ASSISTments Mentioned in U.S. Department of Education Report to Congress

The U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Studies (IES) acknowledged ASSISTments in its recent Report to Congress. ASSISTments, an online learning platform developed at WPI, has received considerable support from the IES since 2004.

 The report detailed IES’s support for ASSISTments. Specifically, it states that “NCER is currently funding two replication studies to evaluate its effects"-- a replication efficacy study and an effectiveness study. The report also points out that “over 1,000 teachers across 42 states are using ASSISTments to improve student learning in mathematics.” 

 In April of this year, the What Works Clearinghouse, a highly regarded federal research review of education products, awarded an ASSISTments study its highest marks of “meet(ing) standards without reservations.” The WWC review found that the study met WWC standards without reservations, meaning the study was found to be valid and without bias. 

 ​ASSISTments is excited by its recognition by the U.S. Department of Education and will continue to leverage IES funding to conduct sound research. Conducting studies of ASSISTments will help determine how best to use online learning platforms to increase student learning.