| Consensus Study Report Measuring Sex, Gender Identity, and Sexual Orientation This report from the Committee on National Statistics recommends that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) adopt new practices for collecting data on sex, gender, and sexual orientation – including collecting gender data by default, and not conflating gender with sex as a biological variable. The report points to a lack of consistency in language used in surveys and studies, complicating data analysis and reporting, and making it difficult to compare data across different programs and studies. In addition, the report offers principles for data collection, guidelines for collecting sex and gender data, and criteria for selecting recommended measures for sexual orientation identity. Better measurements will improve data quality, as well as the NIH’s ability to identify LGBTQI+ populations and understand the challenges they face. Download the Report | Report Highlights Sponsor: National Institutes of Health |
| Consensus Study Report A Pragmatic Future for NAEP: Containing Costs and Updating Technologies This report from the Committee on National Statistics recommends changes to the administration and program management of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Often called “The Nation’s Report Card”, this program is the largest nationally representative and continuing assessment of what students in public and private schools in the United States know and can do in various subjects and has provided policy makers and the public with invaluable information on U.S. students for more than 50 years. However, costs for this program have risen substantially in recent years, now costing $175.2 million per year. The report recommends changes to bolster the future success of the program by identifying areas where federal administrators could take advantage of savings, such as new technological tools and platforms as well as efforts to use local administration and deployment for the tests. The report also provides recommendations to clearly communicate about spending, streamline management, and increase the visibility and coherence of NAEP’s research activities. Download the Report | Report Highlights Sponsor: U.S. Department of Education |
| Consensus Study Report The Future of Education Research at IES: Advancing an Equity-Oriented Science This report from the Board on Science Education calls for the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) to update the structure and policies of research activities run by the National Center for Education Research (NCER) and the National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER) to better meet changing priorities in education— including improving equity and the usefulness of research. The report also calls for IES to revise the structure of its competitive grant process so that it is more responsive to the needs of educators, learners, and communities. Additionally, the report recommends that IES implement a range of strategies to achieve greater diversity in the racial, ethnic, and institutional background of all training participants, such as by supporting early career mentoring or funding short-term research opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students. Download the Report | Report Highlights Sponsor: U.S. Department of Education |
| Consensus Study Report A Vision and Roadmap for Education Statistics This report from the Committee on National Statistics provides strategic advice for the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)—the nation’s premier statistical agency for collecting, analyzing, and disseminating statistics at all levels of education. The report reviews developments in using alternative data sources, considers recent trends and future priorities, and suggests changes to NCES’s programs and operations, with a focus on NCES’s statistical programs. The report reimagines NCES as a leader in the 21st century education data ecosystem, where it can meet the growing demands for policy-relevant statistical analyses and data to more effectively and efficiently achieve its mission, especially in light of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 and the 2021 Presidential Executive Order on advancing racial equity. Download the Report | Report Highlights Sponsor: U.S. Department of Education |
| Consensus Study Report Police Training to Promote the Rule of Law and Protect the Population This report from the Committee on Law and Justice identifies critical knowledge and skills, informed by decades of research on crime and crime prevention, that are often absent in police training. The report highlights the need for investigating the mechanisms and methods for teaching and developing these core skills and offers guidance on principles of training and opportunities for strengthening the evaluation of police training. Download the Report | Report Highlights Sponsor: Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs of the U.S. Department of State |
Consensus Study Report
Addressing Inaccurate and Misleading Information About Biological Threats Through Scientific Collaboration and Communication in Southeast Asia
This report explains how scientists can work collaboratively across scientific disciplines and sectors to identify and address inaccuracies that could fuel mis- and disinformation about outbreaks, epidemics, and pandemics. Although the study focused on a scientific network primarily in Southeast Asia, it is relevant to scientists in other parts of the world. A companion “how-to-guide”, available in print and in digital form, outlines practical steps that scientists can take to assess mis- or disinformation, determine whether and how they should address it, and effectively communicate the corrective information they develop.
Sponsor: CRDF Global
Interim Report: Understanding the Quality of the 2020 Census
The decennial census is foundational to the functioning of American democracy, and maintaining the public’s trust in the census and its resulting data is a correspondingly high-stakes affair. The 2020 Census was implemented in light of severe and unprecedented operational challenges, adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic, natural disasters, and other disruptions.
This interim report from the Committee on National Statistics discusses concepts of error and quality in the decennial census as prelude to the panel’s forthcoming fuller assessment of 2020 Census data, process measures, and quality metrics. The panel will release a final report that will include conclusions about the quality of the 2020 Census and make recommendations for further research by the U.S. Census Bureau to plan the 2030 Census.
Sponsor: U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau
| Measurement and Analysis of Public Opinion: An Analytic Framework
This publication from the Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences provides guidance to intelligence analysts on strategies for assessing public opinion. Intelligence analysts conduct analyses every day, using decades of propriety tradecraft techniques and an arsenal of clandestine information gathering sources, but the resources available are not unlimited. Open source public opinion tools can provide timely and relatively inexpensive methods of understanding fast-moving conditions, acting as a force multiplier to help policymakers have a truly all-source understanding of complex events. By providing analysts with the best practices in survey methodology and nonsurvey methods for gathering data on public opinion, they will be armed with a clearer sense of important shifts in attitudes, elections, and unrest. Sponsor: The Intelligence Community |
| Rapid Expert Consultation Increasing Uptake of COVID-19 Vaccination Through Requirement and Incentive Programs This rapid expert consultation from the Societal Experts Action Network draws on the fields of behavioral economics, health behavior, risk communication, and psychology to identify actionable guidance for state and local decision makers engaged in designing COVID-19 vaccine requirement and incentive programs to increase uptake of COVID-19 vaccines. As the COVID-19 pandemic enters its third year, the emergence of highly transmissible variants has elevated the urgency of increasing vaccine uptake. Accordingly, decision makers nationwide have been implementing various interventions, such as COVID-19 vaccine requirement and incentive programs for specific populations, to increase vaccine uptake. Download the REC | Interactive Overview Sponsors: National Science Foundation and Alfred P. Sloan Foundation |