Seven combined or multi-grade classes, ranging from grades 2 to 5, were the focus of a qualitative, naturalistic inquiry. In each of the four elementary schools visited for the study, the decision to have combined classes had been made shortly before school started for administrative reasons. The study sought to determine the manner in which the…

The National Elevator Industry Educational Program (NEIEP) is a training trust established by an industry trade association and a union to maintain the supply of well-trained competent elevator mechanics. The NEIEP conducts Train the Trainer seminars that present a skill-building program to give each instructor a range of techniques and strategies…

This study looked at the experience of four high school teachers as they worked to develop a collegial community by implementing the "Connections" program. The teachers were on the faculty at Cedar City High School in southern Ohio where their subjects were, respectively, English, Social Studies, and Physical Science; one teacher was in…

In the last 10 years, women's gender-equity reports have increased in number. Some theorists perceive quantitative procedures as "masculine" and qualitative procedures as "feminine." To refute this dichotomy, over 200 equity research reports produced between 1981 and 1991 were examined in a mini-meta analysis to identify the…

This document looks at advertising and political commercials in radio. When placing an advertisement, in any media in general and radio in particular, one takes into consideration qualitative and quantitative data: how many people are listening, and who they are, and what level of education they have attained. Listeners have extremely well…

It is argued that the debate between qualitative and quantitative research for educational researchers is actually an argument between constructivism and positivism. Positivism has been the basis for most quantitative research in education. Two different things are actually meant when constructivism is discussed (constructivism and…

A literature review synthesized the qualitative research from science education that described students' cognitive processes in conceptual change and the related effects of context. Studies were located by manual and on-line searches of more than 15 data bases to retrieve the published, unpublished, and fugitive research. The actual case studies…

This digest illustrates the variety of basic and theoretical issues in evaluation with which aspiring evaluators should be conversant in order to claim that they know the knowledge base of their profession. Coverage of the issues includes: the four steps in the logic of evaluation; whether qualitative evaluations are valid; whether it matters if…

Some reflections on the future of educational research are offered as responses to questions derived from an article by Ian Stronach ("Research Intelligence," n61 p3 1997). The first is the question of what the future holds for the philosophy and methodology of educational inquiry. A response to this question must recognize the importance of the…

This study examined how teachers use instructional methods to meet the diverse academic needs of students. Surveys were completed by 284 secondary school teachers from 28 high schools in 7 school divisions of the Metropolitan Educational Research Consortium. Rural, suburban, and urban schools were represented. Qualitative and quantitative methods…

This microethnographic study examined the perspectives of paraprofessionals assisting students with disabilities in inclusive educational settings. Extensive open-ended individual interviews were conducted with 10 educational technicians from 10 different schools in Maine. Demographic data on paraprofessionals in Maine were also analyzed. The…

Using an emergent literacy perspective, a qualitative case study examined a child who struggled to become a reader. The study was based on data gathered during a 33-month tutoring intervention extending from the end of repeated first grade to mid-fourth grade. Interviews and documents were used to reconstruct the child's literacy history prior to…

The Success for All school restructuring program is currently being implemented in more than 1,100 elementary schools throughout the United States, primarily in urban locations. Quantitative and qualitative analyses of the quality of implementation were conducted in a sample of more than 350 of these schools to examine how the Success for All…

This book presents six qualitative research studies written by graduate students in the Higher Education and Student Affairs masters program at the University of Vermont. The papers provide case studies concerning suicide, acquaintance rape, alcohol-related student death, classism, adult children of alcoholics, and multiracial identity. Following…

Previous research has cast doubt on children's ability to use specified evidence when making causal inferences, or, indeed, to differentiate between the specified evidence and their own preconceptions, or "prior theories." The present study continues previous work by distinguishing between children's reasoning in conditions where…