An analysis was conducted of the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) research evidence base on the effectiveness of replicable education interventions. Most interventions were found to have little or no support from technically adequate research studies, and intervention effect sizes were of questionable magnitude to meet education policy goals. These…

This article discusses the potential of Google Scholar as an alternative or complement to the Web of Science and Scopus for measuring the impact of journal articles in education. Three handbooks on research in science education, language education, and educational technology were used to identify a sample of 112 accomplished scholars. Google…

Contends that even in the new era of financial limitations on educational research and development (R & D), this enterprise can thrive if adaptations are made in certain areas, including: (1) bases for judging R & D success; (2) bases for financing; (3) view of educational institutions; (4) role responsibilities; (5) communication clarity; and (6)…

Relativism is an inevitable consequence of our interpretive mode of being in the world. This is so for both our daily lives and our professional lives. What does not overly concern us at the former level should likewise not concern us at the latter level. (Author/BJV)

Answers criticisms by Mary Anne Bunda, Ernest House, and Mary Kennedy. Discusses, among other issues, legal authorization for the use of higher quality evaluation designs and the use of evaluation research results. (GC)

Triangulation strategy results in evidence characterized by the following: (1) convergence; (2) inconsistency; and (3) contradiction. In order to render the data sensible, the researcher or evaluator must report data collection procedures, as well as the three levels of information from which explanations of social phenomena are constructed. (BJV)

Criticizes the Holtzman Report (Boruch and Cordray) focusing on the politics behind the national educational policymaking process. (GC)

Education researchers, practitioners, and policymakers alike are committed to identifying interventions that teach students more effectively. Increased emphasis on evaluation and accountability has increased desire for sound evaluations of these interventions; and at the same time, school-level data have become increasingly available. This article…

Describes evaluation experiences in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, School District. Suggests that use of evaluation results can be maximized through a systems approach that involves developing and monitoring different performance indicators, and tailoring educational practice by focusing corrective action on areas where performance is found to be…

Identifies important criteria for assessing the quality of educational research and applies these 20 identified criteria to 2 recent international comparative studies in education, the Second International Science Study and the first International Assessment of Educational Progress. The major types of criteria are utility, propriety, and accuracy.…

Presents a code of ethics to guide educational research, grouped in the following categories: (1) responsibilities to the field; (2) research populations, educational institutions, and the public; (3) intellectual ownership; (4) editing, reviewing, and appraising research; (5) sponsors, policymakers, and other users of research; and (6) students…