Clarifies and defines quantitative research as it is applied to the study of language acquisition. Trends in the use of quantitative and nonquantitative methods in applied linguistics are reported, and suggestions are made concerning useful paradigms and procedures for further research in language acquisition. (Author/CB)

Problems in current special education categorical research practices are discussed in terms of consistency and reliability, student heterogeneity, and lack of distinct categorical groups. Suggested changes include characteristic-oriented categorization, corresponding changes in dissemination of research findings, and greater specificity and…

Concludes that (a) there is a lack of congruence between the actual research findings and the numerous "pronouncements and speculations" about microcomputer effects in preschool; (b) many methodological weaknesses limit the utility of research findings; and (c) little is known, empirically, about important process and outcome variables…

Lack of use of educational evaluation results in the Netherlands was investigated by analyzing 14 curriculum evaluation studies. Results indicated that rational decision making with a technical (empirical) evaluation approach makes utilization of results most likely. Incremental decision making and a conformative approach make utilization least…

Sixteen studies were analyzed that employed single-subject designs focusing on conduct disorders in preschoolers. Results indicated that reinforcement produced most positive outcomes, followed by punishment, timeout, and differential attention. Subject characteristics such as sex, handicapping condition, and target behavior typically bore little…

Examines measurement and method designs for improving the research on teaching. Outlines four variables for assessing teacher research: presage; context; process; and product. Recommends research that moves beyond the traditional emphasis on teacher behavior to an emphasis on the product of teaching, student outcomes. (KH)

A survey of South Carolina participants in Small Business Innovative Research programs, conducted to evaluate previous assumptions about research success factors, found that success hinged on the principal investigator's background, the presence of university connections for the project, and the project's ability to respond to the agency's stated…

An equating design in which two groups of examinees from slightly different populations are administered a different test form with a subset of common items is widely used. This paper presents standard errors and a simulation that verifies the equation for large samples for an equipercentile equating procedure for this design. (Author/BS)

Relationships among teacher expectation, social interactions, and student performance are studied in this article. An educational research model was developed to provide a way of establishing connections in how research findings could be used in forming effective instructional strategies. Methods of model construction are given. (Author/DF)

Attempts to evaluate the effect of inquiry training on listening and reading skill development by providing students with experiences which encourage question-asking in a variety of language contexts, and by measuring their achievement before and after training. (Author/RK)

Attempts to demonstrate that, in children's writing, emotion is communicated more effectively when it is expressed through words signifying a person's attitude towards some specific object or external situation, than it is by verbal reports on either his own internal feelings or his empathic identifications with the feelings of others. (Author/RK)

Presents a series of discussions on the general elements of experimental design and the scientific process and relates these elements to the field of communication. (MH)

This paper deals with (1) psychometric and Piagetian orientations and the different types of test each approach yields, (2) rate of progress measures, and (3) the predictability of an individual's future functioning. Advantages of the Piagetian orientation are discussed. (GO)

Robert Burns wrote: "The best laid schemes of Mice and Men oft go awry". This could be considered the motto of most educational innovation. The question that arises is not so much why some innovations fail (although this is very important question), but rather why other innovations succeed? This study investigated the success factors of…

This chapter describes a research design model that utilizes both theory and common, core classroom conditions in order to create and investigate new instructional strategies. Transformative and conjecture-driven teaching experiments are introduced which were developed to change and reform current teaching practice. It is suggested that such a…