A key aspect of engaging in a large participatory action research (PAR) project is ensuring that novice participant-researchers have a general understanding of the PAR methodology. Lead researchers experienced in action research cannot expect novice participant-researchers to engage fully with the literature on PAR, but rather need a simple way to…

As lines between research paradigms continue to blur with the ever-increasing popularity of mixed methods research, there are useful, and occasionally oxymoronic, opportunities for educational researchers to juxtapose tools from opposing methods. The gold standard is just not possible in so much of what we do with small-scale research, nor is it…

This paper provides a reflective focus on the concept of change to the professional identity of FE lecturers. Traditional perceptions of FE staff as vocational specialists are contested and the emergence of a new professional with an extended professionality is discussed. The changes analysed deal with the emergence of the HE in FE sector and the…

This paper presents a study on the effectiveness of an action research model from the perspectives of school educators as action researchers. The study design followed seven action researchers--inservice teachers and school library media specialists--as they completed research projects in their schools. Data came from three different sources:…

This article focuses on the theoretical frame of action research and the teacher as researcher, working through a Norwegian Research Council-funded project in a school that explored learning strategies for pupils' subject and social development. Action research is here called research and development (R&D) work as the term envisages that…

A case study of an educational action research oriented project in Quebec--a continuing education project at the elementary level (EPEL)--is described to show the contributions of the case study method to human development, needs assessment, curriculum development, and innovative teaching. The case study method is suggested as a means to pinpoint…

This report shares insights on varied experiences in action research at the university level and describes methods for involving subjects in research. Examples used include case histories of two projects: the Projet de recherche et d'intervention a la maison (PRIM), a research project on home intervention; and the Ford Teaching Project. Based on…

Compares teachers' perceptions of the school-based curriculum development process during the 2-year development of three new multidisciplinary courses in nine Scottish secondary schools. Suggests reasons for differences in perception including influence of the action research approach. Considers implications for future school based development.…

Discussed is the Action Research and Community Problem-Solving model as an approach to environmental education. The basic steps to this approach are described. Bridges to the community and between the sciences are proposed. (CW)

Considers possible contributions of developmental psychology to analysis and solution of practical problems by proposing a practical action model comprising the following: nature of the phenomenon or problem; existence of the phenomenon or problem; outcome in case of no intervention; goals for intervention; achievement of goals; and assessing…

This book, the first volume of the paperback versions of the "The SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Research, Third Edition," takes a look at the field from a broadly theoretical perspective, and is composed of the Handbook's Parts I ("Locating the Field"), II ("Major Paradigms and Perspectives"), and VI ("The Future of Qualitative Research"). "The…

This document is intended to provide evaluation researchers with information about vocational education as a substantive area to be evaluated, existing methodologies for evaluating vocational education programs, and the theoretical basis for a proposed evaluation method termed critical inquiry. Addressed in the individual chapters of the monograph…

This document comprises a collection of workshop papers addressing the issues of doing research on the complex social and human problems faced in any community from an Asian American perspective. The following topics are discussed: (1) the nature of community research; (2) the pros and cons of pure basic and applied research; (3) the nature and…

Current efforts and methodologies to evaluate vocational education programs are plagued by a number of problems. Included among these are the following: disagreement over the primary role and function of vocational education, too great an emphasis on summative and product evaluation as well as on labor market outcomes as indicators of program…

The Fourth International Research Forum in Information Science (IRFIS 4) focused on two themes: user-oriented research in information science and experimental and practical investigations of the mediation and use of information. An opening speech by Bjorn Tell reviewed information research policy in the United States, France, England, Japan, the…