The development of educational research designs might be daunting for novice researchers that have to make choices among the plethora of philosophical frameworks, research traditions, and different methods existing in the field. In this article we describe the process followed to formally evaluate Hopscotch, a model and a web-tool created by the…

In the last decade Australian academic libraries have increasingly aligned their research support services with assessment criteria used in the national research evaluation exercise (Excellence for Research in Australia). The same period has seen growing interest in research impact outside of traditional measures, such as bibliometrics. Social…

Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia, is the preferred choice among resources used by college students to meet their research needs. However, Wikipedia has been criticized for its low information quality, lack of accountability, inconsistency, and vulnerability to vandalism. Despite the warnings and concerns voiced by academia, online learning…

Illustrates the basic concepts of the loglinear approach to research analysis. Explains what type of research questions are answerable and what type of data will lend itself to a loglinear analysis approach. Three educational research examples illustrate this concept. (TLJ)

Demonstrates the value of dynamic analysis of event-history data for the sociological study of change in categorical variables. An event history records dates of events that occur for some unit of analysis (i.e., an individual's marital or employment status, or outbreaks of riots or wars). (Author/AV)

Following the assumptions of ecological socialization research, adequate analysis of socialization conditions must take into account the multilevel and multivariate structure of social factors that impact on human development. This statement implies that complex models of family configurations or of socialization factors are needed to explain the…

Describes developments in multilevel modeling of educational and other social data. Suggests that such a technique be used for school effectiveness studies, political opinion surveys, and area-based studies. Recommends that the inherent hierarchical structure of social science data be reflected in statistical models. Argues that multilevel…

An explicit model identifying 10 relevant components of achievement gain scores has been developed. Based on that model, all students under consideration are stratified according to individual observed pretest score, and achievement gains are measured relative to the average and range of gains among students in the same prescore stratum. The…

Reviews hierarchical linear models that have been developed to address problems of the measurement of change and the unit of analysis in educational research. Introduces a three-level hierarchical model that should constitute the basic paradigm for future quantitative research on student learning. (Author/BJV)