Research Associate: Assessing-Teaching-Improving-Learning (ATIL)

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The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching is an operating foundation located in Stanford, California. Chartered in 1906, the Foundation has carried out a wide range of activities and research to support and advance the work of educators at all levels. The Foundation is currently undergoing a significant transition in its program of work. The new focus seeks to pioneer a radically different model of educational research and development capable of advancing improvements in student learning at scale.

The Foundation is engaged in a deep and long-term exploration of the application of the tenets, tools, and methods of improvement research to develop a science of performance improvement in education. The idea is to establish a “third way” to think of education research. The methodological richness and rigor of translational research requires controls and restrictions that limit its capacity to address real problems of practice in their contextual complexity and in ways that support improvement. Participant / practitioner research offers compelling immediacy and profound impact that unfortunately remains limited in its breadth of influence and therefore limits its contribution. The proposed “third way” partakes of each of these traditions and brings to bear an  emerging science of improvement research to work on high leverage problems of practice in ways that produces knowledge that drives improvement — ultimately at system-wide scale.

At the present time, Carnegie is focused on two high-leverage problems of practice — the extraordinarily high failure rates of Community College students in Developmental Math and the weak information and support systems for the improvement of teaching in K-12 systems. Carnegie has developed a Community College Pathways program and a Learning Teaching program aimed at forming productive collaborations to address these problems.  

One facet of the Learning Teaching program is the Assessing-Teaching-Improving-Learning (ATIL) project, which aims to inform the development of teaching information systems by working as an integrative force in this burgeoning field and learning from emerging practices. The main activities of the project involve convening diverse stakeholders, synthesizing emerging evidence and conducting short inquiry cycles to inform the design of teaching assessment systems. The unique integrative role that the Carnegie Foundation seeks to play in this field requires individuals that have both technical measurement skills and an understanding of the organizational realities of school institutions. We are looking for someone to join a team dedicated to designing processes and structures that integrate practitioner and researcher expertise.

Responsibilities

The ATIL research associate will be part of a team responsible for designing and executing each of the following activities: 

• Conduct 90-day inquiry cycles to investigate technical issues relevant to the design and implementation of assessment systems in states and districts.
  • Quick quantitative explorations and simulations
  • Field scans of the cutting-edge empirical literature and emerging practices in measuring teacher effectiveness
  • Interviews with experts on the frontier of teacher assessment
  • Design and develop useful “knowledge products” and visualizations to inform activities in the field
  • Use multiple strategies (written reports, presentations, webinars, blog posts) to share what is learned with relevant stakeholders
• Design and maintain the content of a dynamic web-based knowledge repository that synthesizes the state of the field of teacher assessment for a non-technical audience
  • Communicate with the designers of teacher information systems in districts and other school organizations to determine the critical technical questions that need to be answered in order for these systems to result in improved student learning
  • Conduct reviews of the empirical literature and produce summaries of the technical findings for a non-technical audience
  • Coordinate relevant experts to come to agreement on current frontiers of knowledge in particular technical areas  (i.e., value-added)
  • Employ user centered design principles to continuously improve the usefulness of both the design and the content of the knowledge repository.
• Organize convenings of researchers, tool developers, practitioners and policy makers that result in productive conversations about the assessment of teaching to improve student learning
  • Identify potential participants by scanning the field
  • Facilitate and participate (along with others) in the design of the agenda
  • Contribute to the execution of a high quality event
  • Foster relationships with participants and follow up with individuals interested in continued collaboration
  • Summarize what is learned and potential next steps
• Contribute to the vision and design of structures that promote productive collaborations amongst individuals with diverse expertise
• Support the activities of the Building a Teaching Effectiveness Network (BTEN) project as needed.
• Perform other tasks and duties as assigned or required.

Requirements and Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Education or a related field preferred
• Experience in statistics or psychometrics, equivalent to a disciplinary master’s degree.
• Strong familiarity with technical issues arising in the design and use of value-added analyses, classroom observation tools and student work samples for teacher assessment. Extensive knowledge of the relevant literature and current leaders in the field.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills; able to write and communicate clearly for both researcher and practitioner audiences. In particular, skills in communicating technical findings for practitioner audiences.
• Well-developed analytic skills. Ability to scan empirical literature quickly and effectively.
• Experience teaching or working in school organizations preferred.
• Interest and support of the Carnegie Foundation’s commitment to design-based improvement research.
• Ability to think flexibly about the conceptualization and execution of design research for practice improvement.
• Collaborative orientation and flexibility, as well as the ability to be proactive in decision-making, problem identification and solution, and carrying out work.
• Strong organizational abilities, problem-solving skills, meticulous attention to detail, and ability to work on multiple strands of the project simultaneously.
• Ability to travel for meetings and fieldwork up to six weeks per twelve month period.

Application Procedures

The Carnegie Foundation offers a competitive salary and generous benefits in a pleasant and friendly work environment.  Review of applications will begin immediately, and the job will remain open until filled. The expected start date will be in Spring 2012, preferably March or April 2012.

To apply, please refer to Job Code CFATRA-1211 in the subject line and send, email, or fax a detailed cover letter (explaining how your background fits the three key responsibilities of this job), salary expectations, and resume to:

Ms. Charlene Moran
Director of Human Resources
The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
51 Vista Lane
Stanford, CA 94305

Phone: 650/566-5100
Fax: 650/326-5312
Email: resumes@carnegiefoundation.org