These proceedings contain the texts of the following four papers presented at a conference on research needs for extension education: "4-H Makes a Difference--Or Does It?" by Gerald Parsons; "Research Needs in the Administration and Supervision of Cooperative Extension," by Patrick Boyle; "Research Needs in Extension…

This document is intended to provide evaluation researchers with information about vocational education as a substantive area to be evaluated, existing methodologies for evaluating vocational education programs, and the theoretical basis for a proposed evaluation method termed critical inquiry. Addressed in the individual chapters of the monograph…

Policymaking is a subjective, cultural, and intellectually complex activity in a democracy and should be researched with the multidisciplinary approach. This paper focuses on theoretical implications of the multidisciplinary approach and on its opposing position, the structural-functional approach, in educational policy research. The paper briefly…

The value of statistical research depends on valid comparisons which can usefully influence educational policy. Educational research needs to extend the measures of learning (such as the National Assessment of Educational Progress) through nationally-calibrated absolute measures and through computer-assisted and adaptive testing. Direct sampling…

The suspected sources of confounding in current meta-analytic studies of computer based instruction (CBI) are uncontrolled effects of instructional method and/or the John Henry Effect (i.e., compensatory rivalry). To determine which confounding is most plausible, a random 30% sample of the 128 studies which formed the original Kulik meta-analyses…

Clients seeking psychological counseling, who initiate service of their own volition, do so to obtain help with a problem that they feel afflicts them. Counselors' perceptions of clients' presenting problems assist counselors in making predictions about behavior from which they construct treatment plans. Research has demonstrated that incongruity…

This report examines the school superintendency in British Columbia (Canada) by focusing on superintendents' perceptions of their role's emerging skill requirements. From 1979 through June 1987, the transition from provincial employment to employment by local boards of school trustees resulted in the departure of nearly 52 percent of…

Four approaches to examining learning styles of college students are reviewed, and the use of information about learning style in the classroom, student affairs, and in the overall college work setting is addressed. Areas where additional research is needed are identified, along with steps that colleges can take to enhance the learning process.…

This presentation uses the premise that educational practice currently derives little benefit from the mass of ongoing research as a starting point for a reassessment of the values and goals of research. Particular emphasis is placed on the relation between research and educational practices involving 4-year-olds. The first part of the discussion…

Developed to guide the research of the Educational Technology Center, a consortium based at Harvard Graduate School of Education, this report addresses the use of new information technologies to enrich, extend, and transform current instructional practice in science, mathematics, and computer education. A discussion of the basic elements required…

A replication of earlier research involving elementary and secondary teachers in urban schools, this study was conducted to identify selected stress factors experienced by rural elementary school teachers and to analyze relationships between stress symptoms and the degree of stress. A stratified random sample of 387 teachers was mailed a…

Assuming that some handwriting will be necessary in the computer age, questions remain as to the instructional techniques that facilitate learning in handwriting, whether the cost and time required to teach two forms of writing can be justified, and which form is learned more easily and is better suited for use in a technological age. Effective…

Recent national concern about the levels of adults' literacy skills has resulted in a demand for expanded and more efficient basic skills programs. In turn, governmental agencies at all levels, politicians, and community organizations are seeking continually increasing amounts of information about a variety of topics pertaining to literacy…

These proceedings contain 58 papers. Selected brief titles are: "Teaching Reading in Advanced English to Adult Chinese Students" (Bao); "Analyzing the Training of Trainers and Adult Educators" (Boshier); "Knowledge Utilization in Social Work Practice" (Baskett); "Adult Education in the U.K." (Bright); "Developing Media Literacy in Adults"…

Since an individual's ability to think critically most often manifests itself orally, research on sex differences should not overlook interpersonal communication styles and patterns in relation to the critical thought process. Any such examination should (1) define critical reasoning as it exists within Western society; (2) examine perceptions of…