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PREFACE vii
on them in your own words. Similarly, see if you (evaluation criteria that are specific to a particular re-
can provide your own definition for each term in search design). Also, you can read about these evalu-
the list of key terms. If you come across a topic that ation criteria in the chapter where they are explained.
you have not mastered, study the chapter further If you are asked to identify a problem of prac-
or use another resource, such as Google, which tice and explain how research might shed light on
often yields informative websites. Then take the it, you will find it helpful to refer to the section
self-check test in the chapter, which includes mul- titled An Example of How [chapter topic] Can Help
tiple-choice items related to the chapter’s important in Solving Problems of Practice at the end of most
ideas. If you wish to expand your understanding chapters.
of particular topics, you can read the resources for
further study listed at the end of the chapter.
INSTRUCTOR’S MANUAL
Prepare for Tests The Instructor’s Manual for the seventh edition of
Applying Educational Research includes sugges-
You can prepare for the instructor’s tests by review-
tions for designing an introductory research course
ing the lists of important ideas and key terms, any
for undergraduate or graduate students in educa-
chapter material that you highlighted, and your
tion and related fields, teaching activities related to
class notes. Another useful strategy is to hold a re-
each chapter’s content, and a test-item bank with
view session with one or more of you classmates.
both multiple-choice and short-answer items cover-
You can take turns acting as the instructor, making
ing the content of each chapter.
up questions about the chapter content and having
classmates answer them.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Complete Homework Assignments We thank our many colleagues who have shared
If your instructor gives you assignments that in- with us their knowledge, insights, and experiences
volve preparing a research proposal or conducting relating to educational research. In particular, we
a study, you can refer to Chapter 2 and the guide express our appreciation to the following reviewers
in Appendix 1 to help you. If you are given as- for their helpful feedback about the sixth edition:
signments involving the preparation of a literature Vikki K. Collins, Troy University; Ronald F. Dugan,
review, you can refer to the chapters in Part Two College of Saint Rose; and Fred Jacobs, American
and Appendix 2. University. We also wish to thank our copyeditor,
If an assignment requires you to evaluate a full- Cassie Tuttle, for her careful review of the manu-
text research article, you can refer to Appendix 3 script and helpful suggestions.
(general criteria for evaluating quantitative research
M. D. (Mark) Gall
studies), Appendix 4 (general criteria for evaluat-
ing qualitative research studies), and Appendix 5 Joyce P. (Joy) Gall
Brief Contents
viii
Contents
Features of a Descriptive Research Report 210 ■ Sample Group Comparison Research Study:
Introduction 211 Jordanian Prospective and Experienced
Research Design 212 Chemistry Teachers’ Beliefs about Teaching
Sampling Procedure 212 and Learning and their Potential Role for
Measures 213 Educational Reform 248
Results 216 Reprint of Journal Article 248
Discussion 217
Evaluating a Descriptive Research Study 218
■ An Example of How Descriptive Research CHAPTER 11 CORRELATIONAL RESEARCH 261
Can Help in Solving Problems of Practice 218 Comparison of Correlational and Group Comparison
Self-Check Test 219 Research Designs 262
Chapter References 220 Examples of Correlational Research 263
Resources for Further Study 220 Factors Associated with Teachers’ Job Satisfaction 263
■
Factors Associated with High School Students’
Sample Descriptive Research Study: Grades, Feelings about School, and Satisfaction
Examining the Extent and Nature of Online with Their Life 264
Learning in American K–12 Education: The Factors Associated with Parental Competence and
Research Initiatives of the Alfred P. Sloan Children’s Emotional and Behavioral Problems 264
Foundation 222 Correlation between Two Variables 265
Reprint of Journal Article 222 The Advantages of Continuous Variables 265
Using Scattergrams to Represent Correlation 267
The Meaning of Correlation Coefficients for
CHAPTER 10 GROUP COMPARISON Two Variables 269
RESEARCH 233 Types of Bivariate Correlational Statistics 270
Statistical Significance and Effect Size for Bivariate
Classification of Quantitative Research Designs 234 Correlational Statistics 272
Nonexperimental Research Involving Causal Correlation Involving More Than Two Variables 272
Relationships 235
Multiple Regression 272
The Relevance of Group Comparison Research to
Discriminant Analysis and Logistic Regression 273
Educational Practice 235
Canonical Correlation 274
Examples of Group Comparison Research 236
Hierarchical Linear Modeling 274
Comparison of Rural, Suburban, and
Urban Students 236 Path Analysis and Structural Equation Modeling 275
Comparison of Girls and Boys Who Have Autism Differential Analysis 275
Spectrum Disorder 236 Factor Analysis 275
Comparison of Students with Good School Features of a Correlational Research Report 276
Attendance and a Stable Residence and Students Introduction 276
with Poor School Attendance and a Nonstable Research Design 277
Residence 237
Sampling Procedure 277
Features of a Group Comparison
Measures 277
Research Report 237
Results 278
Introduction 237
Discussion: Implications for Practice 280
Research Design 238
Evaluating a Correlational Research Study 280
Sampling Procedure 239
■ An Example of How Correlational
Measures 240
Research Can Help in Solving Problems
Results 240 of Practice 281
Discussion: Implications for Practice 244 Self-Check Test 282
Evaluating a Group Comparison Research Study 244 Chapter References 283
■ An Example of How Group Comparison Resources for Further Study 283
Research Can Help in Solving Problems
of Practice 245 ■ Sample Correlational Research Study: The
Self-Check Test 246 Measurement and Predictive Ability of
Chapter References 247 Metacognition in Middle School Learners 284
Resources for Further Study 247 Reprint of Journal Article 284
CONTENTS xiii
The following articles are reprinted exactly as they appeared in the original source, except that
the format of the original articles (e.g., column layout) has been standardized for presentation
in this text. Two exceptions are the reprinted case study in Chapter 13 and the reprinted article
in Chapter 14, where several typographical errors in the original articles were corrected with the
permission of the authors of these articles.
CHAPTER 1
Use of Research Evidence, p. 21
Willis, J. (2009). How students’ sleepy brains fail them. Kappa Delta Pi Record, 45(4), 158–162.
CHAPTER 3
Professional Review, p. 71
Marzano, R. J., & Pickering, D. J. (2007). The case for and against homework. Educational
Leadership, 64(6), 74–79.
Meta-Analysis, p. 76
Graham, S., & Sandmel, K. (2011). The process writing approach: A meta-analysis. The Journal of
Educational Research, 104(6), 396–407.
CHAPTER 5
Quantitative Research Study, p. 132
Dickin, K. L., Lent, M., Lu, A. H., Sequeira, J., & Dollahite, J. S. (2012). Developing a measure of
behavior change in a program to help low-income parents prevent unhealthful weight gain in
children. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 44(1), 12–21.
CHAPTER 8
Practical Significance of Research Findings, p. 201
Popham, W. J. (2005). Can growth ever be beside the point? Educational Leadership, 63(3),
83–84.
CHAPTER 9
Descriptive Research Study, p. 222
Picciano, A. G., Seaman, J., Shea, P., & Swan, K. (2012). Examining the extent and nature of
online learning in American K–12 education: The research initiatives of the Alfred P. Sloan
Foundation. Internet and Higher Education, 15, 127–135.
CHAPTER 10
Group Comparison Research Study, p. 248
Al-Amoush, S. A., Abu-Hola, I., & Eilks, I. (2011). Jordanian prospective and experienced
chemistry teachers’ beliefs about teaching and learning and their potential for educational
reform. Science Education International, 22(3), 185–201.
xvii
xviii REPRINTED ARTICLES
CHAPTER 11
Correlational Research Study, p. 284
Sperling, R. A., Richmond, A. S., Ramsay C. M., & Klapp, M. (2012). The measurement and
predictive ability of metacognition in middle school learners. Journal of Educational Research,
105(1), 1–7.
CHAPTER 12
Group Experiment, p. 322
McDonald, L., Moberg, D. P., Brown, R., Rodriguez-Espiricueta, I., Flores, N. I., Burke, M. P., &
Coover, G. (2006). After-school multifamily groups: A randomized controlled trial involving low-
income, urban, Latino children. Children & Schools, 28(1), 25–34.
Single-Case Experiment, p. 332
Amato-Zech, N. A., Hoff, K. E., & Doepke, K. J. (2006). Increasing on-task behavior in
the classroom: Extension of self-monitoring strategies. Psychology in the Schools, 43(2),
211–221.
CHAPTER 13
Case Story, p. 368
Sacks, A. (2007, September 11). Teaching secrets: Ask the kids! Teacher Magazine. Retrieved
January 17, 2009 from www.teachermagazine.org/tm/articles/2007/09/11/03tln_sacks_web.h19.html
Case Study, p. 369
Açikalin, M. (2010). Exemplary social studies teachers’ use of computer-supported instruction in
the classroom. TOJET: The Turkish Journal of Educational Technology, 9(4), 66–82.
CHAPTER 14
Critical Ethnography, p. 410
Trafi-Prats, L (2009). Destination Raval Sud: A visual ethnography on pedagogy, aesthetics, and
the spatial experience of growing up urban. Studies in Art Education, 51(1), 6–20.
CHAPTER 15
Narrative Research Study, p. 437
Pearce, J., & Morrison, C. (2011). Teacher identity and early career resilience: Exploring the links.
Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 36(1), Article 4, 48–59.
CHAPTER 16
Historical Research Study, p. 462
Rousmaniere, K. (2007). Go to the principal’s office: Toward a social history of the school
principal in North America. History of Education Quarterly, 47(1), 1–22.
CHAPTER 17
Mixed-Methods Research Study, p. 494
Isernhagen, J. C. (2012). A portrait of administrator, teacher, and parent perceptions of Title I
school improvement plans. The Journal of At-Risk Issues, 17(1), 1–7.
REPRINTED ARTICLES xix
CHAPTER 18
Action Research Study, p. 519
Lassonde, C. A. (2009). Recognizing a “different drum” through close-reading strategies.
Networks: An On-line Journal for Teacher Research, 11(1). Retrieved from http://journals.library.
wisc.edu/index.php/networks/article/view/188
CHAPTER 19
Evaluation Research Study, p. 546
Lee, L. (2011). What did the teachers think? Teachers’ responses to the use of value-added
modeling as a tool for evaluating teacher effectiveness. Journal of Urban Learning, Teaching, and
Research, 7, 97–103.
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C H A P T E R ON E
Using Research
Evidence to Improve
Educational Practice
PROBLEMS OF PRACTICE in this chapter
■ How much emphasis should a language arts curriculum place on nonfiction
works versus fiction?
■ Is students’ physical fitness important for their learning?
■ Does the Internet support or hurt student learning?
■ What criteria should be used to evaluate teacher performance?
■ What can be done to improve high school graduation rates?
■ How can educators help the many students who switch from one school
district to another each year?
■ What can be done to help elementary teachers place more emphasis on
developing children’s thinking skills?
■ How much federal funding for education should be allocated for research?
IMPORTANT Ideas
1. Educational research is having an increasing impact on educational policy and
practice.
2. Evidence-based practice is becoming more prevalent in medicine, psychology,
education, and other professions.
3. Teachers’ traditional motivations and workplace conditions have not been
conducive to evidence-based practice.
4. Evidence-based practice in education has four key elements: (1) focus on
problems of practice, (2) reliance on research evidence, (3) clinical expertise,
and (4) respect for stakeholders’ values.
5. An important impetus for improving education is heightened awareness of
pressing problems of practice and a commitment to solve them.
6. Educators need to understand research methodology so they can evaluate the
quality of others’ research or conduct their own research.
7. Educators need to view research evidence from multiple ethical perspectives.
8. Educators can collaborate productively with researchers by participating in
their research studies or by joining with them in shaping policy agendas to
improve education.
1
2 PART I • INTRODUCTION
9. Research differs from other forms of inquiry in its emphasis on (1) making
direct observations of phenomena; (2) taking steps to eliminate, or make
explicit, personal bias in data collection, analysis, and interpretation; and
(3) carefully determining the generalizability of findings to individuals and
situations other than those that were studied.
10. Research produces four types of knowledge: (1) descriptions, (2) predictions,
(3) evidence about the effects of experimental interventions, and (4) explanations.
11. The purpose of basic research is to understand fundamental processes and
structures that underlie observed behavior, whereas the purpose of applied
research is to develop and validate interventions that can be used directly to
improve practice.
12. Postmodernists believe that no one method of inquiry is inherently better than
any other, whereas social scientists believe that their methods of inquiry have a
special legitimacy and claim to authority, based on use of (1) explicitly defined
concepts or procedures available for inspection by anyone; (2) replication studies
to test the soundness of findings from a single study; (3) knowledge claims that
can be tested, and possibly refuted, by empirical data; and (4) explicit procedures
to minimize researcher errors and biases.
13. Quantitative and qualitative research differ in various ways, but chiefly in
epistemology. Quantitative researchers assume an objective social reality
that exists independently of observers and participants, whereas qualitative
researchers assume that social reality is continuously constructed by observers
and participants.
14. Mixed-methods research studies make use of both quantitative and qualitative
research methods.
KEY TERMS
action research epistemology progressive discourse
APA Presidential Task Force on evaluation research qualitative research
Evidence-Based Practice evidence-based practice quantitative research
applied research experimental method reflexivity
basic research interpretivism refutation
clinical expertise No Child Left Behind Act replication
Cochrane Collaboration positivism theory
construct postmodernism triangulation
descriptive research prediction research What Works Clearinghouse
educational research
Each of the principal authors of this book (Mark We also are impressed by the expansion of
Gall and Joy Gall) has had a career in education educational research over the past 40 years. An
spanning more than 40 years. Our experience leads ever-growing network of researchers throughout
us to stand in awe of the many educational practi- the world has developed sophisticated methods for
tioners (called educators in this book) who do such studying the educational enterprise, producing a
a remarkable job of teaching increasingly diverse substantial body of research knowledge and efficient
students while also performing many other school electronic methods for accessing it.
functions, all in the face of ever-present budgetary Unfortunately, something is missing from this
challenges and shifting policy initiatives. picture of progress. We have not yet witnessed a
CHAPTER 1 • USING RESEARCH EVIDENCE TO IMPROVE EDUCATIONAL PRACTICE 3
meaningful bridge between educational research Evidence-based practice is changing the foun-
and educational practice. Researchers and educa- dations of various professions. We will consider
tors live mostly in separate worlds. They come two of these professions—medicine and clinical
together only occasionally in university courses, psychology—before discussing evidence-based
workshops, conferences, and journals that both practice in education. Perhaps you will agree with
groups read. us that evidence-based practice is not just a passing
There are signs, though, that the two worlds— fad, but rather a fundamental advance.
the world of educational practice and the world
of educational research—are coming closer. The
signs, mostly seen at the level of national legisla-
Evidence-Based Practice in Medicine
tion and policy making, point to a sea change in Suppose you have a heart problem and seek treat-
education. The findings of educational research ment for it. How do you decide on the best treat-
are becoming increasingly influential in shaping ment? You might try to contact other patients with
national and state legislation about education, the same problem. Perhaps they will offer testi-
which in turn is compelling changes in educational monials about some medicine or individual who
practice. helped them. Another option is to seek a profes-
If you are an educator, these changes mean that sional opinion, probably by making an appoint-
you will need to study research if you wish to en- ment to see a doctor with expertise, such as a
ter into a dialogue with researchers and the policy board-certified doctor in cardiology.
makers who make decisions based on research Testimonials, case examples, and expert opin-
findings. Otherwise, you and your colleagues might ions can be worthwhile. On the other hand, they
find yourselves in the uncomfortable position of might lead you astray if they are based on untested
trying to implement programs and policies that you beliefs, inaccurate observations, or reliance on out-
did not have a voice in shaping. moded research. Evidence-based practice in medi-
In short, we claim that educational research is cine represents an effort to avoid such pitfalls. It
becoming too important for anyone interested in does so by basing treatment decisions on the best
schooling to ignore. In the next sections, we make possible research evidence about a patient’s condi-
our case for the validity of this claim. We invite you tion (Straus et al., 2010).
to reflect on the soundness of the claim and, if you Evidence-based medical practice has two sig-
think it has merit, how you plan to respond in your nificant features. The first involves the need to
role as an educator. identify good research evidence. The fact that
a research study has been published does not
necessarily guarantee that its findings are sound.
EVIDENCE-BASED Professionals need to sift through research find-
ings to determine which ones hold up well under
PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE critical scrutiny. Although researchers might be
The movement called evidence-based practice has in the best position to do this screening, medical
created a remarkable change in the relationship practitioners also need to understand research
between educational research and practice. This methodology to validate for themselves what oth-
relatively new approach to professional decision ers consider good research evidence for a par-
making relies on rigorous research findings rather ticular treatment option. For example, medical
than custom, personal experience, or intuition. For practitioners need to understand that researchers
example, suppose a teacher recommends that a use systematic procedures to synthesize evidence
student needs one-on-one tutoring to come up to collected across research studies on a particular
grade level in writing skills. Suppose the parents medical intervention, such as meta-analysis, which
ask whether tutoring is likely to help their child. we describe in Chapter 4.
A teacher who is well versed in evidence-based Several organizations coordinate and publish
practice would be able to refer to research findings these research syntheses. Among the most promi-
demonstrating the effectiveness of tutoring and nent is the Cochrane Collaboration, whose web-
then justify the applicability of this research to their site (cochrane.org) publishes reviews of research
child’s needs. on interventions for various medical problems. For
4 PART I • INTRODUCTION
example, when we visited the site, we found fea- importance of the client’s individual characteristics
tured reviews on the use of sound therapies for au- in determining an effective intervention.
tism spectrum disorders, behavioral interventions The Task Force concluded that a variety of
to reduce the transmission of HIV infection, and research methods can generate evidence to guide
the comparative effectiveness of computer-assisted psychological practice, among which are methods
and oral-and-written methods for recording the diet that are also commonly used in educational research.
history of patients with diabetes. These methods are covered in different chapters of
The second feature of evidence-based medi- this book:
cal practice is the use of clinical expertise in
■ Clinical observation, including individual case
applying research evidence. A treatment option
studies (Chapter 13)
that is generally effective might be harmful for a
■ Single-case experimental designs (Chapter 12)
particular patient. For this reason, the Cochrane
■ Ethnographic research (Chapter 14)
Collaboration states: “Evidence-based medicine
■ Experiments on treatment efficacy (Chapter 12)
is the conscientious, explicit and judicious use of
■ Meta-analysis to synthesize research results
current best evidence in making decisions about
from multiple studies (Chapter 4)
the care of individual patients” (Cochrane Collab-
oration, n.d.). Clinical expertise is the ability to Keep in mind, then, that learning about the meth-
make informed ethical judgments about whether ods of educational research described in this book
a particular professional intervention is both evi- has multiple benefits. Your learning will apply
dence-based and appropriate for the needs of an to education but also will generalize to research
individual client. as it is conducted in other professions, including
We see then that evidence-based medicine does psychology, medicine, business, and technology
not seek to improve medical practice by research development.
evidence alone or by clinical expertise alone. Both The Task Force analyzed eight components of
are necessary in order to create a sound bridge clinical expertise in psychology. Struck by their ap-
between medical research and medical practice. plicability to clinical expertise in teaching, we list
them in Figure 1.1. As you study the list, we invite
Evidence-Based Practice you to draw parallels to the teaching process and to
reflect on how it is possible to interweave clinical
in Psychology expertise and research evidence.
Psychological practice to help clients with various
emotional, cognitive, and medical problems has
grown enormously over the past half-century. Re- EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICE
cently, it has evolved into evidence-based practice.
In 2005, the American Psychological Association
IN EDUCATION
(APA) commissioned the APA Presidential Task Robert Slavin (2002) provides us with a concise
Force on Evidence-Based Practice (APA Task Force, statement about the history of educational practice
2006). The work of this task force should be of and its current status:
interest to educators because educational practice
At the dawn of the 21st century, education is
has been influenced greatly by psychology, espe-
finally being dragged, kicking and screaming,
cially in the areas of achievement testing, instruc- into the 20th century. The scientific revolution
tional design, and behavior management. that utterly transformed medicine, agriculture,
The APA Task Force defined evidence-based transportation, technology, and other fields
practice in psychology as “the integration of the early in the 20th century almost completely by-
best available research with clinical expertise in passed the field of education. If Rip Van Winkle
the context of patient characteristics, culture, and had been a physician, a farmer, or an engineer,
preferences” (APA Task Force 2006, p. 273). You will he would be unemployable if he awoke today.
notice that this definition is similar to the Cochrane If he had been a good elementary school teacher
Collaboration’s definition of evidence-based medi- in the 19th century, he would probably be a
cine, but with an even greater emphasis on the good elementary school teacher today. It is not
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