This report describes a method for increasing parental involvement in physical education and art in an elementary school in Illinois. The parents of second- and third-grade students in a well-developed, middle class community in Illinois participated in the study. The lack of parental involvement had been documented through data revealing the low…

This book offers middle school educators information about inquiry-based, interdisciplinary learning, highlighting the I-Search process. I-Search offers a powerful mix of ingredients (e.g., respecting curiosity, supporting independence, and fostering creativity) to capture students' and teachers' imaginations. It makes research more learner…

An action research project described a program for expanding multiple intelligences to increase reading comprehension in both English and math. The targeted population consisted of ninth, tenth, and eleventh grade students located in a south suburb of Chicago, Illinois. The problem of reading comprehension was documented through data revealing…

A program developed interventions for improving student writing in the areas of technique and creativity. The targeted population consisted of students in the first through fourth grades in three different school sites, all being similar upper-middle class communities, located in the suburbs of a mid-western city. The problems that some students…

The point of departure for this article is the title of a book edited by David Fetterman, "Qualitative Approaches to Educational Evaluation--The Silent Scientific Revolution." This article addresses the question of how the shift to a qualitative, phenomenological approach has impinged on research and evaluation in distance education.…

This paper examines the role of teachers and their relationship with university researchers in collaborative educational research. Three models of collaboration are examined, literature on collaborations is reviewed, and preliminary findings regarding the effectiveness of an alternative collaborative model are presented. A review of reports on…

A program using cooperative learning to improve the teamwork skills of high school-level vocational home economics students in multicultural, economically diverse communities was developed and tested during a 5-month action research project. The research phase of the project included the following: 71 of the students enrolled in the classes Home…

Three factors tend to remove classroom teachers from any direct benefits from formal research: (1) the difficulty of replicating the exact circumstances of the study in the classroom; (2) the scarcity of research which claims to show a "significant difference"; and (3) the complexity of reporting, in formal research journals and reports,…

In the Mesa, Arizona, public schools, 4-year-old children with birthdays during the period from September to December were allowed to enter kindergarten if they passed the district screening test. Kindergarten teachers disagreed with this policy and recommended that, with no exceptions, the district no longer enroll 4-year-old children.…

This report on action research projects conducted by student teachers as a part of their preservice teacher preparation program focuses on how action research improves the understanding of educational practices by the practitioner-researchers themselves. Two major topics are discussed. First, specific types of claims about the impact of action…

Arguing in the introduction that designing information systems must involve the integration of social/organizational as well as technical activities, and assuming that the contribution of social scientists studying innovation will be enhanced through increased participation in the design process, this paper presents a case study in the generation…

This paper outlines some of the issues that emerged from guiding student teachers through the experience of conducting action research. Action research was used a a way of working toward a student teaching experience that would provide opportunities and structures to facilitate and enhance the students' development as reflective teachers. Several…

Participating teachers, principals, and university supervisors were introduced to three areas of research aimed at improving supervision: adult development theory, alternative models of supervision, and the process of collaborative action research. With assistance from university faculty, project participants developed knowledge of the stages of…

Methods of identifying effective special education practices are analyzed to help practitioners identify and adopt such practices. The contents of this guide include a flowchart for effective practice identification (EPI), an analysis of decision-making steps in this process, and two examples of identification procedures. The decision-making steps…

The Discussion Development Group (DDG) was established by the Scottish Education Department to facilitate research on process innovation in relation to the new curriculum. The DDG resource unit trained teachers to become associates through an inservice training program focused on the observation and analysis of discussion group processes. The…