REL Southwest received a request to review the report "Avoidable Losses: High Stakes Accountability and the Dropout Crisis" to assess the soundness of the study methodology and the appropriateness of the conclusions drawn in the report. The review found that conclusions drawn in this study cannot be generalized and are significantly…

Research within a constructivist approach often relies on interview data, which are used to reveal beliefs held by the interviewee or to expose conceptions or conceptual structures that are supposed to reside within the interviewee. From a sociocultural perspective, severe criticism has been leveled against the neglect of the problems of inferring…

In educational research, rigid distinctions between the relative merits of quantitative research often rest on positivistic dogma. In contrast, post-positivistic thought eliminates the intractable problem engendered by positivistic epistemology of a forced choice between value-laden and value-free research methods. (KH)

The entire thesis of "The Bell Curve" disintegrates due to biased use of data, misrepresentations, and logical inconsistencies. Five basic flaws are: inferring causality from correlation, use of dubious racial categories, contradictory arguments concerning the immutability of cognitive ability and the relative contributions of heredity…

Using the split-middle methods of trend estimation, evaluates the accuracy of interpretation of single subject data by comparing raters' visual analysis of behavior change with statistical determination of behavior change. Results indicate visual analysis accuracy was less than chance. Rater and student characteristics largely did not affect the…

In a study of the relationship between moral reasoning and teenage drug use, problems arose in an attempt to reduce qualitative data to a quantitative format: (1) making analytic sense of singular and universal responses; (2) the mistaken logical inference that each pattern of judgment should have behavioral indicators; and (3) construction and…

In three experiments, the authors investigated whether statistical language influences readers' interpretations of research results. Although the authors argue that "significant" language changes should not be mandated for quantitative research studies in scientific journals, if such changes are mandated, then use of the term "statistical" is…

Huggins' report lacks serious data collection on college Black Studies Departments, omits the strongest ones, fails to record their history accurately, and does not assess the research achievements of its scholars. Huggins overlooks the importance of applying an Afro-centric perspective to phenomena related to people of African descent. (PS)

Professional practice is built on sound knowledge specific to each discipline. This knowledge is developed and validated through a process of scientific investigation or research. However, lack of knowledge about the research process acts as a barrier to applying evidence-based practice within the school setting. Understanding the components that…