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Using technology in special education: current practices and trends

• Published: 18 June 2020
• Volume 68 , pages 1711–1738, ( 2020 )

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• Oluwabunmi Adewoyin Olakanmi   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-6281-0285 1 ,
• Gokce Akcayir 1 ,
• Oluwbukola Mayowa Ishola 2 &
• Carrie Demmans Epp 1  

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Recent reports suggest an increase in the number of individuals with cognitive and developmental disabilities. To ensure equal opportunities for these learners, special education practices must be appropriately improved and scaled. Educational and assistive technologies are a possible avenue for meeting this need. To provide insight into recent technology practices in special education contexts, this study reviews recent literature (2014—2018) on the use of technology to support learners with cognitive and developmental disabilities. This review included 126 publications, which were a combination of journal articles and conference papers, found through the ACM, IEEE, ScienceDirect, and SSCI databases. The publications were analyzed to determine their general characteristics (e.g., number and age of participants and lengths of interventions), the contexts of technology use, specific learner characteristics, the subjects or skills the intervention(s) aimed to improve, the characteristics of the technologies, and the outcomes associated with their use. The results revealed that the most examined technology was games and the most studied outcome was improvements to learners’ cognitive skills. Additionally, participants in the majority of the publications were pre-college students with learning disabilities. The most studied topics belonged to the natural sciences while job skills were one of the least studied. Interventions were primarily conducted in formal educational environments and were implemented over 5–10 weeks in most cases. Based on the review, more detail in reporting and more attention to promoting life, job, and social skills are recommended.

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Olakanmi, O.A., Akcayir, G., Ishola, O.M. et al. Using technology in special education: current practices and trends. Education Tech Research Dev 68 , 1711–1738 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-020-09795-0

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Special Education Theses and Dissertations

Theses/dissertations from 2023 2023.

Improving Peer-to-Peer Learning for Students with Extensive Support Needs in Inclusive Classrooms , Zachary Michael Deets (Dissertation)

Behavior Training for Educators: What Training do Educators Need to Support Students with Challenging Behaviors? , Michelle R. Milburn (Dissertation)

Beyond First Thoughts: Understanding the Essence of Equitable Decision-Making, A Phenomenological Study, White Practitioners as Equitable Educational Decision-Makers , Zinnia Un (Dissertation)

Theses/Dissertations from 2022 2022

An Examination of Educator Perspectives on Career and College Pathways for Black, Indigenous, and Students of Color with Disabilities , Rachel Anne Herrick (Dissertation)

Theses/Dissertations from 2021 2021

"It's Not by Accident": Examining Leadership Efforts to Disrupt Oregon's Segregated K-12 Education System , Michael Eric Salitore (Dissertation)

Theses/Dissertations from 2020 2020

Inclusion for Speech-Language Pathology Minority Graduate Students , Teresa Michelle Roberts (Dissertation)

Theses/Dissertations from 2019 2019

Early Intervention Referral Outcomes for Children at Increased Risk of Experiencing Developmental Delays , Kristi Laurine Atkins (Dissertation)

Impact of Professional Development on Accessible Early Literacy Content for Preschool Children with Disabilities in Public Library Storytime , Melissa Pebly (Dissertation)

Theses/Dissertations from 2018 2018

The Impact of Online Professional Development on the Assessment Efficacy of Novice Itinerant Teachers of Students with Multiple Disabilities Including Visual Impairments , Jacqulyn Anne Donnenwirth Daniels (Dissertation)

Theses/Dissertations from 2017 2017

A Phenomenological Study of the Lived Experiences of Parents of Young Children with Autism Receiving Special Education Services , Donna Marie Barrow (Dissertation)

A Brief Intervention to Increase the Use of Precorrection and Praise by Elementary School Teachers , Dustin Bindreiff (Dissertation)

The Voices of Special Educators: How Do Special Educators Teach English Language Learners Who are Receiving Special Education Services? , Elizabeth Ann DuBois (Dissertation)

Theses/Dissertations from 2016 2016

An Investigation of School-Based Specific Learning Disability Identification , Bonnie Heather Bartos (Dissertation)

Desirable Conversations: Sexuality and Women with Intellectual Disabilities , Neera Malhotra (Dissertation)

An Examination of School Readiness: How Is the Construct Defined for Children Who Are Blind? , Lisa Joann McConachie (Dissertation)

The Efficacy and Feasibility of a Context-Specific Autism Behavior Rating Tool with Real Time Data Collection Methods from the Perspectives of Clinicians, Educators, and Parents , Kathleen Marie Panaccione (Dissertation)

Exploring the Impact of an LD Diagnosis on the Self-Determination of Women in Poverty , Cynthia Jakes Stadel (Dissertation)

Theses/Dissertations from 2014 2014

Adjustment to College among Lower Division Students with Disabilities: An Exploratory Study , Kristy Lee Ann McNulty (Dissertation)

Theses/Dissertations from 2013 2013

The Effect of Teacher-Identified Classroom Management , Monica Rose Root (Thesis)

Theses/Dissertations from 2011 2011

Early Childhood Inclusion: Teacher Perception of the Supports Needed to Fully Include Children with Special Needs , Meredith Villines (Thesis)

Theses/Dissertations from 2008 2008

The Use and Interpretation of the Batería III With U.S. Bilinguals , Julie Esparza Brown (Dissertation)

Theses/Dissertations from 1979 1979

An Evaluation of a Data-Based Sex Education Training Program for Mentally Retarded Adults , Patricia Ann Riley (Thesis)

Theses/Dissertations from 1972 1972

The Effects of Perceptual-Motor Training on the Perceptual-Motor Skills of Emotionally Disturbed Children , Karen R. Brown (Thesis)

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Special Education

Research, Policy & Practice

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• Research, Policy & Practice

SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, POLICY & PRACTICE  is an online peer-reviewed journal committed to advancing the professional development of special education professionals through research, policy, and practice. This electronic journal seeks new contributions based on original work of practitioners and researchers with specific focus on, or implications for, the field of special education. Manuscripts submitted will be articles on research, policy, and practice relative to special education. Articles would:

• Be research-based submissions that address current practice issues in the field of special education.
• Seek to make a new contribution to the field of special education.
• Be solicited in a variety of categories.

Please review the procedures and policies below regarding article submission, the publication process, and other important pieces of information. For more information, please contact: George Giuliani, JD, PsyD Chief Editor 516-463-5143 [email protected]

Explanation of “Peer Review”

Peer review is the evaluation of work by one or more people of similar competence to the producers of the work ( peers ).  Scholarly peer review (also known as refereeing) is the process of subjecting an author's  scholarly  work, research, or  ideas  to the scrutiny of others who are  experts  in the same field, before a paper describing this work is published in a journal. The work may be accepted, considered acceptable with revisions, or rejected. Peer review requires a community of experts in a given (and often narrowly defined) field, who are qualified and able to perform impartial review. Peer review is a well-accepted indicator of quality scholarship. Other important points about peer review journals include:

• Peer review constitutes a form of self-regulation by qualified members of a profession within the relevant field.
• Peer review methods are employed to maintain standards of quality, improve performance, and provide credibility.
• In academia peer review is often used to determine an academic paper's suitability for publication.
• Peer groups of researchers, scholars and professionals within a specific discipline are the audience for scholarly literature.
• Articles accepted for publication through a peer review process implicitly meet the discipline's expected standards of expertise.

The peer-review process is an essential part of the publication process, which will improve the manuscripts published by  SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, POLICY & PRACTICE . Not only does peer review provide an independent assessment of the importance and technical accuracy of research, but the feedback conveyed to authors with the editor’s advice frequently results in manuscripts being refined so that their structure and logic are more readily apparent to readers.

Submission of an Article by Author(s)

SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, POLICY & PRACTICE welcome manuscript submissions at any time. Authors are completely responsible for the factual accuracy of their contributions. Authors are responsible for obtaining permission to quote lengthy excerpts from previously-published articles.

Authors will be notified of the receipt of their manuscripts within seven (7) business days of their receipt by the Chief Editor and can expect to receive the recommendation of the review process within 90 days.

All submissions must have a cover letter indicating that the manuscript has not been published or is not being considered for publication anywhere else, in whole or in substantial part. On the cover letter, it will be noted to the authors to be sure to include their name, address, email address, and phone number.

Typescript should conform to the following:

• Method of Manuscript Submission : Send Manuscripts should be submitted electronically with the words " Submission to SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, POLICY & PRACTICE " in the subject line
• Language : English
• Document : Microsoft Word
• Font : Times New Roman or Arial
• Size of Font : 12 Point
• Page Limit : None
• Margins : 1” on all sides
• Title of paper : Top of page Capitals, bold, and centered
• Author(s) Name : Centered under title of paper
• Format : Manuscripts should follow the guidelines of the most recent edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
• Figures and Tables : All should be integrated in the typescript
• Abstract : An abstract of no more than 150 words should accompany each submission
• References : Insert all references cited in the paper submitted on a Reference Page

The Publishing Process

The following are the steps through which a submitted article will move from initial submission to actual publication in SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, POLICY & PRACTICE .

• The article is submitted in Word format by the author(s) to the Chief Editor, Dr. George Giuliani, at [email protected] .
• The Chief Editor then sends an email to the author stating that the article has been received and a final answer will be given within 90 days of receipt.
• The article is then placed in an online folder that holds all articles up for review.
• The article is then removed of all author names, affiliations, etc., so that when it is sent out for review, it is a blind review and no peer reviewers have any indication who wrote the article or from what university it was submitted.
• An email is then sent by the Chief Editor to all members of the Editorial Board with a request to review an article. Only the title of the article is given. For example:
• Peer reviewers then email the Chief Editor as to their interest in reviewing the specific article. A minimum of three (3) blind reviewers is selected.  An email to each blind reviewer is then sent reviewing the peer review process. 
• Are the claims appropriately discussed in the context of previous literature?
• Are the claims convincing? If not, what further evidence is needed?
• Are the claims novel? If not, which published papers compromise novelty?
• Are there any special ethical concerns arising from the use of subjects?
• Are there other experiments or work that would strengthen the paper further?
• Could the manuscript be shortened?
• Have the authors done themselves justice without overselling their claims?
• Have they been fair in their treatment of previous literature?
• Have they provided sufficient methodological detail that the experiments could be reproduced?
• How does the paper stand out from others in its field?
• How much would further work improve it, and how difficult would this be? Would it take a long time?
• If not, how could it be made more clear or accessible to non-specialists?
• If the manuscript is unacceptable but promising, what specific work is needed to make it acceptable?
• If the manuscript is unacceptable, is the study sufficiently promising to encourage the authors to resubmit?
• Is the manuscript clearly written?
• Is the statistical analysis of the data sound?
• Should the authors be asked to provide supplementary methods or data to accompany the paper online?
• What are the main claims of the paper and how significant are they?
• Who will be interested in reading the paper, and why?
• Would readers outside the discipline benefit from this publication?

Note: The primary purpose of the review is to provide the editors with the information needed to reach a decision. The review should instruct the authors on how they can strengthen their paper to the point where it may be acceptable. As far as possible, a negative review should explain to the authors the weaknesses of their manuscript, so that rejected authors can understand the basis for the decision and see in broad terms what needs to be done to improve the manuscript for publication elsewhere. This is secondary to the other functions, however, and peer reviewers should not feel obliged to provide detailed, constructive advice to authors of papers that do not meet the criteria for the journal (as outlined in the letter from the editor when asking for the review). If the reviewer believes that a manuscript would not be suitable for publication, his/her report to the author should enable the author to understand the reason for the decision.

Once all of the reviews have been obtained, the Chief Editor determines whether to:

• Accept, with or without editorial revisions
• Invite the authors to revise their manuscript to address specific concerns before a final decision is reached
• Reject, but indicate to the authors that further work might justify a resubmission
• Reject outright, typically on grounds of specialist interest, lack of novelty, insufficient conceptual advance, or major technical and/or interpretational problems
• An email with the decision (and rationale for it) is then sent to the author(s).
• Before publication, the article is then passed through three functions: copy editing (grammar, references), proofing (typographical errors, spelling errors), and layout (creating a Microsoft Word and PDF version of the article).

Editorial Board and Selection of Peer Reviewers

Editorial Board of Reviewers

All members of the Hofstra University Special Education Department will sit on the Editorial Board for the SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, POLICY & PRACTICE . Each of the faculty will reach out to professionals in the field whom he/she knows to start the process of building a list of peer reviewers for specific types of articles. Reviewer selection is critical to the publication process, and we will base our choice on many factors, including expertise, reputation, specific recommendations, and previous experience of a reviewer.

Editor George Giuliani, JD, PsyD, Hofstra University

Hofstra University Special Education Faculty Elfreda Blue, Ph.D. Stephen Hernandez, Ed.D. Gloria Lodato Wilson, Ph.D. Mary E. McDonald, Ph.D, BCBA-D, LBA Diane Schwartz, Ed.D. 

Editorial Board Mohammed Alzyoudi, Ph.D., American University in the Emirates. Dubai. UAE Faith Andreasen, Ph.D. Vance L. Austin, Ph.D., Manhattanville College Amy Ballin, Ph.D. Dana Battaglia, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, Westbury UFSD Brooke Blanks, Ph.D., Radford University Kathleen Boothe, Ph.D., Southeastern Oklahoma State University Nicholas Catania, PhD, State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota Lindsey A. Chapman, Ph.D., University of Florida Morgan Chitiyo, Ph.D., University of North Carolina at Greensboro Jonathan Chitiyo, Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh at Bradford Heidi Cornell, Ph.D., Wichita State University Lesley Craig-Unkefer, Ed.D., Middle Tennessee State University Amy Davies Lackey, Ph.D., BCBA-D Lauren Dean, Ed.D., Hofstra University Josh Del Viscovo, MS, BCSE, Northcentral University Darlene Desbrow, Ph.D., United States University Janet R. DeSimone, Ed.D., Lehman College, The City University of New York Lisa Dille, Ed.D., BCBA, Georgian Court University William Dorfman, B.A. (MA in progress), Florida International University Brandi Eley, Ph.D. Tracey Falardeau M.A., M.S., Midland Educational Agency Danielle Feeney, Ph.D., Ohio University Lisa Fleisher, Ph.D., New York University Neil O. Friesland, Ed.D., MidAmerica Nazarene University Theresa Garfield, Ed.D., Texas A&M University-San Antonio Leigh Gates, Ed.D., University of North Carolina Wilmington Sean Green, Ph.D. Deborah W. Hartman, M.S., Cedar Crest College Shawnna Helf, Ph.D., Winthrop University Nicole Irish, Ed.D., University of the Cumberlands Randa G. Keeley, Ph.D., Texas Woman's University Hyun Uk Kim, Ph.D., Eastern Oregon University Louisa Kramer-Vida, Ed.D., Long Island University Nai-Cheng Kuo, Ph.D., BCBA, Augusta University Renée E. Lastrapes, Ph.D., University of Houston-Clear Lake Debra Leach, Ed.D., BCBA, Winthrop University Marla J. Lohmann, Ph.D., Colorado Christian University Mary Lombardo-Graves, Ed.D., University of Evansville Pamela E. Lowry, Ed.D., Georgian Court University Denise Lucas, M.S. Matthew D. Lucas, Ed.D., Longwood University Jay R. Lucker, Ed.D., Howard University Jennifer N. Mahdavi, Ph.D., BCBA-D, Sonoma State University Alyson Martin, Ed.D., Fairfield University Krystle E. Merry, M.S. Ed., NBCT., Ph.D. Student, University of Arkansas Marcia Montague, Ph.D., Texas A&M University Chelsea T. Morris, Ph.D., University of West Georgia Gena Nelson, Ph.D., University of Oregon Lawrence Nhemachena, MSc, Universidade Catolica de Mozambique Maria B. Peterson Ahmad, Ph.D., Western Oregon University Christine Powell. Ed.D., California Lutheran University Deborah Reed, Ph.D., University of Tennessee Ken Reimer, Ph.D., University of Winnipeg Dana Reinecke, Ph.D., BCBA-D, Capella University Denise Rich-Gross, Ph.D., University of Akron Benjamin Riden, ABD - Ph.D., Penn State Mary Runo, Ph.D., Kenyatta University Emily Smith, Ed.D., Midwestern State University Carrie Semmelroth, Ed.D., Boise State University Pamela Mary Schmidt, M.S., Freeport High School Special Education Department Edward Schultz, Ph.D., Midwestern State University Mustafa Serdar Köksal, Ph.D., Hacettepe University, Turkey Emily R. Shamash, Ed.D., Fairfield University Christopher E. Smith, Ph.D., BCBA-D, Positive Behavior Support Consulting & Psychological Resources Emily Smith, Ed.D., Midwestern State University Gregory W. Smith. Ph.D., University of Southern Mississippi Emily Sobeck, Ph.D., Franciscan University Ernest Solar, Ph.D., Mount St. Mary’s University Gretchen L. Stewart , Ph.D., University of South Florida Roben Taylor Daubler, Ed.D., Western Governors University Jessie Sue Thacker-King, Flagler College Julia VanderMolen, Ph.D., Grand Valley State University Cindy Widner, Ed.D., Carson Newman University Kathleen G. Winterman, Ed.D., Xavier University Sara B. Woolf, Ed.D., Queens College, City University of New York Perry A. Zirkel, J.D., Ph.D., Lehigh University

Additional Policies and Conclusion

Ensuring Anonymity and Blind Reviews The Chief Editor will not release reviewers' identities to authors or to other reviewers.  Reviewers will also remain anonymous throughout the review process and beyond.

Copyright and Reprint Rights SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, POLICY & PRACTICE is published by Hofstra University. SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, POLICY & PRACTICE retains copyright of all original materials, however, the author(s) retains the right to use, after publication in the journal, all or part of the contribution in a modified form as part of any subsequent publication.

If the author(s) use the materials in a subsequent publication, whether in whole or part, SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, POLICY & PRACTICE must be acknowledged as the original publisher of the article. All other requests for use or re-publication in whole or part, should be addressed to the Editor of SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, POLICY & PRACTICE

Conclusion SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, POLICY & PRACTICE has the potential to be a leading online peer review journal locally, state-wide, nationally and internationally. With a mission of being an online peer-reviewed journal committed to advancing the professional development of special education professionals through research, policy, and practice, SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, POLICY & PRACTICE will promote new and exciting research in the field of special education. The faculty in the Special Education programs at Hofstra University is committed to making SPECIAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, POLICY & PRACTICE a highly reputable online research journal.

Special Education Research

See also: Special Education , Special Education Policy , Special Education Law , Special Ed. Identification , Special Education Monitoring

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Partisan divides over K-12 education in 8 charts

K-12 education is shaping up to be a key issue in the 2024 election cycle. Several prominent Republican leaders, including GOP presidential candidates, have sought to limit discussion of gender identity and race in schools , while the Biden administration has called for expanded protections for transgender students . The coronavirus pandemic also brought out partisan divides on many issues related to K-12 schools .

Today, the public is sharply divided along partisan lines on topics ranging from what should be taught in schools to how much influence parents should have over the curriculum. Here are eight charts that highlight partisan differences over K-12 education, based on recent surveys by Pew Research Center and external data.

Pew Research Center conducted this analysis to provide a snapshot of partisan divides in K-12 education in the run-up to the 2024 election. The analysis is based on data from various Center surveys and analyses conducted from 2021 to 2023, as well as survey data from Education Next, a research journal about education policy. Links to the methodology and questions for each survey or analysis can be found in the text of this analysis.

Most Democrats say K-12 schools are having a positive effect on the country , but a majority of Republicans say schools are having a negative effect, according to a Pew Research Center survey from October 2022. About seven-in-ten Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents (72%) said K-12 public schools were having a positive effect on the way things were going in the United States. About six-in-ten Republicans and GOP leaners (61%) said K-12 schools were having a negative effect.

About six-in-ten Democrats (62%) have a favorable opinion of the U.S. Department of Education , while a similar share of Republicans (65%) see it negatively, according to a March 2023 survey by the Center. Democrats and Republicans were more divided over the Department of Education than most of the other 15 federal departments and agencies the Center asked about.

In May 2023, after the survey was conducted, Republican lawmakers scrutinized the Department of Education’s priorities during a House Committee on Education and the Workforce hearing. The lawmakers pressed U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona on topics including transgender students’ participation in sports and how race-related concepts are taught in schools, while Democratic lawmakers focused on school shootings.

Partisan opinions of K-12 principals have become more divided. In a December 2021 Center survey, about three-quarters of Democrats (76%) expressed a great deal or fair amount of confidence in K-12 principals to act in the best interests of the public. A much smaller share of Republicans (52%) said the same. And nearly half of Republicans (47%) had not too much or no confidence at all in principals, compared with about a quarter of Democrats (24%).

This divide grew between April 2020 and December 2021. While confidence in K-12 principals declined significantly among people in both parties during that span, it fell by 27 percentage points among Republicans, compared with an 11-point decline among Democrats.

Democrats are much more likely than Republicans to say teachers’ unions are having a positive effect on schools. In a May 2022 survey by Education Next , 60% of Democrats said this, compared with 22% of Republicans. Meanwhile, 53% of Republicans and 17% of Democrats said that teachers’ unions were having a negative effect on schools. (In this survey, too, Democrats and Republicans include independents who lean toward each party.)

The 38-point difference between Democrats and Republicans on this question was the widest since Education Next first asked it in 2013. However, the gap has exceeded 30 points in four of the last five years for which data is available.

Republican and Democratic parents differ over how much influence they think governments, school boards and others should have on what K-12 schools teach. About half of Republican parents of K-12 students (52%) said in a fall 2022 Center survey that the federal government has too much influence on what their local public schools are teaching, compared with two-in-ten Democratic parents. Republican K-12 parents were also significantly more likely than their Democratic counterparts to say their state government (41% vs. 28%) and their local school board (30% vs. 17%) have too much influence.

On the other hand, more than four-in-ten Republican parents (44%) said parents themselves don’t have enough influence on what their local K-12 schools teach, compared with roughly a quarter of Democratic parents (23%). A larger share of Democratic parents – about a third (35%) – said teachers don’t have enough influence on what their local schools teach, compared with a quarter of Republican parents who held this view.

Republican and Democratic parents don’t agree on what their children should learn in school about certain topics. Take slavery, for example: While about nine-in-ten parents of K-12 students overall agreed in the fall 2022 survey that their children should learn about it in school, they differed by party over the specifics. About two-thirds of Republican K-12 parents said they would prefer that their children learn that slavery is part of American history but does not affect the position of Black people in American society today. On the other hand, 70% of Democratic parents said they would prefer for their children to learn that the legacy of slavery still affects the position of Black people in American society today.

Parents are also divided along partisan lines on the topics of gender identity, sex education and America’s position relative to other countries. Notably, 46% of Republican K-12 parents said their children should not learn about gender identity at all in school, compared with 28% of Democratic parents. Those shares were much larger than the shares of Republican and Democratic parents who said that their children should not learn about the other two topics in school.

Many Republican parents see a place for religion in public schools , whereas a majority of Democratic parents do not. About six-in-ten Republican parents of K-12 students (59%) said in the same survey that public school teachers should be allowed to lead students in Christian prayers, including 29% who said this should be the case even if prayers from other religions are not offered. In contrast, 63% of Democratic parents said that public school teachers should not be allowed to lead students in any type of prayers.

In June 2022, before the Center conducted the survey, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of a football coach at a public high school who had prayed with players at midfield after games. More recently, Texas lawmakers introduced several bills in the 2023 legislative session that would expand the role of religion in K-12 public schools in the state. Those proposals included a bill that would require the Ten Commandments to be displayed in every classroom, a bill that would allow schools to replace guidance counselors with chaplains, and a bill that would allow districts to mandate time during the school day for staff and students to pray and study religious materials.

Mentions of diversity, social-emotional learning and related topics in school mission statements are more common in Democratic areas than in Republican areas. K-12 mission statements from public schools in areas where the majority of residents voted Democratic in the 2020 general election are at least twice as likely as those in Republican-voting areas to include the words “diversity,” “equity” or “inclusion,” according to an April 2023 Pew Research Center analysis .

Also, about a third of mission statements in Democratic-voting areas (34%) use the word “social,” compared with a quarter of those in Republican-voting areas, and a similar gap exists for the word “emotional.” Like diversity, equity and inclusion, social-emotional learning is a contentious issue between Democrats and Republicans, even though most K-12 parents think it’s important for their children’s schools to teach these skills . Supporters argue that social-emotional learning helps address mental health needs and student well-being, but some critics consider it emotional manipulation and want it banned.

In contrast, there are broad similarities in school mission statements outside of these hot-button topics. Similar shares of mission statements in Democratic and Republican areas mention students’ future readiness, parent and community involvement, and providing a safe and healthy educational environment for students.

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About 1 in 4 U.S. teachers say their school went into a gun-related lockdown in the last school year

About half of americans say public k-12 education is going in the wrong direction, what public k-12 teachers want americans to know about teaching, what’s it like to be a teacher in america today, race and lgbtq issues in k-12 schools, most popular.

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Weekly Research Update Special Edition: Discover USC 2024

Join us tomorrow for Discover USC 2024

Discover USC, the University of South Carolina’s annual showcase of research, scholarship, leadership and creativity takes place tomorrow, Friday, April 19 at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center.

Presentations will begin at 9:30 a.m. and end at 2:30 p.m. There will be presentations from undergraduate and graduate students, medical scholars and postdoctoral scholars in every discipline from arts to engineering. Entrance to Discover USC is free and we encourage faculty, staff, administrators, students, family members and friends to join us.

Remember to use our hashtag #DiscoverUSC2024 when posting about your day at Discover USC!

Get the Discover USC mobile guide on the Guidebook app today

All Discover USC participants and visitors are encouraged to download the official Discover USC 2024 Guide on the Guidebook app. The 2024 Guide is available now, and has everything you need to navigate Discover USC 2024 and get event day updates from organizers. Download the Guidebook app and search for “Discover USC 2024 Official Guide” to join and access event details. With the guide, you can:

• View all the details on Discover USC 2024 presentations.
• Search all presentations by presenter name(s), title, keywords found anywhere in the abstract or title, mentor name(s), poster number and more.
• Refer to general information about the day, including the schedule with locations for each presentation session and information on free shuttles.
• Receive event-day updates and reminders from organizers.
• Wifi at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center will likely experience heavy traffic at the event tomorrow, so be sure to get the guide before you arrive to avoid possible slow download times.

Glimpse the impact of research at Discover USC

18 April 2024

Challenge the conventional. Create the exceptional. No Limits.

AI Index Report

Welcome to the seventh edition of the AI Index report. The 2024 Index is our most comprehensive to date and arrives at an important moment when AI’s influence on society has never been more pronounced. This year, we have broadened our scope to more extensively cover essential trends such as technical advancements in AI, public perceptions of the technology, and the geopolitical dynamics surrounding its development. Featuring more original data than ever before, this edition introduces new estimates on AI training costs, detailed analyses of the responsible AI landscape, and an entirely new chapter dedicated to AI’s impact on science and medicine.

Read the 2024 AI Index Report

The AI Index report tracks, collates, distills, and visualizes data related to artificial intelligence (AI). Our mission is to provide unbiased, rigorously vetted, broadly sourced data in order for policymakers, researchers, executives, journalists, and the general public to develop a more thorough and nuanced understanding of the complex field of AI.

The AI Index is recognized globally as one of the most credible and authoritative sources for data and insights on artificial intelligence. Previous editions have been cited in major newspapers, including the The New York Times, Bloomberg, and The Guardian, have amassed hundreds of academic citations, and been referenced by high-level policymakers in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union, among other places. This year’s edition surpasses all previous ones in size, scale, and scope, reflecting the growing significance that AI is coming to hold in all of our lives.

Steering Committee Co-Directors

Ray Perrault

Steering committee members.

Erik Brynjolfsson

John Etchemendy

Katrina Ligett

Terah Lyons

James Manyika

Juan Carlos Niebles

Vanessa Parli

Yoav Shoham

Russell Wald

Staff members.

Loredana Fattorini

Nestor Maslej

Letter from the co-directors.

A decade ago, the best AI systems in the world were unable to classify objects in images at a human level. AI struggled with language comprehension and could not solve math problems. Today, AI systems routinely exceed human performance on standard benchmarks.

Progress accelerated in 2023. New state-of-the-art systems like GPT-4, Gemini, and Claude 3 are impressively multimodal: They can generate fluent text in dozens of languages, process audio, and even explain memes. As AI has improved, it has increasingly forced its way into our lives. Companies are racing to build AI-based products, and AI is increasingly being used by the general public. But current AI technology still has significant problems. It cannot reliably deal with facts, perform complex reasoning, or explain its conclusions.

AI faces two interrelated futures. First, technology continues to improve and is increasingly used, having major consequences for productivity and employment. It can be put to both good and bad uses. In the second future, the adoption of AI is constrained by the limitations of the technology. Regardless of which future unfolds, governments are increasingly concerned. They are stepping in to encourage the upside, such as funding university R&D and incentivizing private investment. Governments are also aiming to manage the potential downsides, such as impacts on employment, privacy concerns, misinformation, and intellectual property rights.

As AI rapidly evolves, the AI Index aims to help the AI community, policymakers, business leaders, journalists, and the general public navigate this complex landscape. It provides ongoing, objective snapshots tracking several key areas: technical progress in AI capabilities, the community and investments driving AI development and deployment, public opinion on current and potential future impacts, and policy measures taken to stimulate AI innovation while managing its risks and challenges. By comprehensively monitoring the AI ecosystem, the Index serves as an important resource for understanding this transformative technological force.

On the technical front, this year’s AI Index reports that the number of new large language models released worldwide in 2023 doubled over the previous year. Two-thirds were open-source, but the highest-performing models came from industry players with closed systems. Gemini Ultra became the first LLM to reach human-level performance on the Massive Multitask Language Understanding (MMLU) benchmark; performance on the benchmark has improved by 15 percentage points since last year. Additionally, GPT-4 achieved an impressive 0.97 mean win rate score on the comprehensive Holistic Evaluation of Language Models (HELM) benchmark, which includes MMLU among other evaluations.

Although global private investment in AI decreased for the second consecutive year, investment in generative AI skyrocketed. More Fortune 500 earnings calls mentioned AI than ever before, and new studies show that AI tangibly boosts worker productivity. On the policymaking front, global mentions of AI in legislative proceedings have never been higher. U.S. regulators passed more AI-related regulations in 2023 than ever before. Still, many expressed concerns about AI’s ability to generate deepfakes and impact elections. The public became more aware of AI, and studies suggest that they responded with nervousness.

Ray Perrault Co-director, AI Index

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New research sheds light on how compostable packaging breaks down.

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Restaurant that uses 100% compostable packaging, utensils and plates, Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo ... [+] by: Lindsey Nicholson/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Compostable packaging breaks down successfully at composting facilities that meet reasonable operational parameters, according to a new study.

The study by the Composting Consortium , an industry collaboration led by the Center for the Circular Economy at Closed Loop Partners, shares findings from an 18-month field test conducted at 10 different facilities across North America.

It found compostable plastic packaging and products broke down successfully across five composting methods used in the facilities, achieving 98% disintegration on average by surface area, which exceeds industry thresholds to achieve a 90% or higher disintegration.

And compostable fiber packaging and products achieved 83% disintegration on average by surface area, meeting industry thresholds to achieve an 80% or higher disintegration.

The study tested over 23,000 units of certified food-contact compostable packaging within large-scale industrial composting environments across the facilities.

“Alongside design and reduction as well as reuse and recycling, composting is an important solution for waste mitigation,” said Kate Daly, managing director and head of the Center for the Circular Economy at Closed Loop Partners in a statement.

“Through this research, the Composting Consortium sheds light on what is needed for compostable packaging to have the greatest positive impact.

“Informed by this robust data, we can together ensure the responsible growth of compostable packaging and composting infrastructure, and drive toward circular outcomes, including increased diversion of food scraps and compostable packaging from landfills,” added Daly.

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But Anita Spiller, ESG vice president at Tru Earth, which produces eco-friendly laundry strips, said in an email not enough people are aware of the differences between industrial composting and “backyard” composting to begin with.

“Compostable plastics can’t break down in your backyard like your table scraps would. They have to be taken to a specialized facility and break down under certain conditions,” said Spiller.

“And of course, there are issues with infrastructure. Consumer package goods companies can innovate new products as much as they want, but if their compostable products require a facility, then most of it will end up in landfills and waterways,” she added.

John Mascari, the co-founder and chief operating officer of Blueland, which specializes in eco-friendly cleaning products, said in an interview the industrial composting infrastructure in the U.S. has a long way to go to ensure easy, truly universal access and educating the public about how to dispose of compostable packaging properly.

“We have always taken the view as a business that it’s important to invest in the demand side of the equation, which will then increase the likelihood that the infrastructure will follow,” Mascari told me.

And Dr. Kim Warner, a senior scientist at Oceana said in an email more information is needed to ensure the safety of the compost tested, like the levels of microplastics present from these bioplastics.

“There is an urgent need for companies to provide us with plastic-free choices and develop systems that refill and reuse packaging and materials,” said Dr. Warner.

“For the sake of our health, communities, and oceans, policymakers must pass legislation to ensure we are moving away from harmful plastic pollution in all its forms.”

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