As a researcher at McREL, Charles specializes in learning and cognition. His recent work includes a meta-analysis of cooperative learning strategies and an ongoing randomized controlled trial of a prominent vocabulary program. Prior to joining McREL, Charles worked at the Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning (CASTL) and spent six years as an elementary school teacher. He has presented at numerous conferences to both academic and practitioner audiences and has authored several research reports. Charles holds an M.A. in elementary and early childhood education and is a doctoral candidate in the department of Research, Statistics, & Evaluation at the University of Virginia's Curry School of Education.