Interactive immersive entertainment, or videogame playing, has emerged as a major entertainment and educational medium. As research and development initiatives proliferate, educational researchers might benefit by developing more grounded theories about them. This article argues for framing game play as a "designed experience." Players'…

The community college movement has been well-documented since the organization of the first junior colleges. This documentation has been maintained by six groups: scholars and professors, the popular media, institutional research, state agencies, faculty organizations, and national organizations. Currently, approximately 100 scholars and…

This document presents descriptions of 11 experimental, descriptive, and naturalistic research designs created by classroom teachers about questions that they had and that they investigated within the context of teaching dynamics unique to their classrooms. An action research approach was utilized, emphasizing immediate application of a method and…

This paper reports the results of 4 years of a mentoring program at the University of Melbourne (Victoria, Australia) that has been directed to developing the research aspirations and performance of ex-Melbourne College of Advanced Education staff who are coping with increased research demands following the 1989 amalgamation with the University of…

It is argued that the debate between qualitative and quantitative research for educational researchers is actually an argument between constructivism and positivism. Positivism has been the basis for most quantitative research in education. Two different things are actually meant when constructivism is discussed (constructivism and…

Consistent with educational reform efforts, this study examines traditional roles of teacher educators, university researchers, and public school personnel and addresses the following questions: (1) What role can the university play as change is initiated within public schools? (2) In order to create a culture for change, how must the traditional…

This case study presents a first-hand account of learning to teach, occasioned by an educational researcher's consultation visit to Thailand. The visit entailed the teaching skills of lecturing, and conducting workshops and consultation meetings. The difficulties of this task were exacerbated by the consultant's lack of prior formal teaching…

Articles in this yearbook address the problems associated with how reading research informs practice. Articles, listed with their authors, are as follows: (1) "Reading Research into Policy and Practice: Practitioner's Viewpoint" (Deborah L. Thompson); (2) "Michigan's Reading Program: A Decade of Change" (Elaine M. Weber); (3)…

In 1990, a survey was conducted of colleges in the Mid-Plains Technical Community College (MPTCC) area to determine the most effective organizational structure and staffing patterns for institutional research and to assess the kinds of information most needed. The survey instrument was mailed to 30 administrators in the Area Office and at…

Because of recent shifts in understanding the nature of knowledge and the process of learning, there may be major and long-lasting changes in the nature of educational research and its role for educators. Since most people understand through the use of metaphor, a metaphor that previously fostered the understanding of research is the assembly line…

An interview study examined the assumptions about adult learning held by 28 educational policy-makers, researchers, and staff developers. Fifteen assumptions were inferred from the interview data, each forming a dimension that describes learning as experienced by the participants: (1) Adult learning experiences are envisioned as similar for all…

This paper reports on a study developed to determine what experts in the area of educational research perceive as the basic skills and knowledge areas that one who has successfully completed a one-semester graduate course in educational research should possess. A decision was made to conduct a Delphi study to identify these skills and knowledge…

A miniconference (consisting of four 60-minute sessions) was organized to contribute to the exploration of frames, forms, and contents of systematic cooperation and interaction between the researcher and teacher in the classroom. These proceedings of the conference include descriptions of the organization, purpose, and background of the…

Educational research can serve to improve education in both developed and developing countries. It can be oriented toward increasing knowledge about the educational reality, generating theories, or confirming immediate educational political decisions. Educational research should be an interdisciplinary undertaking; this variety helps to unify…

There is presently a wide gap between educational research and educational policy, which seems to result from the esoteric nature of much of the research as well as from the fact that policy is guided more often by economic or social concerns than by educational considerations. The results of a study of college impact on student development are…