The Director shall award grants to institutions of higher education or eligible nonprofit organizations (or consortia thereof) to establish multidisciplinary Centers for Research on Learning and Education Improvement.

Grants shall be awarded under this paragraph on a competitive, merit-reviewed basis.

Each Center shall be focused on a different challenge faced by elementary school or secondary school teachers of mathematics and science. In determining the research focus of the Centers, the Director shall consult with the National Academy of Sciences and the Secretary of Education and take into account the extent to which other Federal programs support research on similar questions.

The proposal solicitation issued by the Director shall state the focus of each Center and applicants shall apply for designation as a specific Center.

At least one Center shall focus on developing ways in which the results of research described in paragraph (2) can be applied, duplicated, and scaled up for use in low-performing elementary schools and secondary schools to improve the teaching and student achievement levels in mathematics and science.

To the extent practicable and relevant to its focus, every Center shall include, as part of its research, work designed to quantitatively assess and improve the ways that information technology is used in the teaching of mathematics and science.