An Education Research Primer: How to Understand, Evaluate and Use It

Foreword ix

Acknowledgments xi

Preface xiii

1. The Purpose of Education Research 1

2. Scientific Criteria in Education Research 7

3. The Types of Education Research 13

4. Understanding Experimental and Descriptive Research 21

5. Understanding Data Collection in Education Research 33

6. Issues in Evaluating Education Research 41

7. Evaluating Experimental Research Studies 53

8. Evaluating Descriptive Research Studies 68

9. Evaluating Literature Reviews 83

10. Assessing the Relevance of Education Research 92

Appendixes

A. Tips on Reading Research Reports 102

B. Glossary of Education Research Terms 107

C. Finding Education Research 138

D. Statistics Tutorial 141

References 159

About the Author 162

Index 163