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EDG 7938: Foundations of Curriculum Inquiry

Why Exemplary?

"Had we been charged with identifying the 'most outstanding' dissertation, I think we would have had a more difficult time reaching consensus. The emphasis on 'exemplary' was deliberate; while there could easily be differences of opinion about which dissertation is the 'best,' I think there could be little disputing the judgment that all five of the award-winning selections are exemplary, and can serve as models of high-quality research within their disciplines for others to follow. By identifying exemplary dissertations, the Spencer Foundation hopes to elevate the quality of dissertation research and writing that will be pursued in the future." 

- Adam Gamoran, Spencer Fellowship committee for Exemplary Dissertations

The links below are to various programs and agencies that grant awards to theses and dissertations, no extensive list or search mechanism.

  • The American Educational Research Association (AERA), a national research society, strives to advance knowledge about education, to encourage scholarly inquiry related to education, and to promote the use of research to improve education and serve the public good. AERA, founded in 1916, is concerned with improving the educational process by encouraging scholarly inquiry related to education and evaluation and by promoting the dissemination and practical application of research results. 
  • International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry is a congress held annually at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). Its mission is to facilitate the development of qualitative research methods across a wide variety of academic disciplines. In addition, it provides leadership to demonstrate the promise of qualitative inquiry as a form of democratic practice, to show how qualitative inquiry can be used to directly engage pressing social issues at the level of local, state, national and global communities.
  • American Evaluation Association the AEA's mission is to improve evaluation practices and methods, increase evaluation use, promote evaluation as a profession, and support the contribution of evaluation to the generation of theory and knowledge about effective human action.
  • Association for Institutional Research (AIR) is the world's largest professional association for institutional researchers. The organization provides educational resources, best practices and professional development opportunities for more than 4,000 members. Its primary purpose is to support members in the process of collecting, analyzing, and converting data into information that supports decision-making in higher education.
  • Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) ASHE is a scholarly society with 2,000 members dedicated to higher education as a field of study. It is committed to diversity in its programs and membership, and has enjoyed extraordinary success in involving graduate students in Association activities. ASHE promotes collaboration among its members and others engaged in the study of higher education through research, conferences, and publications, including its highly regarded journal, The Review of Higher Education. ASHE values rigorous scholarly approaches to the study of higher education and practical applications of systemic inquiry.
  • Institute of Education Sciences (IES) is the statistics, research, and evaluation arm of the U.S. Department of Education. It's independent and non-partisan and its mission is to provide scientific evidence on which to ground education practice and policy and to share this information in formats that are useful and accessible to educators, parents, policymakers, researchers, and the public.
  • The Spencer Foundation was established in 1962 by Lyle M. Spencer. It received its major endowment upon Spencer's death in 1968 and began formal grant making in 1971. Since that time, the Foundation has made grants totaling nearly $500 million. It's intended, by Spencer's direction, to investigate ways in which education, broadly conceived, can be improved around the world. 
  • National Academy of Education advances high-quality education research and its use in policy formation and practice. Founded in 1965, the Academy consists of U.S. members and foreign associates who are elected on the basis of outstanding scholarship related to education. Since its establishment, the Academy has undertaken research studies addressing pressing issues in education, which are typically conducted by members and other scholars with relevant expertise. In addition, the Academy sponsors professional development programs to enhance the preparation of the next generation of education scholars.
  • US Department of Education 
    • The U.S. Department of Education administers about 200 grant programs. Descriptions of those programs, as well as applications and guidelines, can be found in the grants overview.