations build on the annotations regarding teaching and professional development in CEEL’s 2022 annotated bibliography, Ensuring Equity and Excellence for English Learners: An Annotated Bibliography for Research, Policy, and Practice (Center for Equity for English Learners, 2022) to include publications from 2022-2025. This selected annotated bibliography serves as a resource for researchers, policymakers, educators, and advocates who are working for equity and excellence for …

Section 504 (Spanish), Children's Health School Services

School Guides

Parent guide about Section 504 school plan. Translated into Spanish.

Section 504, Children's Health School Services

School Guides

Parent guide about Section 504 school plan.

What Were Trigger Warnings? New Forms Of Knowing And The Use Of The Classroom, Kelli Fuery

CCI Books and Book Chapters

"In some ways the trigger warning, if left as a form of not- knowing, shares a similar threatening sensibility to the current fear of future technology² and my interest in this chapter is to consider what has happened to trigger warnings so that we might rethink the ways in which a classroom can be used to embrace unthought experiences in productive and creative ways. Have trigger warnings already become a reductive part of well- intended classroom instruction, or might there be something more to be gained by considering an evolution of their function, one that moves trigger warnings from …

Introduction To Trigger Warnings: Teaching Through Trauma, Ian Barnard, Ryan Ashley Caldwell, Jada Patchigondla, Aneil Rallin, Morgan Read-Davidson, Ethan Trejo, Kristi M. Wilson

English Faculty Books and Book Chapters

"The individual histories of both trigger warnings and trauma have evolved rapidly in the overlapping wakes of COVID, mental health crises, attacks on educational institutions in the United States, climate apocalypse, evergrowing economic inequities, and, more promisingly, attempts at political redress and educational equity. At the same time, trigger warnings and trauma have become exponentially more intimately linked in the past few years. But however often the topic of trigger warnings provokes heated discussion, the appeals and alignments of the interlocutors equally as frequently defy neat political binaries. Critiques of trigger warnings come from all sides of the political and …

Trigger Warnings And A Pedagogy Of Trust, Morgan Read-Davidson

English Faculty Books and Book Chapters

"While the larger conversation about difficult content and trigger warnings is not new, the sudden need for urgently scheduled meetings with me did not begin until the COVID- 19 pandemic crisis and our move to remote instruction, and the subsequent adjustment back to the classroom. This seems to coincide with the increase of online and social media interaction during the pandemic, where the use of trigger warnings and content warnings on social media, particularly on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok, have made the conversation far more visible. For students, this seems to have given them validation and confidence, as well as …

Digital Learning For English Learners: A Selected Annotated Bibliography For English Learner Research, Policy, And Practice, Center For Equity For English Learners

Annotated Bibliographies

Digital Learning for English Learners: A Selected Annotated Bibliography for English Learner Research, Policy, and Practice is comprised of 17 annotations from recent and seminal literature regarding digital learning resources for English Learners (ELs) and Multilingual Learners (MLs). These annotations build on the annotations regarding digital learning in CEEL’s 2022 annotated bibliography, Ensuring Equity and Excellence for English Learners: An Annotated Bibliography for Research, Policy, and Practice (Center for Equity for English Learners, 2022) to include publications from 2022-2025. This selected annotated bibliography serves as a resource for researchers, policymakers, educators, and advocates who are working for equity and …

The Global Onboard Training Programme (Gobt) : A Comprehensive Review, World Maritime University

Reports

A stable supply of qualified seafarers is a critical component of the global maritime logistics industry, which relies heavily on maritime transportation. According to the 2021 BIMCO Manpower Report, an additional 89,510 officers will be needed by 2026. In 2021 alone, there was already a deficit of 26,240 STCW-certified officers, clearly indicating that demand continues to outpace supply. The report also noted a 45.8% increase in the number of female seafarers since 2015, although they still represent only a small share of the overall workforce. Maritime Education and Training (MET) institutions around the world continue to provide training to develop …