This paper argues that there are no generic methods in academic research that can be categorized in terms like quantitative or qualitative. Each different area of research uses a distinctive combination of methods, theories, and tools in which these methods, theories, and tools have been customized to work together. Grouping every area that uses…

This reflective commentary on the character and role of methodology in educational and social inquiry recounts my 45-year journey as an applied researcher and evaluator, primarily in the domain of education. The journey starts in graduate school in the early 1970s, where the methodological challenge was to master "the proper methods, properly…

Research on teaching effectiveness, especially those concerning teaching approaches and instructional strategies, rarely shows conclusively the effectiveness of an intervention. Then, these (quasi-) experimental studies on teaching effectiveness often involve distal measures of teaching components. In this article, the focus is on another likely…

Conducting mixed methods research studies has the potential to help researchers who represent special education to address relatively complex questions compared to monomethod research studies. Therefore, it is important to determine the prevalence of mixed methods research studies in special education, especially because the prevalence rate…

Action research pairs nicely with mixed methods at methodological and paradigmatic levels. As a form of mixed methods, action research can be used to address a number of questions in special education. Action research can help special educators causally understand whether changes improve something about their practice and/or the condition of their…

Bayesian analysts use informed priors to improve analytic precision and prediction; however, rarely have they applied a mixed methods approach that uses qualitative data to develop these priors. Yet, using qualitatively informed priors can be useful when making predictions in the context of small sample sizes, which is common in school-based…

Any attempt to influence behavior by sharing a research finding that makes a probabilistic statement (e.g., a p value) should necessarily entail consideration of how consumers of the information might interpret this information. Such consideration can be informed, at least in part, by applying phenomenological principles of inquiry. This does not…

Special education researchers have indicated the need for an increased use of mixed methods research to address many of the complex issues in the field. An important first step in designing mixed methods research is to develop quality research questions. The aim of this article is to provide fundamental information on the formation of mixed…

The central purpose of this article is to provide an overview of the many ways in which special educators can generate and think about causal inference to inform policy and practice. Consideration of causality across different lenses can be carried out by engaging in multiple method and mixed methods ways of thinking about inference. This article…

High school students' perceptions and experiences regarding student engagement were investigated using 32 focus group sessions across 4 different types of STEM education settings in 2 metropolitan areas in the Midwest. Students' understandings and experiences related to student engagement were reflected via 5 categories: students' thinking of…

Q methodology (Q) has offered researchers a unique scientific measure of subjectivity since William Stephenson's first article in 1935. Q's focus on subjectivity includes self-referential meaning and interpretation. Q is most often identified with its technique (Q-sort) and its method (factor analysis to group people); yet, it consists of a…

Institutions of higher education face demands to provide evidence of institutional and student achievement. Many institutions utilize standards-based e-portfolio assessment practices to meet these demands. The assessment data derived from the studied program's e-portfolio process were not originally intended to serve as a data source for…

After widespread accusations that universities were not adequately preparing school leadership candidates with real world experiences, the movement to reform U.S. university principal preparation began. The National Policy Board for Educational Administration approved the Educational Leadership Constituent Council (ELCC) standards as guidelines…

Understanding the reason(s) for Differential Item Functioning (DIF) in the context of measurement is difficult. Although identifying potential DIF items is typically a statistical endeavor, understanding the reasons for DIF (and item repair or replacement) might require investigations that can be informed by qualitative work. Such work is…

Teacher attrition is a persistent dilemma, with much research conducted on why teachers leave the profession. Yet, limited research exists on why teachers stay, despite the profession's many stressors. This exploratory study examined teachers' perspectives on the role that hope plays as a sustaining influence. A purposive sample of 25 mid-career…