The various arts and sciences that comprise the field of program evaluation are discussed. It is argued that emphasis on rigor and expressive content has left other aspects of evaluation unexplored. Educational evaluators need to consider what programs mean and how they contribute to understanding. (SLD)

Gives examples of how qualitative methodologies have been employed to study media reception in the present. Identifies some forms of evidence that can creatively fill the gaps in knowledge about media reception in the past. Argues that the field must develop databases documenting media reception, which may broaden the scope of audience research in…

Legitimate and fair criteria for the publication of qualitative naturalistic research in occupational therapy include credibility and transferability. Such methods as triangulation, negative case analysis, and testing for rival hypotheses are promising criteria for fairness and rigor. (SK)

Argues for the use of reflective program evaluation in the South African context as a dynamic agent of improved practice. Provides an overview of program evaluation and explores the reasons that make quantitative evaluation of limited value. Discusses the attempts that have been made to overcome the inadequacies of this kind of evaluation.…

A teacher and a researcher provide alternate interpretations of the teaching and learning that occurred in an adult English-as-a-Second-Language classroom. They conclude that mutual collaboration must include all phases of a research project. (SK)

Describes the history and current status of qualitative research in science education research. Discusses the issue of the quality of research. (JRH)

This article explores methodological issues arising from a research project that involved six people with learning difficulties in researching aspects of their own lives. These included how participants were included in data analysis and the researcher's role. It stresses the importance of the researcher listening to participants, taking time to…

The purpose of this article is to critically examine some stated discrepancies between qualitative and quantitative research by taking actual studies as a starting point. It is argued that in ordinary empirical research within psychology and education, both approaches should be considered based on critical realism, and that the ordinary validity…

In this paper I ask how educational researchers can believe the subjective perceptions of qualitative participant-observers given the concern for objectivity and generalisability of experimental research in the behavioural and social sciences. I critique the most common answer to this question within the educational research community, which…

This article begins by arguing for some bridge building in ESOL research between what is often seen as a quantitative/qualitative dichotomy. Instead of taking up a position on one side or the other, the differences are construed as different ways of seeing, depending upon the nature of the research questions asked. As a qualitative researcher by…

This paper assesses the value of research, not on its methodology type but on its goal and accomplishments. It outlines an idea for developing a knowledge base capable of informing teacher education program planning and other educational policy decisions. Studies are described that advance knowledge about causal relationships between classroom…

This book describes several projects addressing experiences as women educators in defining the positional perspectives related to the understanding and reconceptualization of teaching and curriculum. Each project faces the dilemma of imposition in the authors' work with student teachers, teenage mothers, children of color, community members, and…

Parallels in the thinking of Gloria Anzaldua as expressed in her work "Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza" (1987) about "mestiza" consciousness and the tasks of critical ethnography are explored. Ethnography, as it shifts toward the new paradigm of critical ethnography, can learn much from the consciousness Anzaldua…

Qualitative and quantitative social science research methods rather than representing opposing research methods instead are reinforcing research traditions. The ability of either research methodology to make lasting and important contributions requires the ability to synthesize and integrate with the other approach. While the assumptions of each…

This chapter advocates the use of naturalistic inquiry as a method for undertaking unobtrusive research in instructional development. The advantages of naturalistic inquiry are listed, and it is suggested that these advantages make this form of research very useful to the field of instructional development. It is argued that both naturalistic…