A collection of works concerning classroom research methodology, learner strategies and variables, teacher speech, teacher and learner feedback, and second language classroom communication has been compiled. It includes: "What Is Classroom Oriented Research?" (Herbert W. Seliger and Michael H. Long); "Inside the 'Black Box': Methodological Issues…

An ecological approach was used to gather data about properties of purpose, human behavior, and setting as they unfolded in classrooms. Participating were 11 elementary school districts in the Chicago Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area; districts were stratified by median family income (low, middle, high) and per pupil expenditure (low, high).…

This paper highlights measurement issues faced when attempting to assess and interpret results of a school improvement project. Based on the assumption that to measure effectiveness, one must measure a wide variety of school factors, the paper presents a broad perspective on measurement problems and dilemmas in analyzing norm-referenced test data…

Economists agree neither on the means for assessing education's contribution to the growth of productivity in the national economy nor on the role of education in the recent slowdown in productivity growth. Consequently, neither economists nor educators can confidently recommend a set of policies that will clearly lead to increases in education's…

A project to expand the participation of faculty from predominantly black colleges and universities in educational research and development is described. During three 4-week summer residential workshops, three courses were offered: Models and Methods of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Computer Utilization in Social and Behavioral Sciences, and a…

The first volume of a three-volume study on the relationship between writing research and instruction, this report is divided into three sections covering discussions among researchers, practitioners, and instructional experts; studies of writing research; and instructional applications. The first section describes a series of five…

Researchers gained useful information on the state of career education programs and their effectiveness for Hispanic youth by disaggregating the data from the Educational Testing Service's 1980 Survey of Career Information Systems in Secondary Schools. Despite the limitations of the study due to small sample size, the unrepresentative number of…

First in a series, the monograph provides a detailed description of the variety of data collected concerning student achievement and attendance during a 1980-1983 evaluation of Indian Education Act Title IV Part A programs. Data included the results of standardized achievement tests; anecdotal evidence from parents, project staff, and others;…

These proceedings consist of the papers presented at a conference on vocational education research in the 1980s. The first group of papers deals with various approaches to, and priorities for, vocational education research in the 1980s. Discussed in the next group of papers are national perspectives on research programming. Following this group…

The authors integrate poetry and narrative into their self-study application of the research methodology known as Appreciative Inquiry (AI) focused on: (a) their personal and professional practice and development; (b) their teaching practice in universities and informal/popular education settings; and, (c) their educational research in the area of…

This paper outlines a Community-based Participatory Action Research model designed and implemented by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Continuing Education with two community-based agencies in Milwaukee. In two participatory action learning seminars, research was combined with action to improve the educational experience of…

This paper offers some historical perspective on alternative research traditions and discusses some of the basic principles of community-based research as a tool for partnership development. The authors then describe an example of how Calvin College, a Christian comprehensive liberal arts college has used a multi-disciplinary approach in…

A study investigated the relative importance of certain college attributes to the freshmen of Ashland University, a small, private univeristy in Ohio. Five institutional characteristics were examined: availability and variety of financial aid, dorm life (living conditions and food quality), quality of education (quality of teaching, career…

Current research and evaluation studies describe changing knowledge about the effects and conditions of computer-based tools in learning and teaching in elementary and secondary school classrooms. Current studies of computer-based tool use are characterized by: (1) a focus on many dimensions of learning, learners, and learning environments; (2) an…

This two-part paper attempts to establish the facts about, and to debate the merits of, using individual earnings information collected quarterly by states from employers as a source for vocational education performance assessment. The first part of the paper explores three topics: (1) who wants to know about the earnings of vocational education…