Criticizes the large amount of often irrelevant, poorly designed, and poorly written quantitative journalism research. Notes that journalism education and mass communication education research published in scholarly journals is largely ignored by professional journalists, who find more value in the qualitative research reported in the journalism…

Investigates the effects of an experiential classroom environment on children's learning through the integration of mathematics and social studies. Findings support the contention that children learn better by doing. Concludes that children are more attentive to their learning, achieve a deeper insight or meaning of the concepts, and are able to…

Quantitative self-assessment studies that compared self-evaluations and teacher marks/grades were subjected to meta-analysis. Results of a meta-analysis of 51 studies are summarized. It is suggested that researchers should attend to both good design and to adequate reporting of self-assessment studies. (TJH)

When applying a lifespan perspective to the study of recreation and leisure behavior, a woman's interest and involvement in physical recreation must be viewed not only in terms of her current psychological and biological status, but also within the context of her sociocultural environment and her personal and "group" history. (IAH)

Proposes directions to help researchers balance instructional technology goals with the performance of well-designed and scientifically sound studies. Issues concerning the external validity of studies, use of media replications, and learner control as a means of adapting instructional strategies to individuals are emphasized, and designs for…

Presents experiments on the relationship between teacher intensity and levels of student attentiveness. Reports that increased levels of teacher intensity lead to greater student attentiveness. Discusses the implications of these finding for general music instruction. Identifies elements of effective teaching. (RW)

The effects of certain characteristics (e.g., sample design) of National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) data on statistical analysis techniques are considered. Ignoring special features of NAEP data and proceeding with a standard analysis can produce inferences that underestimate the true variability and overestimate the true degrees of…

Meta analysis techniques were used to synthesize research on teaching students how to control variables when designing an experiment. The review included 65 controlled studies. Findings are reported in terms of the influence on effect sizes of characteristics of the study, instruments used, treatments applied, and results' utilities. (SLD)

Describes study that investigated the effects of computerized test administration on undergraduates' responses to the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), and discusses methodological considerations important in evaluating the sensitivity of personality inventories in different administration formats. Results analyze the effects of…

Explores what it means to do research intended to be relevant for public policy. Argues against perception of policy research as politically neutral technical exercise. Discusses political implications of methodology. Discusses research examples to illustrate point. Discusses implications for how research might be used in political process.…

Presented are the results of an analysis of the cognitive stages of tenth-grade pupils using a six-week unit on the respiratory system. The research design, instruments, and data analysis are discussed. A variety of cognitive levels was found and may be related to learning outcomes. (CW)

Investigates retention of material by students who receive traditional classroom instruction, are exposed to instruction that emphasizes concept formation, or comprise a control group which receives no instruction. Finds that the control group had an unusually high retention level. Concludes that a more adequate test of retention must be designed…

Examined is how research informs and influences the practice of science education. Discussed are past focuses on treatments, present focuses on students' ideas, and developing styles of research. (YP)

This discussion article addresses the nature of models used in hydrology. It proposes a minimalist classification of models into two categories: models built on data from observations of the processes involved, and those for which there are no observation data on any of these processes, at the scale of interest. (LZ)

Developmental psychologist Ainsworth discusses early influences on her work in attachment theory; similarities and differences in attachment behaviors across cultures; construction of assessments and research designs; individual differences in attachment and maternal support; and the influence of early relationships on later ones. (HTH)