Matthew Farmer

Researcher

Matthew Farmer specializes in civic learning, inquiry-based learning, social studies education, high school course-taking, and continuous improvement. His work involves conducting quantitative analyses for both experimental and quasi-experimental designs. Currently, he serves as the project director for two civic learning studies: Reading Like a Historian: Preparing Students to Understand the Past and Present and the Evaluation of Implementing a Core Civics and History Curriculum for 8th Grade. Farmer also served as the project director for a pilot study on Facing History and Ourselves' Coming of Age curricular materials. Additionally, he has been the lead quantitative analyst on various projects, including a multi-year, nationwide evaluation of the Gates Foundation's Networks for School Improvement.

Before joining AIR, Farmer worked as an analyst at the Michigan Department of Education on the Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge grant. He also spent five years as a social studies teacher in Houston, Texas, and Guatemala.

 

 

Related Work
Young children painting colorful world map
2025-03-10

Spotlight on Civic Learning

10 Mar 2025
AIR’s work in civic learning draws on the diverse content and methodological expertise of AIR staff and the collaborations we form with clients and partners. Our research and technical assistance cuts across several areas of civic learning.
high school student doing schoolwork in library
2023-11-01

Reading Like a Historian: Preparing Students to Understand the Past and Present

The updated RLH curriculum gives students opportunities to explore historical questions using new materials that incorporate research-backed digital literacy strategies. The goal is to support students in discerning credible information online, a necessary skill for civic participation in the 21st century. ...
Middle school boy stands in class to do a presentation
2023-03-01

Evaluation of Implementing a Core Civics and History Curriculum for 8th Grade

AIR is collaborating with iCivics to evaluate the implementation and impact of a year-long, inquiry-based core curriculum for 8th-grade U.S. History classes. Funded by the U.S. Department of Education, iCivics is providing teachers with instructional materials and supporting them through professional development and coaching to effectively implement the curriculum. ...
high school student doing schoolwork
2021-07-01

Examining Effects of Advanced Course Automatic Enrollment Policies and Automatic Notification Tools

Taking advanced courses in high school predicts positive outcomes, but many students who are prepared to take an advanced course are overlooked for participation using current student nomination practices. AIR is studying the outcomes of automatic enrollment policies and an automatic notification tool designed to increase students’ access to advanced ...
Business meeting
2020-01-20

Evaluation of the Networks for School Improvement (NSI) Initiative

AIR, RAND, and Mathematica are collaborating on an evaluation of the Networks for School Improvement initiative. AIR is addressing these questions: What is the impact of the NSI on student outcomes? What aspects of the NSI approach are related to impacts on students?
Matthew Farmer headshot
Expertise
Education
Education Policy
Services
Research & Evaluation
Research Design, Analysis, and Reporting

M.P.P., Public Policy, University of Houston; B.A., Political Science, B.S.Ed., Integrated Social Studies Education, Ohio University

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AIR in the News

Future Ed

Research Notes: Automatic Eligibility Notifications Increase Student Interest in Advanced Courses