$27,200 was the average cumulative amount borrowed for master's degree students graduating in 2003-04.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics, located within the U.S. Department of Education and the Institute of Education Sciences

DOING WHAT WORKS

WEB SITE STEERS EDUCATORS TOWARD EFFECTIVE NO CHILD STRATEGIES

The U.S. Department of Education has launched a Web site to support educators across the nation working toward No Child Left Behind's goal of having every student proficient in reading and math by 2014. "Doing What Works" — http://dww.ed.gov — provides an online library of resources for teaching practices that have proven to be effective. It draws primarily from evaluations of research findings compiled for the What Works Clearinghouse, which was established in 2002 by the Department's Institute of Education Sciences.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, The Achiever, November 2007

HELP FOR PARENTS

PROGRAM BUILDS FAMILY INVOLVEMENT

The Parent Information Resource Center program is a nationwide effort to build family involvement in education as parents move beyond traditional activities, such as helping with homework, toward a shared responsibility for school improvement. Funded by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Innovation and Improvement, the program focuses on projects serving parents of low-income, minority and limited English proficient children in elementary and secondary schools. There are 62 PIRCs, with one in every state, the District of Columbia and most U.S. territories. For additional information, visit the National PIRC Coordination Center's Web site at www.nationalpirc.org for the directory.

Source: U.S. Department of Education