Experimental and quasi-experimental designs are used in educational research to establish causality and develop effective practices. These research designs rely on a counterfactual model that, in simple form, calls for a comparison between a treatment group and a control group. Developers of educational practices often assume that the population…

The authors of this article consider how education researchers can improve school violence and school safety research by (a) examining gaps in theoretical, conceptual, and basic research on the phenomena of school violence; (b) reviewing key issues in the design and evaluation of evidence-based practices to prevent school violence; and (c)…

The purposes of this article are to position mixed methods research ("mixed research" is a synonym) as the natural complement to traditional qualitative and quantitative research, to present pragmatism as offering an attractive philosophical partner for mixed methods research, and to provide a framework for designing and conducting mixed methods…

Critical features of sound observational studies fall under three categories: the sampling framework; the theoretical model; and the statistical procedure. If the methodology for explanatory, rather than descriptive, observational studies can be applied within these categories, more consistent, convincing, useful explanations of educational…

Dismissing research that is not theory driven, hypothesis testing, or generalization producing does injustice to the variety of contributions that qualitative research can make. Studies conducted through qualitative approaches are reviewed to summarize the desirable outcomes that can result. No research model has a monopoly on quality. (SLD)

Presents a prototypical case illustrating what positivist research means and argues that even critics of positivist research are logically committed to propositions that can be tested only through positivist research paradigms. The relationship between the nature of a community's research enterprise and its educational provisions must be causal.…

Comments on specific points raised by E. W. Eisner, F. Erickson, and T. S. Popkewitz. Argues that the author's previous article does not support methodological monism. It is an assertion that some version of educational trial (clinical trial metaphor) is required to evaluate the usefulness of educational research. (SLD)