This article reviews the origins and use of the terms quasi-experiment and natural experiment. It demonstrates how the terms conflate whether variation in the independent variable of interest falls short of random with whether researchers find, rather than intervene to create, that variation. Using the lens of assignment--the process driving…

Sample size and statistical power are important factors to consider when planning a research synthesis. Power analysis methods have been developed for fixed effect or random effects models, but until recently these methods were limited to simple data structures with a single, independent effect per study. Recent work has provided power…

This chapter describes evidence-based predictors and practices of postschool success for students with disabilities. Examples for implementation and implications for adult education practitioners as they design instruction and programming for individuals with disabilities are provided.

Ten years ago, after 20 years as a university professor, I was asked to direct the teaching and learning support center at my university. I quickly realized I had almost no knowledge of the published scholarship on this subject. From my reading of this literature, I found the research on the predictors of student learning particularly informative.…

The central roles of science in the field of remedial and special education are to (a) identify basic laws of nature and (b) apply those laws in the design of practices that achieve socially valued outcomes. The scientific process is designed to allow demonstration of specific (typically positive) outcomes, and to assist in the attribution of…

The purpose of this paper is to describe best practices in designing and implementing strong quasi-experimental designs (QED) when assessing the effectiveness of policies, programs or practices. The paper first discusses the issues researchers face when choosing to conduct a QED, as opposed to a more rigorous randomized controlled trial design.…

In this article, we respond to Wolery's critique of the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) pilot "Standards," which were developed by the current authors. We do so to provide additional information and clarify some points previously summarized in this journal. We also respond to several concerns raised by Maggin, Briesch, and Chafouleas…

Within the fields of kinesiology and physical education teacher education, there is a growing number of courses and curricula that utilize service-learning as a pedagogical strategy. However, these courses and curricula are often constructed, implemented, and evaluated without a strong framework based on literature in the field, which has led to…

This report was commissioned by the Council of Exceptional Children (CEC) Board of Directors and a workgroup comprising seven special education researchers (Bryan Cook, Chair; Virginia Buysse; Janette Klingner; Tim Landrum; Robin McWilliam; Melody Tankersley; and Dave Test) who developed, vetted, and piloted the new standards for determining…

The accumulation of scientific knowledge greatly depends upon the critical review of experimental findings by ones peers. In single case design research, experimenters present findings with graphical displays of data and narrative description of a visual analysis. To aid in efficient and accurate description of experimental findings, the research…

Digital educational games (DEGs) possess the potential of providing an appealing and intrinsically motivating learning context. Usually this potential is either taken for granted or examined through questionnaires or interviews in the course of evaluation studies. However, an "adaptive" game would increase the probability of a DEG being…

A central goal of the learning sciences is to discover principles that determine the optimal amount of instructional assistance to support robust learning (Koedinger & Aleven, 2007). We examined learning outcomes from providing and withholding stepwise instructional explanations as students studied worked examples and solved physics problems. We…

Sound evaluation planning requires numerous decisions about how constructs in a program theory will be translated into measures and instruments that produce evaluation data. This article, the first in a dialogue exchange, examines how decisions about measurement are (and should be) made, especially in the context of small-scale local program…

Understanding and conducting research is a complex, integral skill that needs to be mastered by both undergraduate and graduate students. Yet many students are reluctant and often somewhat apprehensive about undertaking research and understanding the underlying statistical methods used to evaluate research (Dauphinee, Schau, & Stevens, 1997).…

Implementation of a guided-inquiry lab in introductory biology classes, along with scaffolded instruction, improved students' understanding of the scientific method, their ability to design an experiment, and their identification of experimental variables. Pre- and postassessments from experimental versus control sections over three semesters…