Applying Educational Research: How To Read, Do, and Use Research To Solve Problems of Practice, 7th edition

PART 1: INTRODUCTION

• Chapter 1: Using Research Evidence to Improve Educational Practice
  • Evidence-Based Professional Practice
  • Evidence-Based Practice in Education
  • The Purpose of Educational Research
  • Characteristics of Research as an Approach to Inquiry
  • Quantitative and Qualitative Research
  • Collaborating with Researchers
  • A Personal Note: The Research “Spark”
  • An Example of How Research Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: How Students’ Sleepy Brains Fail Them
• Chapter 2: Doing Your Own Research: From Proposal to Final Report
  • Identifying a Research Problem
  • Outlining a Research Proposal
  • Other Steps in the Research Process
  • Self-Check Test
  • Sample Outline of a Quantitative Research Proposal
  • Sample Outline of a Qualitative Research Proposal

PART 2: APPLYING THE RESEARCH LITERATURE TO PROBLEMS OF PRACTICE

• Chapter 3: Conducting and Writing Your Own Literature Review
  • Informal Literature Reviews
  • Formal Literature Reviews
  • Professional Literature Reviews
  • A Systematic Procedure for Doing Formal Literature Reviews
  • Parts and Presentation of a Literature Review
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: The Case For and Against Homework
  • Article: The Process Writing Approach: A Meta-Analysis
• Chapter 4: Using Search Engines and Available Literature Reviews
  • The Purpose of Search Engines
  • Selecting a Useful Search Engine
  • Using Search Engines
  • Obtaining a Publication after a Literature Search
  • Locating Published Literature Reviews
  • Criteria for Evaluating Published Literature Reviews
  • An Example of How Literature Reviews Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test

PART 3: USING QUANTITATIVE METHODOLOGY TO STUDY PROBLEMS OF PRACTICE

• Chapter 5: Analyzing and Evaluating Reports of Quantitative Research Studies
  • Organization of a Quantitative Research Report
  • Abstract and Introduction
  • Method Section: Sampling Procedures
  • Method Section: Measures
  • Method Section: Research Design and Procedures
  • Results Section
  • Discussion Section
  • An Example of How Quantitative Research Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: Developing a Measure of Behavior Change in a Program to Help Low-Income Parents Prevent Unhealthful Weight Gain in Children
• Chapter 6: Using Descriptive Statistics to Study Problems of Practice
  • Constructs, Variables, and Measurement Scales
  • Statistical Analysis of Data
  • Descriptive Statistics
  • Multivariate Descriptive Statistics
  • Calculating Descriptive Statistics
  • An Example of How Descriptive Statistics Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
• Chapter 7: Tests of Statistical Significance
  • The Logic of Statistical Significance and Confidence Intervals
  • Inferential Statistics
  • Tests of Statistical Significance
  • Calculating Statistics
  • Using Statistics to Improve Professional Practice
  • An Example of How Tests of Statistical Significance Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
• Chapter 8: The Practical Significance of Statistical Results
  • The Practical Significance of Statistical Results
  • Comparisons with Personal and Organizational Standards
  • Comparisons with Ideal Standards
  • Comparisons with Curriculum Standards
  • Comparisons Based on Rankings
  • Comparisons Involving Tables of Norms
  • Comparisons Involving Standard Scores
  • Effect Sizes
  • Gain Scores
  • Practical Significance as an Interpretive Process
  • An Example of How Determining the Practical Significance of Statistical Results Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: Can Growth Ever Be beside the Point?
• Chapter 9: Descriptive Research
  • The Relevance of Descriptive Research to Educational Practice
  • Examples of Descriptive Research
  • Features of a Descriptive Research Report
  • Evaluating a Descriptive Research Study
  • An Example of How Descriptive Research Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: Examining the Extent and Nature of Online Learning in American K-12 Education: The Research Initiatives of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
• Chapter 10: Group Comparison Research
  • Classification of Quantitative Research Designs
  • The Relevance of Group Comparison Research to Educational Practice
  • Examples of Group Comparison Research
  • Features of a Group Comparison Research Report
  • Evaluating a Group Comparison Research Study
  • An Example of How Group Comparison Research Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: Jordanian Prospective and Experienced Chemistry Teachers’ Beliefs about Teaching and Learning and their Potential for Educational Reform
• Chapter 11: Correlational Research
  • Comparison of Correlational and Group Comparison Research Designs
  • Examples of Correlational Research
  • Correlation between Two Variables
  • Correlation Involving More Than Two Variables
  • Features of a Correlational Research Report
  • Evaluating a Correlational Research Study
  • An Example of How Correlational Research Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: The Measurement and Predictive Ability of Metacognition in Middle School Learners
• Chapter 12: Experimental Research
  • The Relevance of Experimental Research to Educational Practice
  • Characteristics of Experiments
  • Examples of Experimental Research
  • Features of a Report of a Pretest–Posttest Control-Group Experiment with Randomization
  • Other Group Experiment Designs
  • Threats to the Internal Validity of Experiments
  • Threats Directly Involving the Experimental Intervention
  • Threats to the External Validity of Experiments
  • Single-Case Experiments
  • Features of a Report of a Single-Case Experiment
  • Evaluating an Experimental Research Study
  • An Example of How Experimental Research Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: After-School Multifamily Groups: A Randomized Controlled Trial Involving Low-Income, Urban, Latino Children
  • Article: Increasing On-Task Behavior in the Classroom: Extension of Self-Monitoring Strategies

PART 4: USING QUALITATIVE METHODOLOGY TO STUDY PROBLEMS OF PRACTICE

• Chapter 13: Case Studies in Qualitative Research
  • How Qualitative Case Study Research Can Help Educators Solve Problems of Practice
  • Key Characteristics of Case Studies
  • Examples of Case Studies
  • The Nature of Qualitative Research
  • Qualitative Research Traditions
  • Features of a Case Study Report
  • Checking the Applicability of Case Study Findings
  • Evaluating the Quality and Rigor of a Case Study
  • An Example of How Case Study Research Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: Teaching Secrets: Ask the Kids!
  • Article: Exemplary Social Studies Teachers’ Use of Computer-Supported Instruction in the Classroom
• Chapter 14: Ethnography and Critical Research
  • The Use of Critical Ethnography to Study Problems of Practice in Education
  • The Characteristics of Ethnographic Research
  • Differences between Ethnographies and Basic Case Studies
  • Examples of Ethnographic Research
  • Critical Research as a Field of Inquiry and Practice
  • Foundations of Critical Research in Education
  • Features of a Critical Ethnographic Research Report
  • Evaluating Ethnographies and Critical Ethnographies
  • An Example of How Ethnography and Critical Research Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: A Visual Ethnography on Pedagogy, Aesthetics, and the Spatial Experience of Growing Up Urban
• Chapter 15: Narrative Research
  • Narratives as a Focus for Research
  • Examples of Narrative Research in Education
  • Features of a Narrative Research Report
  • Evaluating a Narrative Research Study
  • An Example of How Narrative Research Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: Teacher Identity and Early Career Resilience: Exploring the Links
• Chapter 16: Historical Research
  • The Nature of Historical Research
  • The Role of Historical Research in Education
  • Methods of Historical Research
  • Identifying Historical Sources
  • Validating Historical Evidence
  • Interpreting Historical Data
  • Features of a Historical Research Report
  • Evaluating Historical Research
  • An Example of How Historical Research Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: Go To the Principal’s Office: Toward a Social History of the School Principal in North America

PART 5: COMBINING QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE METHODOLOGIES TO STUDY PROBLEMS OF PRACTICE

• Chapter 17: Mixed-Methods Research
  • The Need for Multiple Research Methods
  • Types of Mixed-Methods Research
  • Reading a Mixed-Methods Research Report
  • Evaluating Reports of Mixed-Methods Studies
  • An Example of How Mixed-Methods Research Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: A Portrait of Administrator, Teacher, and Parent Perceptions of Title I School Improvement Plans

PART 6: USING OTHER RESEARCH METHODOLOGIES TO STUDY PROBLEMS OF PRACTICE

• Chapter 18: Action Research
  • The History of Action Research
  • Using Action Research to Address Problems of Practice
  • Examples of Action Research Studies
  • Design Features of Action Research
  • How Action Research Differs from Educators’ Other Approaches to Problem Solving
  • Purposes and Benefits of Action Research
  • Applying Action Science to Action Research
  • The Insider–Outsider Perspective in Collaborative Action Research
  • Evaluating the Credibility and Trustworthiness of Action Research Projects
  • An Example of How Action Research Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: Recognizing a “Different Drum” Through Close-Reading Strategies
• Chapter 19: Evaluation Research
  • The Use of Evaluation Research in Educational Decision Making
  • Examples of Evaluation Research
  • Programs as a Focus of Evaluation Research
  • Evaluation Research as a Political Activity
  • Models of Evaluation Research
  • How to Read an Evaluation Research Report
  • Evaluating an Evaluation Research Study and Uses of Evaluation in Educational Practice
  • An Example of How Program Evaluations Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice
  • Self-Check Test
  • Article: What Did the Teachers Think? Teachers’ Responses to the Use of Value-Added Modeling as a Tool for Evaluating Teacher Effectivenes

Self-Check Test Answers

Appendix 1 Guide for Outlining a Quantitative or Qualitative Research Proposal

Appendix 2 Search Options in the ERIC Search Machine

Appendix 3 Questions To Ask Yourself When Evaluating a Report of a Quantitative Study

Appendix 4 Questions to Ask Yourself When Evaluating a Report of a Qualitative Study

Appendix 5 Design-Specific Questions to Ask Yourself When Evaluating a Research Report

Glossary