This article provides an overview of research methodologies and designs, sample techniques and approaches, research ethics, and strategies for assisting students with research in the new normal. Each strategy offers some advantages and disadvantages. In times of global health emergencies, virtual surveys surpassed traditional methods. Replacing…

Acquiring research skills is considered to be a highly challenging aspect of developing expertise in the social sciences. Because instruction and mentoring in these skills are typically grounded in the self-report of researchers, difficulties in learning the material may be due to the content and accuracy of these explanations. Using a…

This article addresses the issue of falling response rates in telephone surveys. To better understand and maintain respondent goodwill, concepts of psychological contract and respondent expectations are introduced and explored. Results of the qualitative study show that respondent expectations are not only socially contingent but also…

This paper focuses on the research competencies of students in Instructional Design and Technology (IDT) programs. First, we describe how research is being taught to students enrolled in several leading IDT programs. Next, we present findings from a survey administered to determine what knowledge and skills are being taught to IDT graduate…

Describes the difficulties that historians have in determining the truth about any historical event or issue. Contends that new areas of historical research, such as women's history, minority history, and radical history have diversified the concept of truth. Provides three sources of standards for truth to guide future historians. (CFR)

This study assessed the perceptions of faculty employed by the historically black institutions of the University of North Carolina, concerning the personal utility of activities to increase their educational research participation or to gain educational research skills and knowledge. The study was part of a pilot project to develop strategies to…

Contends that qualitative research in geography can be conducted within the constraints of a research methods course. Provides suggestions for using qualitative research fieldwork in a college course. Includes student reactions to the course and constraints on broader use of this methodology. (CFR)

Policy makers and researchers may have different agendas as to what constitutes "evidence". This paper reviews some of the issues currently debated in the UK and elsewhere about researchers' understandings of how social research can usefully inform the policy-making process, and their techniques for making it available. Using examples…

Results of survey measuring university faculty attitudes toward bibliographic instruction indicated that: frequency of respondent's library use related positively to decision to offer bibliographic instruction and its delivery by librarians; part-time faculty were less aware of library services than full-time faculty; 29 percent of faculty…

Compared are boys' and girls' abilities and achievement in a research class which included both classroom and research institute experience. It was found that boys were more active in classroom interactions and that the ratings of girls and boys were otherwise not significantly different. (CW)

Two participant observers evaluated the week-long camp experience of adult women in order to assess the appropriateness of participant observation research methods in the camp setting, to identify strengths and weaknesses of this method, and to develop guidelines for its use. The study was part of a larger evaluation of the 9th annual Women's Week…

This report discusses findings from a research project examining the demands made on students and teachers by the "investigations" (or research) required of students in social subjects in Scottish schools. Students and teachers in six secondary schools in Scotland were interviewed, and it was found that teachers were seriously concerned…

Term paper bibliographies were independently examined and rated by a librarian and a writing instructor. Students receiving bibliographic instruction in classes that taught a cognitive strategy for using library resources did a better job of accessing and using library resources than those whose instruction emphasized specific tools and resources.…

Asserts that all research is interpretive and that reality is constructed at every stage of a research project. Explores three research constructs: (1) role of the researcher; (2) research questions; and (3) underlying assumptions of the researcher. Presents and applies a foundation for an interpretative research framework. (CFR)

Sixty-nine employers of researchers and evaluators participated in a market research study conducted by the Department of Educational Foundations and Research at Gallaudet University. The sample included consulting firms, government agencies, professional associations, and other educational agencies in the greater Washington, D.C. area, as well as…