The research division of the National Center for Research in Vocational Education received a 5-year grant from the U.S. Department of Education to conduct a research program on youth employability. To increase the use of the research findings, the National Center created the Knowledge Development and Utilization (KDU) project in 1983 as part of…

This guide is intended to assist states and service delivery areas (SDAs) in addressing the new oversight responsibilities and opportunities stipulated by the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) with respect to implementing net impact evaluations. The following topics are covered in the individual chapters: the objectives and major provisions of…

Ethnographic research (1) observes human behavior in its natural setting over a substantial period of time, (2) claims that classes of events are better understood through intensive examination of carefully selected particular cases, (3) incorporates as many of the complexities and variables into a setting as possible, and (4) is usually comprised…

This document provides the final report of a survey conducted by the 1985 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) to assess the literary skills of America's young adults. Chapter I provides the rationale for conducting a study of literacy proficiencies of young adults aged 21 to 25. The purpose and conceptual framework of the research…

This paper describes the practical steps employed in controlling interview data generated from a research project investigating teachers' perspectives on the worth of a sex equity educational demonstration project. These perspectives were then considered as value frameworks that might be used to formulate and interpret a naturalistic-responsive…

An evaluation of existing and proposed mechanisms to ensure data accuracy for the Pell Grant program is reported, and recommendations for efficient detection of fraud and error in the program are offered. One study objective was to examine the existing system of pre-established criteria (PEC), which are validation criteria that select students on…

This guide, which is one in the "Exploration" series of curriculum guides intended to assist junior high and middle school industrial educators in helping their students explore diverse industrial situations and technologies used in industry, deals with research and development. The following topics are covered in the individual lessons: product…

The purpose of this paper was to examine an approach to assessing educational needs for school board members, superintendents, and principals and to do that in a way that counteracts the remarkable amount of trivia that has been written on this particular topic. The EASI instrument--Educational Administration Skills Inventory--was used to produce…

Papers given at an international conference applying the social sciences to the study of the relationships of languages include the following: "Reseaux sociaux et comportements langagiers en milieu de contact des langues" ("Social Networks and Language Behaviors in a Language Contact Setting") by M. Blanc and J. Hamers, with…

In this book, which applies the state of the art in qualitative research to special education, qualitative research is used as a generic term for investigative methodologies described variously as ethnographic, naturalistic, anthropological, field research, or participant-observer research. Chapter 1 introduces and defines qualitative research and…

This study adds to the effective schools debate a criticism of existing criteria--based on standardized achievement test profiles--for targeting schools for intervention programs. Qualitative and quantitative methods of gathering data result in conflicting assessments of the magnet elementary school studied as needing or not needing intervention.…

Ethnography is a research methodology that belongs to a genre of research called by various names, including educational anthropology, participant observation, case study, field study, and naturalistic inquiry. Ethnography was used as the research methodology for a nine-month study of adult beginning readers in Virginia. The research design was a…

A study was conducted to analyze the impact of adult basic education (ABE) in New Jersey. Following an extensive review of previous ABE impact studies, data were gathered from a specially selected sample of adult ABE students through an open-ended questionnaire administered by telephone interviews. Students were questioned about their reasons for…

This survey is based on interviews with a nationally representative sample of 1,208 teachers, including an oversample of minority teachers in the nation's public schools. Over 2,700 school children in grades 4 through 12 were also interviewed, allowing for a comparison of teachers' and students' perceptions. The focus of the survey is on how…

This report contains six research papers and a summary of a panel discussion on the topic of cognition and the adult learner. The papers are as follows: "Psychology and Adult Cognition" (Wilbert J. McKeachie); "Biology and Adult Cognition" (Frank Farley); "Technology and Adult Cognition" (Barbara Grabowski); "Enhancing Cognitive Skills" (Richard…