A series of 17 generalizations describes the educational research enterprise in the United States under four headings: Organizational patterns, training programs, dissemination techniques, and the relationship of research to practice. Eight summary statements outline the primary implications of these generalizations and define educational research…

Product development has emerged very recently as an area of specialization within the field of education, having received its greatest impetus with the establishment of the federally funded educational research and development centers in 1964 and the regional educational laboratories in 1965. The first part of this three-part document defines…

Discusses a study of the relationship between contributions to scientific knowledge and the application of those contributions. Data collected from a U.S. Forest Service project indicate that the impact of research and development is greater when the knowledge-creation process is seen as a response to client needs rather than when researchers are…

Traces the growth and movement of Japanese research and technology efforts and achievements. Explains policies related to science and technology and examines resultant actions. Provides perspectives on the future direction and role of creativity in Japanese research. (ML)

Discusses the Center for Advanced Study in Education (CASE) in Manhattan as a representative research and development center in a collaborative role with the New York City Schools. Presents its role as educational problem solver for immediate solutions rather than for interesting findings. Provides examples of three on-going problem solving…

Coordination between research and practice in performance appraisal is essential. Specifically, researchers should focus on utilization methods while practitioners should focus on appraisal content. Cognitive process research may increase raters' ability to judge accurately but fails to address raters' willingness to provide accurate ratings. (BL)

Three forms of research activity are defined: free, policy-oriented, and development. In the United Kingdom, structures for each have developed rapidly in the past 20 years. Present weaknesses are lack of collaboration between research institutions and the small scale of financial support. (Author/SJL)

This paper addresses issues in the utilization of research by special educators. It urges researchers to do better research and policymakers to make better choices. Criteria for good research-based procedures are offered. Discussion is organized around common frustrations of special educators, strategies for improving the link of research to…

The history of prevention science reflects a commitment to using scholarship to improve quality of life for children and families. The integration of prevention and promotion approaches facilitates the design and delivery of policies and programs that may be effective in enhancing healthy youth development in directions that advance civil society.…

This article considers reasons for the gap between research and practice in special education including the unique separation of the research and practice communities in special and general education, the limited relevance of educational research, the failure to articulate manageable research-validated interventions, and the weak opportunities for…

Discussion of the research-to-practice gap in special education first suggests the Mainstream Assistance Teams effort as an example of this gap. It then suggests reasons for the gap and proposes a model that emphasizes collaboration between researchers and practitioners and nontraditional staff development activities. Lessons learned and…

The backwash effect of assessment on learning is widely acknowledged. This article discusses the impact of assessment on learning in a wider sense, by focusing on how assessment drives not only student learning, but also the teaching practices, the designing of educational programmes and the production of learning material. The focus is on how…

Special education research has undergone one of the most significant developments in the history of education during the past two decades (Gersten, Vaughn, Deshler, & Schiller, 1997). These developments can be related to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1997 and the resulting knowledge about teaching individuals with…

This paper discusses the higher education sector's role in a knowledge-based economy though research training, that is, doctoral education. It also examines how a Faculty of Education supports its doctoral candidates in their endeavours to become "knowledge producers". Two themes are explored: one is Australia's limited investment in…

The participatory research model used by the Rehabilitation Research and Training Center at the University of Wisconsin-Stout is discussed, with a focus on the value added to the research process and relevance of research applications when research is rehabilitation-need based and the research-to-applications process model is used. Information is…