Nation IN BRIEF : NATIONWIDE : Centers Seek Ways to Improve Tests

Two leading education research centers announced they have received grants to devise better ways to measure the thinking skills students will need to become successful adults. The University of Pittsburgh’s Learning Research and Development Center will receive $1.15 million from the Pew Charitable Trusts of Philadelphia. For a related study, the National Center on Education and the Economy in Rochester, N.Y., will get $1.3 million from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation of Chicago. The grants will fund the first 18 months of what could become a decade-long effort to replace the common multiple choice tests.