The author of this essay contends that there is a need to expand the use of qualitative research methods to include healing and human restoration for the researcher as well as for the researched. This will require moving away from obsessions with positivistic conceptions of scientific research and exploring and using other possible functions of…

This monograph looks first at opportunities provided by research in the adult literacy field and then identifies challenges to scientific research and suggests ways to address these challenges so that better evidence can be generated in the future. It has two goals that support the building of a stronger research base for the adult literacy…

In the past several years a number of authors have suggested that science education could benefit from insights gained by research in the social studies of science that documents and theorises science as it is actually done. There currently exist two gaps in the literature. First, most research in science studies are concerned with the practices…

The objectives of this study are: (1) evaluation of the methodology used in recent search for particles with fractional electrical charge (quarks) and its implications for understanding the scientific research methodology of Millikan; (2) evaluation of 43 general physics textbooks and 11 laboratory manuals, with respect to the oil drop experiment,…

Investigates five characteristics of research said to be increasingly pervasive--namely, application, interdisciplinary, networking, internationalization, and concentration of resources. Results indicate that research is conducted more in networks, both domestic and international; but the data are more ambiguous regarding application and…

How might qualitative researchers meaningfully operate in a contemporary research climate that holds to such limited conceptions of what constitutes "scientific" research in education? This article discusses implications of scientifically based research (SBR) and identifies several pathways along which researchers may productively work in such a…

A new research approach, related to action research and new paradigm research, has been emerging in recent years. This is (service) user-controlled research. It challenges positivist values of "neutrality", "distance" and "objectivity" in research and explicitly values subjectivity and experiential knowledge. The…

Considers historical research as a generic method of research and as a tool specifically pertinent to home economics. (JOW)

Two major developments in the therapeutic massage and bodywork profession have recently brought to the forefront the issue of research competencies. The profession has been called to a potentially heightened level of credibility. One challenge to the profession's development is that of coordinating the various curricular, instructional,…

This article sets the context for the development of research quality indicators and guidelines for evidence of effective practices provided by different methodologies. The current conceptualization of scientific research in education and the complexity of conducting research in special education settings underlie the development of quality…

With the growing emphasis on the development of scientific inquiry skills, there is a strong need for more research on students' ability to collect and interpret evidence. This paper calls attention to the notion of evidentiary competence that refers to the concepts and reasoning skills involved in the collection, organization, and interpretation…

This article describes the experiences of a former astronomer who is making the transition to astronomy education research as an international graduate student in the United States. The article describes the author's encounters with education research, its methodologies, and his changing research interests as he progresses through the graduate…

In this exercise the US Standard Atmosphere is used as "data" that a student is asked to model by deriving equations to reproduce it with the help of spreadsheet and graphing software. The exercise can be used as a laboratory or an independent study for a student of introductory physics to provide an introduction to scientific research…

Presents an analysis and discussion of some reasons for the absence of theory from home economics research, some benefits to be derived from greater attention to theory, and ways to enhance the role of theory in home economics research. (JOW)

The main focus of YpsychologicalI research ought always to be the discovery of simple laws; these may or may not lead to new measures." Discusses types of psychological laws, psychological measurement, and experimental designs to test qualitative laws. (Author/AL)