When students, parents, educators, and partners have the right information to make decisions, students excel. One of the most powerful sources of information for families, educators, and policymakers about education is the high-quality analysis and research conducted by trained and engaged experts across the country. Their work gives us answers…

Argues that defining "progress" is fundamental to understanding how effective educational research is in improving practice. Discusses the problem of partial specification and its consequences for defining the research-practice relationship. Presents three different, but complementary, approaches to defining "progress":…

Considers contributions of basic/theoretical, applied/practical, and marketing research to the field of camping. Outlines research concerns: application of qualitative methods, practical application of marketing research, effective research dissemination, and focus on longitudinal studies using larger samples. Affirms role of research to document…

In an era of ever-shrinking dollars for education and especially for educational research, one must ask the question, "Does the proposed research add value to agricultural education?" Although it may not be possible to answer the question completely, a framework can be developed within which the answer can be pondered. Researchers,…

Outlines evaluative questions about technology use in education in the following categories: summative questions about results; whether the investment helps disadvantaged students; how technology use affects total costs and costs per student; and whether technology improves practice. (SK)

It is suggested that the potential contributions research and development activities can make to the improvement of educational practice are far from fully realized for a variety of reasons. Researchers overlook problems teachers consider important, teachers are skeptical of proposals from external groups, and researchers and teachers lack a…

Research on the use of knowledge resources in school improvement efforts explores the ways in which new ideas, programs, practices, materials, and technologies become incorporated into the operations of the nation's elementary and secondary schools, and examines the changes these organizations undergo in the process. Attempts at disseminating…

Decision-oriented inquiries emanate from a specific need for information and are conducted under a number of constraints. Conclusion-oriented research originates with the researcher and can be pursued in ways decided on by the researcher. Two examples of decision-oriented evaluation studies conducted by school districts and the relationships…

This paper contains a mission statement and overview of the National Center for Research in Vocational Education's (NCRVE) agenda for 1993. The first part outlines the goals and programs of NCRVE's six research and development areas: the economic context of vocational education; the institutional context of vocational education; curriculum and…

A review of literature indicates that schools with effective reading programs tend to have common characteristics, such as a strong commitment to improved reading; a competent teaching and administrative staff; clearly defined objectives; a structured, intensified program; adequate assessment techniques; a variety of materials; and parental…

Describes evaluation experiences in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, School District. Suggests that use of evaluation results can be maximized through a systems approach that involves developing and monitoring different performance indicators, and tailoring educational practice by focusing corrective action on areas where performance is found to be…

An international colloquium, held in Bucharest, Romania, in November, 1980, brought together educational researchers and persons responsible for educational policies and programs. They examined ways and means of making research more relevant to socioeconomic development and of increasing the internal effectiveness of education. Topics of…

Explores the opportunities and problems inherent in the working relationship between sociologists and educators. Examines the ways that educational sociologists can participate in linking research, policy, and practice. Posits three requirements for productive collaboration between educators and sociologists: multilingualism, mutual programs, and…

At the core of a world-class system of delivery of educational services, there must be a comprehensive process for continual transmission of the best that knowledge synthesis and new experimentation can offer for utilization procedures and practices. This idea was expressed by Representative Major R. Owens, committee chairman, in his opening…

Classroom teachers need to make sound judgments and decisions concerning curricular and instructional issues. The teachers who wish to become more effective in the classroom should learn to develop their own research designs since educational research reported in journals is often inconclusive, conflicting, or not relevant to the classroom…