Survey-based research is vital in education and social sciences, offering insights into human behaviors and perceptions. The prevalence of such studies in medical education has risen by 33% over the past decade. Despite this growth, the utility of survey findings depends on the study design quality and measure validity. Many manuscripts are…

Misinformation and disinformation about science have reached alarming levels. Here, we summarize a recent expert report, "Science Education in an Age of Misinformation," that outlines what science education can do to address this problem and, given the urgency, has to do. We highlight the significance of teaching how the social practices…

Surveys are frequently employed in needs assessment to collect information about gaps (the needs) in "what is" and "what should be" conditions. Double-scale Likert-type instruments are routinely used for this purpose. Although in accord with the discrepancy definition of need, the quality of such measures is being questioned to…

We describe our decision points to disclose parts of our personal selves while building trust with vulnerable populations in schools during ethnographic studies. Finding how our subjective identities were similar to and different than those of our participants helped us to better understand the participants' lives. We argue in this article that…

For non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the world of funders can be difficult to navigate. The question isn't just whom to approach for a grant. Equally important is how to make a successful pitch for money. This tip sheet how NGOs can approach funders. Two categories it covers are: (1) Know your funder; and (2) Customise your pitch. [For a…

This paper describes, and lays out an argument for, the use of a procedure to help groups of reviewers to judge the quality of prior research reports. It argues why such a procedure is needed, and how other existing approaches are only relevant to some kinds of research, meaning that a review or synthesis cannot successfully combine quality…

Suitable execution of moderation policy is challenging but crucial for the trustworthiness and credibility of internal high-stakes assessment systems. In formal education, policies are rarely implemented as intended. Instead, they are "enacted" in ways influenced by mediating factors including the internal and external contexts of…

This article focuses on "uncertainty"--ways in which scientists recognize and analyze limits in their studies and conclusions. We distinguish uncertainty from (un)trustworthiness--ways in which scientific reports can be affected by conscious deception or unconscious bias. Scientific journal articles typically include analyses and…

Is character education flawed as an approach to values education? A 2013 article answered that question in the negative and defused ten common objections against character education as 'myths'. The aim of the present article is to revisit those objections and consider the evidence that has accumulated since 2013. After a brief historical and…

The purpose of this article is to describe scholarly research to the degree that when something labeled "research" is encountered in daily life, the reader will be equipped to discern its credibility. Specifically, the article addresses the following questions: (1) What exactly is "research"?; (2) What distinguishes scholarly…

This essay begins with the story of Vincent Lloyd who recounts a disturbing experience he had while teaching a course to a group of students of color. What does pedagogical uptake under conditions of systemic oppression require of educators? In the first section, I explore philosopher Nancy Potter's (Nancy Potter. "Giving Uptake".…

In the authors' work studying and supporting school and district leaders, they identified the following five principles for leading in turbulent times. These principles enhance the odds that change management is successful and sustainable. For any change process, a trustworthy map is essential. Successful leaders center people and attune…

Promising lines of scholarship have emerged on how International Organisations (IO's) deploy anticipatory techniques aimed at colonising the future as a means of governing in the absence of sovereignty. It follows that securing hegemony over a vision of the future is important strategic work for IOs, and a source of legitimacy derived from…

Many of the resources developed to promote the use of evidence in policy aspire to an ideal of rational decision making, yet their basis in the decision sciences is often unclear. Tracing the historical development of evidence-informed policy to its roots in "evidence-based medicine" (EBM), we distinguish between two understandings of…

Purposefully publishing a fraudulent scholarly paper is considered research misconduct and never tolerated in academia. True scholars work hard to create and publish work in legitimate ways. However, fraudulent publishers--companies that solicit and quickly publish research papers without review or quality assurances that evaluate, judge, and…