Qualitative research is an inherent part of the human services profession, since it emphasizes the great and multifaceted complexity characterizing human experience and the sociocultural context in which humans act. In the department of human services at Emek Yezreel College, Israel, we have developed a three-phase model to ensure a relatively…

This is a unique and groundbreaking collection of questions and answers coming from higher education institutions on diverse fields and across a wide spectrum of countries and cultures. It creates routes for further innovation, collaboration amidst the Sciences (both Natural and Social), the Humanities, and the private and public sectors of…

This paper explores the nature of postgraduate research in the broad area of Pacific education completed in New Zealand universities. First, a number of basic trends are identified in terms of institutional affiliation, area of educational research, MA and PhD balance, growth over time, national/ethnic focus and the expected beneficiaries of the…

The cognitive and learning styles research domain is a highly complex one which has recently been the focus of rigour-relevance debates (Coffield et al. 2004; Evans and Sadler-Smith 2006; Rayner 2006). There is considerable support for the existence and value of style as a construct (Sternberg 1996) even though further work is needed to evidence…

Three issues must be addressed when discussing the standards needed to judge the methodological rigor of naturalistic approaches to administrative research. The first issue involves defining naturalistic inquiry. In contrast to the scientific paradigm, naturalistic inquiry emphasizes, first, the inseparability of variables or events from their…

Methodological adequacy in naturalistic inquiry is enhanced by understanding the differences between the naturalistic and rationalistic paradigms; by using simultaneous data collection and analysis, with prolonged field research, an audit trail, multiple sources, and referential materials; and by employing "thick description" extensively…

This paper outlines some of the interview approaches and observational techniques that social scientists use in field study. Discussed are scheduled interviews, open-ended interviews, the delphi technique, participant observation, process observation, and lurking. (Author/AV)

The potential of qualitative approaches to provide an informed critique of quantitative data, or a much richer understanding of motivation and attitudes toward information, was tested in 1994 in two Malawian rural communities. Results confirmed and questioned earlier quantitative studies; argues that the project is a model for practical,…

The role of the instructional materials center in evaluating materials is asserted and evaluation is defined as a media of compiling and analyzing information. Four evaluative methods are explained: field testing and comparing results; assessing rationale; measuring attitudinal and motivational variables; and describing the material and its use. A…

By using small-scale artificially created archaeologic sites, a teacher can provide students with a time-efficient approach in which to master some basic archaeological techniques. In an artificially created setting, the students can become familiar with conditions they might meet in the field. In a short period of time, students may be exposed to…

This paper discusses different approaches to analyzing the internal control structure of organizations and describes a model interview structure that was developed for use in a longitudinal study of decision-making in 41 elementary schools. The model is designed to garner objective accounts of school decision-making through periodic interviews of…

Concludes that if we do find ourselves in a situation of multiple paradigmatic perspectives on educational research, then it is not appropriate to think in the near future of there being a 'ground synthesis' of quantitative and qualitative methodologies. If the two major paradigms do exist as outlined here, and neither finds its present framework…

Reflects on the past three decades of increasing specialization and on the diverse conceptual frameworks guiding research in the field of educational administration. Describes heterogeneity among researchers, field-based research and policy studies, linkages across specialty areas, and key points of remaining articles. Fifty-three footnotes are…

Laboratory simulations combine the strengths of lab experiments and field studies while avoiding many of their liabilities. They permit the emotional involvement, the time needed for development of norms and interlocked systems of interaction, and the broad range of variables typical of field settings, yet allow for experimental controls and…

This handbook, designed as a guide for new evaluators in the Pittsburgh Public Schools, provides an orientation to the "Discrepancy Evaluation Model" and a detailed outline of the administrative procedures necessary to conduct day-to-day activities in the first two stages of program evaluation. Guidelines for use during the first stage of…