Since 1999, the Mills College Lesson Study Group has conducted research on lesson study in U.S. settings, including schools, districts and pre-service education. Our work focuses on adaptation of lesson study to U.S. settings, the nature of teachers "learning during lesson study, and the ways in which outside experts and resources - especially those from Japan - can support teachers" learning. Support for the research has come from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the U.S. Department of Education Institute for Education Sciences (IES).
Our team is currently engaged in two major IES-funded research projects, both focused on using elements of Japanese curriculum and instruction along with lesson study to support teachers’ implementation of mathematical ideas embedded in the Common Core State Standards. Prior NSF-funded and IES-funded research focused on whether research-based toolkits enable mathematics lesson study groups to access and use content knowledge effectively.