Many research funding and research performing organizations evaluate their operations or are subject to evaluations. A Working Group within Science Europe undertook to illustrate how "ex post" evaluation of research is actually used. Based on 11 case studies from seven organizations and countries, we explore the use of evaluation studies…

A key job of education policymakers is to make decisions under uncertainty. They must weigh the risks, rewards, and costs of different interventions, policies, and mixes of resources, and make decisions even when the likely outcome is uncertain. How policymakers think about and deal with uncertainty has important implications for resource…

This article analyzes the use of research evidence in school-board deliberations in three school districts in Wisconsin. In these settings, the circulation, meaning, and function of research depended importantly on the interests and backgrounds of advocates, the composition of audiences, and the values and contexts of decision-making. Board…

Although scholars have proposed many steps to increase evaluation use, there has been little comparative empirical study of whether researchers follow these recommendations and whether specific steps are associated with greater utilization. This study of state legislative evaluators finds that those that regularly meet with stakeholders and…

Many school reform initiatives now require school leaders to make curriculum and resourcing decisions on the basis of evidence about their likely impact on student achievement. In this paper, we discuss the implications of this policy demand in the context of a descriptive study of schools' capacity to collect, analyze, and use collective…