The goal of this primer is to help policymakers and other interested individuals answer three big questions: (1) What does the research say? (2) Is the research trustworthy? (3) How can the research be used to guide policy? Answering these questions will help policymakers: (1) make evidenced-based decisions about education policies; (2) gain a…

This study represents an attempt at determining if a construct, rather than an instructional method, is supported by scientifically-based research. The purpose of this study was to examine the credibility of evidence-based claims underlying the literature related to Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) (Shulman, 1986). Using a hybrid…

Universities and colleges are a critical component of the nation's research system. The condition and availability of research facilities at these institutions influence the work of current and future scientists. Recognizing the need for information on the amount and quality of scientific and engineering (S&E) research space, Congress mandated…

Transforming education into an evidence-based field depends in no small part on a strong base of scientific knowledge to inform educational policy and practice. Advancing Scientific Research in Education makes select recommendations for strengthening scientific education research and targets federal agencies, professional associations, and…

Argument exists as to the degree that education fits the criteria of a science. The scientific method cannot be applied to education since it has not developed a consistent set of concepts and theories as demonstrated within the natural sciences. (JN)

Discusses latest trends in creativity research, including development of tests independent of I.Q., correlations of creativity with mental illness, physiological bases for creativity (brain wave comparisons), and follow-up research on successful physicians and scientists. The need for means to identify creatively "gifted" children is stressed. (CS)

The theory-practice relationship has been handled more rhetorically than empirically. The dissemination of scientific research to professional groups is examined empirically and conceptually, using a model representing key variable sets in this field. Sustained, interactive dissemination may be of as much value to researchers as to practitioners.…

Medical educators debate which models of scientific research should be applied to problems in academic medicine. The reigning model was derived from the first scientific revolution of Newtonian physics. The emerging model is grounded in the second scientific revolution of Einstein's quantum physics. (Author/MSE)

Reflects on the cultural politics of knowledge production since World War II, in which the techno-scientific knowledge base was used to dominate cultural time and space. Examines the status of liberal education and adult education research as a source of productive knowledge, as well as the selection of which knowledge is valued. (SK)

In attempting to guide both researchers and the federal government in the development of a stronger scientific culture for education research, the National Research Council report, Scientific Research in Education, falls short in its conception of research dissemination. Rather than considering the potential of new publishing technologies to…

Hershel and Ellen Thornburg left a strong legacy to the field of adolescent research, especially through their pioneering work identifying early adolescence as worthy of special focus and through the links they made among research, practice, and policy. This article honors their legacy by pointing to areas of progress in research, needed progress…

Both No Child Left Behind and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act require educators to use research-validated practices in classrooms. And yet education, special education, and the field of emotional and behavioral disorders (E/BD) continue to show large gaps in the consistent use of best practices. The authors propose that the…

In the US debate over science-based educational research, experimentation is again coming to the fore as ideal for establishing an evidence base of what works in educational interventions thus contributing to the climate of accountability in educational research and practice. Mixed methods research is being positioned in this discussion as a…

The academy's zeitgeist--standards of scientic investigation--has recently come to the fore in the national arena as the dominant moral and intellectual framework for educational research. In this article, we explore the re-emergence of standards of scientific investigation as a significant shaping force in education and the scholarly culture,…

The distinction between qualitative and quantitative modes of research has become fashionable in recent years. Few accounts, however, clarify the distinction. This paper, then, is a contribution to the quality/quantity debate. It locates the origins and basis of such distinction in a split between "natural history" and "hypothetico-deductive"…