This guide discusses combining qualitative and quantitative research methods in theses and dissertations. It covers a wide array of methods, the strengths and limitations of each, and how they can be effectively interwoven into various research designs. The first chapter is "The Qualitative and the Quantitative." Part 1, "A…

This "Research Roundup" focuses on how schools can benefit when educational leaders use data to challenge their intuition and assumptions in their decision-making. In "Building an Automated Student Record System: A Step-by-Step Guide for Local and State Education Agencies," Barbara S. Clements provides administrators with a quick but comprehensive…

Some career theorists and other professionals have warned about dramatic shifts in the economy and implications for changes needed in career services and theory. This paper proposes that Hollands person-environment model (1997) is a valuable frame of reference for career counselors and instructors to use with clients and students in interpreting…

Offers suggestions for proper procedures for authors to use--and some pitfalls to avoid--when writing studies using factor analysis methods. Discusses distinctions among different methods of analysis, the adequacy of factor structure, and other notes of caution. Encourages authors to ensure that their research is statistically sound. (RJM)

Too many practitioners interpret ABAB research based on visual inspection rather than statistical analysis. Based on an experiment using cooperative learning to mainstream autistic students, hypothetical data for one student from an ABAB reversal design are used to illustrate the techniques and importance of regression analyses. Discussion focuses…

In arts-based research, the mode of inquiry through an art form generates new insights that would not have been revealed through a traditional written format. Three sets of criteria for evaluating arts-based research are presented that privilege the written word. Additional criteria are offered for visual arts-based research. (Contains 22…

Examines the measurement system established at Mississauga Transit as an example of an organization that has utilized measurement information for performance improvement purposes by establishing formalized feedback mechanisms aligned with divisional strategic goals. Describes a framework that facilitated the interpretation and use of data by…

Describes how to report test data to parents and the news media. Provides examples from the Evergreen School District in Vancouver, Washington. Includes specific suggestions on how to work with reports. (PKP)

Suggests communication auditors should be thought of as skilled and committed listeners to and within organizational communication processes. Distinguishes between functionalism and interpretivism in organizational communication. Describes a project based on a collaboration between scholars in sociolinguistics and organizational communication.…

Notes the need for researcher accountability in qualitative analysis, examining strategies used in working with doctoral students and offering suggestions for assessing and publicly disclosing the methodological rigor and analytical defensibility of qualitative research. Introduces tabular strategies for use in documenting the relationship between…

Discusses students' ability to make correct judgments about the accuracy of information they read and describes a study of secondary school students that was designed to determine the value of headings and outlines in detecting false statements in text. Treatments for the experimental and control groups are described. (18 references) (LRW)

Develops basic concepts of generalizability theory using hypothetical study of reliability of scores of vocational interest inventory. Asserts that generalizability theory makes it possible to consider all possible sources of unreliability simultaneously and to design optimal decision-making study. (NB)

Notes that intergenerational theories of family functioning sparked interest in empirical investigations that test intergenerational relationships. Presents test of difference scores enabling researchers to compare related and unrelated dyads, thus creating comparison group when using only two generations. Contrasts procedure with correlational…

Analysis of United Kingdom Labor Force Survey data identified inadequacies and ambiguities that change prevailing interpretations. Policy development could benefit from improvements in collection and interpretation of data on training, as well as from more research on its costs and benefits. (SK)

Many students have difficulties in interpreting position versus time graphs. Presents an activity involving calculator-based motion labs that allows students to bring these graphs to life by turning their own motion into a graph that can be analyzed, investigated, and interpreted in terms of how they actually moved. (ASK)