1-156 - Federal Support for Early Learning and Development Research: Current Research Priorities and Opportunities

Session Type: Federal Agency Symposium

Integrative Statement

Early childhood research (including during prenatal development and infancy) is supported across many sectors of the federal government to improve outcomes for young children and their families, immediately and across development. This symposium will focus on research funding opportunities and priorities within components of the U.S. Department of Education, the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Health. Grants supported by these agencies address a broad array of issues related to early learning and development: research that targets high risk and/or underrepresented populations to improve health and educational equity (e.g., improving school readiness in high risk populations); research to understand the epidemiology, etiology, underlying mechanisms (e.g., neurobiological, environmental) and potentially modifiable risk and protective factors of behavioral health and educational outcomes; research to develop and test interventions targeting educational, developmental and behavioral health outcomes; and services and implementation research (including economics research). Studies across the continuum, from basic science to clinical and educational research, and research that informs or is informed by policy and practice are supported. Representatives from the Institute for Education Sciences (IES; U.S. Department of Education), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) and National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)—both within the National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services—will discuss current priorities, research opportunities (including any relevant initiatives), and alignment of research interests with agency priorities.

Sub Unit

• Federal Agency Sessions

Chairs

• Belinda Sims, National Institute on Drug Abuse

• Amy Sussman, IES, ED

Individual Presentations

• Early Learning and early Intervention Research at the Institute of Education Sciences - Presenting Author: Caroline Ebanks, National Center for Education Research, Institute of Education Sciences; Amy Sussman, IES, ED

• National Science Foundation Funding Opportunities for Research in the Developmental and Learning Sciences - Presenting Author: David S. Moore, NSF

• Early Learning and Development Research at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development - Presenting Author: James Griffin, NICHD

• Early Learning and Development Research at the National Institute on Drug Abuse - Presenting Author: Belinda Sims, National Institute on Drug Abuse