Educational Research, Development, and Dissemination Excellence Act

Educational Research, Development, and Dissemination Excellence Act - Title I: General Provisions Regarding Office of Educational Research and Improvement - Amends the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA) to revise certain provisions relating to the purpose, administration, functions, and structure of the Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI).

Eliminates provisions for the National Advisory Council on Educational Research and Improvement.

Directs the Secretary of Education (the Secretary), acting through OERI, to carry out specified policies, in accordance with the policies and priorities established by the Board of Governors (the Board, which title II of this Act establishes).

Requires that OERI consist of programs and units in accordance with specified current GEPA provisions, as well as those added under this Act.

Directs the Assistant Secretary for Educational Research and Improvement (Assistant Secretary) to report annually to the President and the Congress data on OERI, including numbers of current personnel, broken down by gender, race, and civil service classification, current vacancies, and projections of future personnel needs.

Directs the Assistant Secretary to carry out a program of specified coordination activities, including certain reports and inventories.

Directs the Assistant Secretary to develop standards for the conduct and evaluation of all OERI research, development, and dissemination activities, to assure that such activities meet the highest standards of professional excellence. Requires such standards to include ones for peer review and evaluation of applications for, and periodic review and evaluation of, all grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements by OERI. Sets forth procedures for publication and promulgation of such standards.

Authorizes appropriations for OERI programs and units (both current ones and ones added by this Act), including various National Institutes and the National Education Dissemination System. Allocates specified portions of such funds for certain purposes. Restricts use of such funds for research and development in the area of student assessment, except activities under a specified coordinated program.

Authorizes the Secretary to award a competitive grant for up to five years to a public or private entity to cover one-third of the costs of conducting a State-by-State poll on how well secondary schools have prepared students for further education or employment.

Amends the Department of Education Organization Act to establish the position of Assistant Secretary for Educational Research and Improvement (the Assistant Secretary), to be appointed by the President with Senate consent, and selected in consultation with the Board from among distinguished education researchers with proven management ability and substantial knowledge of education within the United States.

Provides that contracts for regional educational laboratories, education resources information clearinghouses, and research and development centers assisted under specified GEPA provisions on the date of enactment of this Act shall remain in effect until the termination date of such contracts.

Title II: Board of Governors - Amends GEPA to establish within OERI a Board of Governors (the Board).

Makes the Board, acting through the Assistant Secretary, responsible for: (1) determining priorities to guide OERI's work and congressional oversight of it; (2) review and approve standards for conduct and evaluation of all research, development, and dissemination carried out under auspices of the Office pursuant to specified GEPA provisions; and (3) regularly review and evaluate implementation of its recommended priorities and policies by the Department and the Congress.

Directs the Board to develop a research and priorities plan. Requires the Board to survey and assess the state of knowledge in education research and development to identify disciplines and areas of inquiry where knowledge is insufficient and which warrant further investigation, taking into account the views of both education researchers and practicing educators. Requires the Board to consult with the National Education Goals Panel and other authorities on education to identify national priorities for the improvement of education. Directs the Board to: (1) actively solicit, through periodic regional forums and other means, recommendations for education researchers, teachers, school administrators, parents, and others; and (2) provide recommendations for developing, maintaining, and assuring a strong education, research, and development infrastructure. Requires the Board, on the basis of such recommendations, to develop a research priorities program to recommend priorities for investment of OERI resources over the next five-, ten-, and 15-year periods. Requires including as priorities those areas of inquiry in which further research and development: (1) is necessary to attain the identified goals for improvement of education; (2) promises to yield the greatest practical benefits to teachers and other educators in improving education; and (3) will not be undertaken in sufficient scope or intensity by other Federal and non-Federal entities engaged in education research and development. Sets forth required contents of such research and priorities plan, including goals for OERI expenditures within recommended priority areas, specific objectives expected to be achieved by such expenditures, and recommendations as to relative distribution of resources within each priority area among the various entities engaged in such education research and development. Requires the Assistant Secretary to publish a biennial report, and submit such report and any public comment and suggestions to the President and the Congress, on the Board's proposed research priorities.

Authorizes the Board to establish subcommittees, convene workshops and conferences, and collect data.

Sets forth Board membership qualifications, in general. Requires that the 18 Board voting members be appointed by the Secretary, with specified numbers representing educational researchers, classroom teachers, State and local school officials, librarians, parents, nonprofit foundations, business and industry, and State Governors. Designates specified Federal officials as ex-officio, nonvoting members.

Title III: National Research Institutes - Amends GEPA to establish the following National Research Institutes within OERI: (1) the National Institute for Education of At-Risk Students; (2) the National Institute for Innovation in Educational Governance, Finance, and Management; (3) the National Institute for Early Childhood Learning, Families and Communities; (4) the National Institute on Student Achievement; and (5) the National Institute on Postsecondary Education, Libraries, and Lifelong Education. Sets forth provisions relating to such Institutes': (1) Directors; (2) authorities and duties; (3) targeting historically underrepresented researchers and institutions; and (4) appointment of scientific and professional employees. Sets forth separate provisions relating to the role of each such Institute.

Directs the Secretary, through the Assistant Secretary, to undertake comprehensive, coordinated programs of research by each of the Institutes on: (1) assessment; (2) cross-cutting issues relevant to one or more Institutes; (3) teaching and teacher education; and (4) educational technology.

Title IV: National Education Dissemination System - Amends GEPA to establish within OERI an Office of Reform Assistance and Dissemination (Dissemination Office), through which the Secretary shall carry out a national education dissemination system for school improvement to identify, validate, and disseminate to educators, parents, and policymakers those exemplary and promising educational programs that have been shown to improve educational opportunities for all students. Sets forth provisions relating to Dissemination Office functions and duties, including: (1) identification, designation, and dissemination of successful, exemplary, and promising programs, including certain training, technical, and financial assistance; (2) 16 Education Resources Information Clearinghouses; (3) dissemination through new technologies; (4) an electronic network for sources of materials and research about teaching and learning for improving nationwide education (SMARTLINE) to link various educational research and other entities; (5) an electronic networking and resource-sharing for school improvement program of grants to State education agencies; (6) a networked system of the ten regional educational laboratories; (7) an America 2000 Communities Special Assistance Program, with grants for Learning Grant Institutions and District Education Agents within eligible communities, development of a comprehensive America 2000 plan for assuring educational success for all students in the community, and implementation of a community-wide plan for educational improvement; (8) the Teacher Research Dissemination Network (regional partnerships for teacher change agents, to train teachers in acquiring, applying, and participating in education research); (9) the existing National Diffusion Network and its Developer-Demonstrator and State Facilitator projects; and (10) other programs or entities the Secretary determines appropriate.

Title V: National Library of Education - Amends GEPA to establish within OERI a National Library of Education (the Library), to be maintained as a governmental activity, to: (1) provide a central location within the Federal Government for information about education; (2) provide comprehensive reference services on education-related matters; and (3) promote greater cooperation and resource-sharing among education information providers and repositories in the United States. Requires the Library to establish and maintain a one-stop central information and referral service to respond to inquiries from the public concerning: (1) Department of Education (Department) programs and activities; (2) Department and other Federal agency education-related publications; (3) OERI services and resources available to the public, including the ERIC Clearinghouses, the research institutions, and the national education dissemination system; (4) statistics and other information produced by the National Center for Education Statistics; and (5) referrals to additional sources of information and expertise about educational issues. Directs the Library to maintain and publicize a toll-free telephone number for public inquiries.

Directs the Library to deliver comprehensive reference services of various types on education-related subjects to Department employees, other Federal employees, and members of the general public, with first priority to Department employees' requests.

Directs the Library to promote greater cooperation and resource-sharing among libraries and archives with significant collections in the area of education, through various means.

Requires the Library to be administered by an Executive Director appointed by the Assistant Secretary from among persons with significant training or experience in library and information science.

Directs the Assistant Secretary to appoint a task force of librarians, scholars, teachers, parents, and school leaders (Task Force) to advise on establishment of the Library. Directs the Task Force to prepare a workable plan to establish the Library and to implement its required functions and activities under this Act. Authorizes the Task Force to identify other activities and functions for the Library to carry out after it has been established and has implemented such requirements. Directs the Task Force to report to the Assistant Secretary, within six months after its first meeting, on the Library's activities.

Transfers to the Library all functions of the Department's: (1) Research Library; (2) Reference Section; and (3) Information Branch.

Requires the Executive Director, within 180 days after enactment of this Act, to promulgate a comprehensive collection development policy to govern the Library operations, acquisitions, and services to users. Sets forth required components of such policy. Directs the Executive Director, on the basis of such policy, to develop a multiyear plan for elimination of cataloging arrearages and for response to preservation needs.

Title VI: Leadership for Educational Technology - Amends the Department of Education Organization Act (DOEA) and the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA) to establish an Office of Educational Technology (OET) in OERI. Requires the Secretary to appoint a Director of OET who has demonstrated expertise and experience in a broad range of technologies for instruction and educational management, and in planning and policy formulation pertaining to technology application at all levels in the education system.

Directs the Assistant Secretary to establish and maintain an advisory board for OET, including: (1) members who have demonstrated competencies or expertise in developing technology systems and are known and respected among their peers; and (2) members who are educators with experience in using technology in the classroom.

Provides for OET personnel, detailed staff from other Federal agencies, and experts and consultants.

Requires the following OET functions: (1) leading policy development and coordinating technology-related education activities within the Department; (2) systemic evaluation of instructional programming and dissemination of such evaluation to educators; (3) transfer of education and training software from Federal agencies to public and private sectors; (4) working with Federal, State, and local agencies to assure that national telecommunication policies address educational agencies' needs and goals; (5) working with Federal agencies to help adapt and transfer education and training software they develop for use by educational institutions; (6) supporting cooperation to develop compatibility and other technical standards for technology used by educational agencies; (7) promoting business-and-education partnerships to expand and improve use of technology in education; (8) supporting design and development of new instructional programming concepts and products to stimulate new approaches to teaching and learning; (9) identifying and analyzing policy issues related to use of technology in education; (10) administering the Star Schools Program, Office of Training Technology Transfer activities, and other technology programs the Assistant Secretary deems appropriate; (11) coordinating educational technology programs with analogous programs of other Federal agencies and initiating of interagency agreements for joint funding; (12) coordinating and guiding the Institutes in use of technology and in technology activities and policies; (13) providing guidelines to establish a technology education repository to house existing educational technology, including programming to locate and disseminate requests by teachers, administrators, and the public using Federal data banks to avoid duplication; (14) developing a proposal for a system to transfer such repository information to local school districts, schools, and classrooms nationwide via various technologies which produce visual images; and (15) developing a proposal for a fair system for metering use of repository information provided via an electronic network to local classrooms and a proposal for appropriately charging for copyrighted materials and computer access time.

Directs the Secretary (upon completion of guidelines for a technology education repository and development of a system to transfer such information to local school districts, schools, and classrooms) to provide for an independent study (including applicable studies by other Federal agencies) to: (1) estimate costs of implementing such repository and system; and (2) assess availability of technology at local levels to access the educational technology to be transmitted.

Authorizes appropriations for FY 1993 through 1996 for OET activities.

Title VII: International Education Program - Directs the Secretary to carry out an International Education Program that shall provide for: (1) grants to study, evaluate, and analyze education systems and successful strategies to improve student achievement in other nations (particularly Great Britain, France, Germany, and Japan); (2) an International Educational Exchange Program.

Requires the International Educational Exchange Program (the Program) to: (1) make available to central and Eastern European and former Soviet educators exemplary civic government and economic education programs developed in the United States; (2) assist their countries in adapting and implementing such programs; (3) create and implement educational programs for U.S. students which draw upon emerging constitutional democracies' experiences; and (4) provide a means for participating nations' leaders to exchange ideas and experiences in civic education.

Authorizes the Secretary to award up to three competitive contracts with independent nonprofit educational organizations, with specified types of experience, to carry out the Program.

Sets forth Program contents for non-U.S. and U.S. participants, including home stays, other educational exchanges, and international conferences. Requires that the primary participants be leading civic, government and economic educators, including curriculum and teacher training specialists, scholars in relevant disciplines, and educational policymakers, from the United States and participating Central and Eastern European and former Soviet nations.

Authorizes appropriations for FY 1993 through 1996 for: (1) the assessment and information on educational systems worldwide; (2) international achievement comparison; and (3) the International Educational Exchange Program.

Title VIII: Certain Educational Improvement Programs - Amends the Department of Education Organization Act (DEOA) to authorize the Secretary to use up to one percent of the funds appropriated for any education program that awards such funds on a competitive basis to pay the expenses and fees of non-Federal experts (field readers) necessary to review applications and proposals for such funds (except programs under which funds are authorized to pay such field readers).

Amends the National Education Commission on Time and Learning Act (title I of the Education Council Act of 1991 (Public Law 102-62)) to extend such Commission's: (1) final report deadline by one year; and (2) authorization of appropriations through FY 1995.

Prohibits expenditures of any funds under this Act unless the expending entity agrees to comply with specified provisions of the Buy American Act. Expresses the sense of the Congress that any recipient of assistance under this Act should, in expending that assistance for authorized purchasers, purchase American-made equipment and products. Directs the Secretary to provide each such recipient a notice to that effect.

Amends the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA) to extend through FY 1994 the authorization of appropriations for the National Center for Education Statistics, including the National Assessment for Educational Progress (NAEP). Requires the NAEP to conduct in 1994 trial assessments of mathematics and reading for certain grades and to develop for administration in 1994 trial assessments of mathematics, reading, and science for certain other elementary and secondary school grades, in States that wish to participate, to determine whether such assessments yield valid and reliable State representative data (including in such assessments students in public and private schools in a manner that ensures comparability with the national sample). Requires a specified independent evaluation to also assess important issues affecting the quality and integrity of the NAEP. Directs the Secretary to provide for the organization that conducts such independent evaluation to study and report to the Congress within 120 days after enactment of this Act, on: (1) the process whereby the National Assessment Governing Board sets certain achievement goals for each age and grade in each subject area to be tested under NAEP; and (2) the ability of NAEP to maintain valid data with respect to trends in student performance.

Title IX: Buddy System Computer Education - Buddy System Computer Education Act - Directs the Secretary to award a grant to each of three States to create a computer-based education project for children in: (1) grades four through six; or (2) middle or junior high school.

Requires such awards to be on a competitive basis. Gives preference to applications: (1) from States with demonstrated ability or commitment to computer-based technology education; and (2) describing projects serving school districts serving a large number or percentage of economically disadvantaged students. Requires site selection and project implementation within nine months after funds are appropriated.

Requires such projects to: (1) be provided in a continuous three-year form to two consecutive groups of fourth, fifth, and sixth graders (or middle or junior high school students); (2) be conducted in not more than seven public elementary, middle, or junior high schools within the State; and (3) ensure each student in such classes participates and has access to a computer at school during the school year and at home during the school year and summer. Sets forth application requirements. Requires grant funds to be used to provide: (1) hardware and software components to all sites; and (2) training for classroom teachers as well as parents, administrators, and technical personnel.

Requires the Secretary to evaluate such demonstration program and report to the Congress.

Authorizes appropriations for FY 1993 through 1996 for such program.