This paper proposes a strategy for ethnographically investigating politically disparate education organizations. I develop the notion of researching as a critical secretary: a method of participant-observation conducted alongside those observed to hold the least formal power. Drawing on data from an initial empirical effort to implement this…

The purpose of this study was to systematically review the literature on the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) in school-aged youth (i.e., [less than or equal to] 18 years). Inclusion and exclusion search criteria led to the identification of 96 articles published during a 25-year period. Articles containing international samples…

This article addresses some of the challenges faced when attempting to evaluate the long-term impact of informal science learning interventions. To contribute to the methodological development of informal science learning research, we critically examine (Falk and Needham (2011) "Journal of Research in Science Teaching," 48: 1-12.) study…

This article is about designing for educational possibilities--designs that in their inception, social organization, and implementation squarely address issues of cultural diversity, social inequality, and robust learning. I discuss an approach to design-based research, social design experiments, that privileges a social scientific inquiry…

In this invited response to Moe and Anzia (2014), we describe both the points of convergence and divergence between our prior research (2007a, 2007b) and that of Moe (2005) and Moe and Anzia (2014). We also respond to Moe and Anzia's critique of our published work. Moe and Anzia's study helps to refine the policy discussion around seniority…

Education researchers are increasingly working in practice-based partnerships in order to direct their research efforts toward important problems of practice. We argue for the creation of an infrastructure to support routine and sustained interaction among researchers, practitioners, and designers in order to make partnership efforts more…

A societal sector perspective looks to a broad array of actors and agencies responsible for creating the community contexts that affect youth learning and development. We demonstrate the efficacy of this perspective by describing the Youth Data Archive, which allows community partners to define issues affecting youth that transcend specific…

Focus group interviewing is widely used by academic and applied researchers. Given the popularity and strengths of this method, it is surprising how rarely focus group interviewing is taught in the undergraduate classroom and how few resources exist to support instructors who wish to train students to use this technique. This article fills the gap…

To bridge the gap between science and policy, future scientists should receive training that incorporates policy implications into the design, analysis, and communication of research. We present a student Science and Policy course for undergraduate science majors piloted at the University of California, Berkeley in the summer of 2011. During this…

As public servants who work most closely with children, teachers have first-hand knowledge of the needs of the changing demographics of urban public schools in the United States. Teachers who engage in research, and researchers who are former teachers, enjoy unique positions in conducting investigations and sharing and implementing findings.…

To help researchers understand potential issues one can encounter when conducting propensity matching studies in complex settings, this paper describes methodological complications faced when studying schools using deeper learning practices to improve college and career readiness. The study uses data from high schools located in six districts…

Design-Based Implementation Research is the process of engaging "learning scientists, policy researchers, and practitioners in a model of collaborative, iterative, and systematic research and development" designed to address persistent problems of teaching and learning. Addressing persistent problems of teaching and learning requires…

This article investigates the role of autoethnographic research as the methodological tool of choice for a Chicana who positions herself along the liminal perspective. I posit that "testimonios", autobiographical educational experiences, must be used as valid ethnographic research to contribute to existing knowledge around issues of…

The objective of this paper is to provide some practical insight into the process of implementing large-scale randomized controlled trials (RCT) in educational settings and to provide general recommendations for researchers conducting education-based RCTs in the future. The authors draw their recommendations from their recent experiences…

Over the past two decades, community organizing has emerged as an effective force for school improvement. In the context of shrinking education funding, stubborn opportunity and achievement gaps between low-income and wealthy children and between children of color and White children, and polarizing debate on school reform, community organizing…