In an effort to reimagine education research so that diverse learners and educators can access proven interventions and resources that make a difference in teaching and learning, education non-profit, InnovateEDU has launched of the Blueprint for Inclusive Research and Development in Education (BIRD-E). The BIRD-E Blueprint is an open source, universal framework designed to generate usable, high-quality research that education providers, policymakers, researchers, education leaders, and other K-12 stakeholders can easily access, understand and apply in the classroom. 

“Education research and development must work for the benefit of students and educators,” said  Erin Mote, Executive Director of InnovateEDU. “For too long, much of education research has been happening in a silo with results unable to be discovered or generalized by practitioners. Without a strong, robust research and development ecosystem that focuses on inclusive and connected practice, it can be challenging to find and apply evidence equitably and effectively for every student. The BIRD-E Blueprint is building the infrastructure for the next generation of education research to help answer how education tools, interventions, programs, and services work, for whom, and under what circumstances.” 

While the need for research-based evidence has become increasingly prioritized in districts and schools across the nation and mandated by federal law, there is no shared language to define the data being collected. This results in K-12 stakeholders struggling to understand what truly works for specific student groups and where to allocate their time and resources. 

“For evidence to truly benefit our educators and students, we need to take a hard look at the foundational infrastructure and how we conduct research from the start,” said Mark Schneider, Director of the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Science. “The BIRD-E Blueprint promotes a more collaborative approach to research that supports diverse teams of education researchers and practitioners coming together to plan, implement, and interpret results from research studies.” 

The BIRD-E Blueprint outlines the research-based key data elements that researchers can use to develop research questions and designs. Practitioners and providers can use the Blueprint’s common language to better identify and align their programs and services to what works. Educators can then more easily use the data and insights in their own decision-making, selecting the interventions that will work best for their diverse student needs.  This framework is based on a proven, evidence-based intervention model that has accelerated the connection between research and practice in other fields, such as the healthcare and energy industries. 

“All stakeholders want to be able to easily and safely share the data to understand what works– everyone wants to reach the same destination to better serve students; we are all just at different starting points,” said Susmita Pratihast, Project Director of BIRD-E at InnovateEDU. “The BIRD-E Blueprint is like a map that connects the dots within the current K-12 research infrastructure. The framework ensures that impactful research can not only be conducted but more actionable to accelerate its impact and improve teaching and learning.” 

With the support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the BIRD-E Blueprint was designed with over 70 education and industry organizations, federal and state agencies, and companies. Additionally, leading education organizations have also joined in the launch of the Blueprint as part of their larger efforts to advance a more diverse, inclusive and equitable research ecosystem anchored in effective practice including: Institute of Education Sciences (IES), LearnPlatform, The Education Trust, Digital Promise, Advanced Education Research and Development Fund and The Spencer Foundation. 

For more information about BIRD-E or to register for the upcoming webinar “Building a New Blueprint: An Opportunity to Reimagine Education R&D” on  Wednesday, May 18th at 3pm EST,  please visit: www.bird-e.org. To download the BIRD-E Blueprint in PDF versions, please visit here.

About BIRD-E

The Blueprint for Inclusive Research and Development in Education (BIRD-E) is a universal, open-source framework that modernizes education research through a common, research language. With the Blueprint, BIRD-E aims to bridge the divide between education research and practice to ensure students have access to the programs and products that positively impact learning.The Blueprint was designed with over 70  education and industry organizations, agencies  and companies with the support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. For more information, please visit: www.bird-e.org or follow us on Twitter @BIRD_Eproject. 

This report was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.  The views expressed are those of the author(s) and should not be attributed to the foundation.