AERA pursues projects, initiatives, and activities to advance the field of education research, promote cutting-edge lines of study, and deepen knowledge about education research as a discipline, profession, and field. 

Key activities include:

• The AERA-NAEd Assessment of Education Research Doctorate Programs, a National Science Foundation-funded study of 569 education research doctorate programs in 96 participating U.S. institutions. The assessment will yield critical data and findings that can be used to establish benchmarks and quality criteria to advance and improve education research doctorate programs nationally. Read more
• AERA’s Research Conferences Program, which awards grants for conferences intended to break new ground in substantive areas of inquiry, stimulate new lines of study on issues that have been largely unexplored, or develop innovative research methods or techniques that can contribute to education research. Read more
  
  
• AERA’s Education Research Service Projects (ERSP) program, which is designed to encourage education researchers to offer their pro bono expertise to educational organizations, institutions, or other community groups that have identified and expressed a need for such assistance. 
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