An examination of the effects of research on social policy, focusing on its impact on handicapped children and infants, discusses the influence of research on mainstreaming, Head Start, deinstitutionalization, and personnel preparation; presents steps leading to the formulation of social policy; and notes the reciprocal influence of research and…

The authors review some of the constructs provided by recent classroom language studies. By employing constructs from these studies to describe part of a classroom lesson, the authors illustrate one way to explore how classrooms work. They then list some cautions and recommendations about the use of classroom research for making policy decisions.…

The focus of this paper is on the research/policy linkage, within the complex educational administrative structure and pluralistic informal power structure which characterize Thai research. Thailand has experienced some success in building analytical educational research capacity and ensuring its utilization. Lessons to be learned from this…

In this paper, three kinds of research methodology (historical, case study and experimental/quantitative) are compared with regard to the degree to which each is able to affect policymaking. (Author/EB)

Identifies themes in the theoretical literature on policy implementation that can be used to develop a research-based framework about how qualitative research can be used to analyze policy implementation through the investigation of informal and formal communication lines. (SLD)

Analyzes 86 articles in the first 7 volumes of the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Vocational Education Research and organizes them in 3 categories: learning and teaching, policy context, and improving research. Concludes with implications for policy, practice, and future research. An appendix lists articles by topic. (Contains 106…

The relationship between research and policy and practice in education is a long-standing issue in many countries. Focusing on the UK Government, which is responsible for education in England, this paper looks at the criticisms of education research that have been made in recent years by government and related non-departmental public bodies and…

This article presents a critical review of complexity theory in relation to educational research. The "analytical reductionist" approach is one in which the educational researcher seeks to reduce complex wholes to particular factors and to identify correlations between them and desirable outcomes. Complexity theory shows how this approach in…

In a review of the challenges to progress in providing social research evidence that might usefully inform policy, Oakley (2004) argues strongly that the "paradigm divide" between qualitative and quantitative research communities continues to constitute a major problem. Oakley refers to a number of recent critiques of what is seen as "misplaced…

Studies on the relationship between research and development (R&D) and public policymaking processes are reviewed. Attention is directed to R&D utilization in Sweden and other countries. The publications are grouped into four categories: policymaking and knowledge utilization, research policy, higher education policy, and knowledge…

Educational research and evaluation have had less impact on policy and decision making in education than hoped for, since research and evaluation represent fundamentally different kinds of endeavor than policy and decision making do. Evaluation has more impact than research because it is a more administrative activity and is more integral to…

This bibliography of works cited in the "World Yearbook of Education 1985" on the topic of educational research is divided into four sections. The first covers 264 chapters and articles published in books and booklets by individual authors. The second lists 73 publications issued by official and corporate bodies. The third includes 163…

The purpose of this Committee Print on Effective Schools is to add substance to Congressional deliberation on legislation which addresses school improvement as a priority on the national educational agenda. The report provides the written views of some of the nation's leading educators, who have made important research contributions in the area of…

The author takes the position that federal support for basic research should be increased. The suggestion is made that the National Institute of Education sponsor a mapping of fields of inquiry in education and endeavor to bring patterns of support in line with ongoing inquiry in education. Increased support for new research and new researchers in…

This paper deals with the Community Legal Services law suit and the role played by a large city office of research and evaluation in bringing about its resolution. This law suit was waged on behalf of the Welfare Rights organization against the State Department of Education and, most directly upon the recipient of state-managed Title I funds, a…