WestEd gets $3 million contract to study Khan Academy’s effect on community college Education

The exquisite credentials and stature of the Khan Academy, the radical non-profit online educational organization established in 2006 by educator Salman Khan, which by 2013 was utilized by around 10 million students per month, and its micro lectures viewed over 458 millions times and is now going to be analyzed by the U.S. Department of Education, to check how effective it actually is in assisting students in community colleges succeed in math courses.

The research agency WestEd’s STEM program for the study, has been awarded a $3 million grant by the U.S. Department of Education.

According to Steve Schneider, director of WestEd’s STEM program - Till date there has never been a stringent, large-scale adequacy study of Khan Academy, in community colleges or in K-12 settings.

The study, which will be conducted during the 2015-2016 school year, will evaluate whether Khan Academy creates a difference in Algebra I courses in California community colleges over a randomized operated trail.

This spring, a report issued by a research institution SRI International, financed by the Gates Foundation, on how schools employ Khan Academy in math classes. Despite educators voiced challenges incorporating the online material into their curricula, the study widely reported positive outputs from appending in-person learning with Khan Academy. Straight effects on student results, however, were unsatisfactory.

Khan Academy has received considerate funding over the years, consisting a $2 million grant from Google in 2010.