This book contains 11 essays that offer in-depth accounts of qualitative research in developing countries. Each chapter focuses upon a specific method and considers related theoretical and practical issues with reference to recent experiences in selected developing countries. Key issues addressed include: (1) the identification of appropriate…

A survey of 55 officers (39 male and 16 female) of the Japan Association for Language Teaching (JALT) investigated their perceptions of the current trends in second language teaching. A list of 15 trends in both classroom approach and discipline development was identified from the language teaching literature, and respondents were asked to what…

This introduction to sociolinguistics is presented in four parts. The first part gives an overview of this branch of language study, its scope and principles of inquiry, and its basic and key concepts. This portion is written for individuals with no prior knowledge or expertise in the subject. Topics covered in this section include: the nature of…

The purpose of this study was to provide an analysis and evaluation of composite variables in the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88) and School and Staffing Survey (SASS) in a way that provides guidance to the staff of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) in the more effective use of survey resources. The study…

This study addresses the question, "What should graduate students know about research and statistics after completing an initial course?" Individuals who teach such courses at various Carnegie classifications of institutions were surveyed about the specific characteristics of an introductory graduate research course at their own institutions to…

This report presents an investigation by the American College Testing Program (ACT) of an alternative design for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The proposed design greatly simplifies the data collection and analysis procedures needed to produce assessment results and has the potential to produce results that are more…

This collection examines many influences of biographical inquiry in education and discusses methodological issues from the perspectives of veteran and novice biographers. The section on qualitative research and educational biography contains the following chapters: "Musings on Life Writing: Biography and Case Studies in Teacher Education" (Robert…

This report presents the implementation plans recommended by the Implementation Task Force (ITF) of the National Commission on Allied Health (NCAH) and reviews the purpose, goals, and impact of each plan. Chapter 1 introduces the NCAH and ITF and provides an overview of the role of allied health in today's health care environment and how that role…

This four-part publication contains 19 papers on educational practices and promises for post-16 education in European countries. Part I, the introduction, contains these three papers: "Sharpening Post-16 Education Strategies: Building on the Results of the Previous Projects" (Johanna Lasonen); "'Parity of Esteem' and 'Integrated…

Recognizing the importance of leadership in determining the quality of early care and education programs, the International Leadership Project (ILP) was initiated in 1996 to develop an understanding of cross-cultural perspectives on leadership, to develop a conceptual framework of leadership, and to develop cross-cultural methodologies for…

This document consists of the first 10 articles of volume 8 of the electronic journal "Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation" published in 2002-2003: (1) "Using Electronic Surveys: Advice from Survey Professionals" (David M. Shannon, Todd E. Johnson, Shelby Searcy, and Alan Lott); (2) "Four Assumptions of Multiple Regression That Researchers…

Encouraged by evidence linking quality early care/education programs and improved student outcomes, a variety of school readiness programs and initiatives have been created. This report reviews and synthesizes evaluation studies conducted on early childhood interventions, focusing on programs emphasizing a school readiness goal. The report…

Student mobility--students moving from one school to another for reasons other than being promoted to the next school level-is widespread in the United States. This digest examines the research on the academic consequences of mobility for elementary school students and discusses what schools and parents can do to mitigate the possible negative…

This paper focuses on the cultural aspects of research in mathematics learning. The shift to a more socio-cultural emphasis in mathematics education research is valid. The paper explores this point by examining challenges to the former research paradigm. These challenges include culturally-based mathematical knowledge and hidden values in…

A proposed strategy for the National Assessment of Vocational Education (NAVE) uses school-wide data to identify secondary schools where students' academic achievement has been improving at a relatively fast rate and those where it has not. Schools with the most involvement in vocational education can be selected from the two groups. These two…