Explores a different model of professional scholarship, knowledge, and research, and contrasts it with an academic model. Topics include the nature of scholarship, the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) in United Kingdom universities, and the changing face of knowledge as evidenced by RAE submissions. (LRW)

A survey of 372 British employers showed they tended to recruit an elite group of graduates from a hierarchy of institutions, making problematic a proposed flat tuition fee. Employer skill needs appeared to be converging, and claims of a skills gap in highly qualified workers were not supported by the data. (Contains 62 references.) (SK)

Community auditing is an empowering process enabling communities to participate in research, identify its focus, and have ownership. Comparison with other methods shows how auditing supports real participation, not mere consultation. (SK)

The latest UK White Paper has once again focused attention on the quality of learning, teaching and professional development in higher education. Underpinning the discussion is the premise that teaching excellence and professional development are essential for all academics, in particular new lecturers, which are firmly positioned within the…

The notion of "child sex offender" provokes aversion, but it may be that it is a social construction. We suggest that a Dominant narrative, in which child sex offenders are constructed as irredeemable, persists, despite the emergence of assumption challenging Alternative narratives. A story completion method was used to elicit themes of…

Academic debate about education and ageing issues has hitherto been based largely on provider and practitioner concerns. Here, the first stage of a two-year research project that aimed to move the focus to older learners themselves is discussed. The aim in this initial stage was to construct a conceptual model of life course influences on older…

This paper reports the results of a study of student citation behaviours in the Department of Information Science, Loughborough University. The research methods were citation analysis of student dissertation bibliographies from 1998 to 2003, a survey of student's attitudes to citation behaviour and a test of student citation accuracy. The results…

An outline is given of the context in which The International School Effectiveness Research Project (ISERP) was designed and it is argued that the deficiencies of existing studies and the increased internationalization of education makes the more rigorous approach of ISERP essential. A number of methodological lessons from the study are given,…

The article is concerned with the research approaches and nature of methodologies and epistemologies used by practitioner-researchers in a range of occupational areas. The authors use the experiences of candidates on a generic Doctorate in Professional Studies who undertake a module on research and development for professional practice. They also…

This paper reports on 12 in-depth case studies of trainee science teachers' use of the Internet in their science teaching from teacher training programmes in four UK universities. The findings reveal many opportunities and challenges trainee teachers face in using the Internet and these are examined in the light of the promotion of the use of ICT…

Surveys over 30 analyses, written in the years 1965-80, of the cost effectiveness of vocational training in the United Kingdom. Discusses the analyses' objectives and outcomes and emphasizes methodological developments regarding costing models, assessments of effectiveness, and procedures for relating, interpreting, and presenting evidence.…

Describes the history of the random experiment in the Home Office in the United Kingdom and demonstrates that research and the conduct of research is not an altogether rational process and that fashion, personality, and politics play a role in research policy and methodology choice. (SLD)

An assessment is provided of two papers responding to an article by P. Atkinson, S. Delamont, and M. Hammersley (1988) critiquing papers by E. Jacob (1987, 1988) on qualitative research traditions. Definitions of "tradition" and "research tradition," and the necessity to include British research in Jacob's meta-analysis are…

Developed methodology for evaluation of assimilation model in which both experimental rigor and clinical sensitivity are priorities. Methodology was applied to good-outcome case. Results supported assimilation model's hypothesized progression by which problematic experience is successfully incorporated into schema, and ratings highlighted one…

An evaluation of one therapeutic service offered to sexually abused children in the United Kingdom exposed the methodological issue of false negatives among the comparison group, suggesting that researchers cannot assume that nonreferred comparison subjects have not actually experienced sexual abuse. (DB)