Book excerpt: The Brown Center on Education Policy conducts research on topics in American education, with a special focus on efforts to improve academic achievement in elementary and secondary schools. The center seeks to inform policymakers at all levels of government, to influence the course of future educational research, and to produce a body of work valuable not only to policymakers and scholars, but also to parents, teachers, administrators, taxpayers, school board members, and the general public.This annual report analyzes the state of American education using the latest measures of student learning, uncovers and explains important trends in achievement test scores, and identifies promising and disappointing educational reforms. Unlike similar reports intended solely for government use, the Brown Center Annual Report is written for an audience of parents, teachers, and policymakers.