Describes the work of the Division of Innovation and Development of the Office of Special Education Programs of the U.S. Department of Education. The following are four areas of program concentration: (1) professional practice issues; (2) education of individuals with disabilities; (3) educational technology; and (4) emotionally disturbed…

Reports findings to date from a study under the auspices of the National Center for Postsecondary Governance and Finance concerning environmental actors relating to minority degree achievement in predominantly white four-year colleges and universities. Examines whether research results can really be linked to specific suggestions to improve campus…

Citation analysis of 92 articles published about the aircraft and electronic equipment industries investigated the higher education institutions with which cited authors were associated. Results indicated research expenditures, faculty quality and salary, and land-grant status were predictors of research use; urban location and presence of…

Asserts that, although research can be a powerful resource in guiding and fueling grass-roots social change, the community-based research enterprise often is contentious. Recommends collaborative research studies in which the researchers and practitioners work together from the project's inception. (CFR)

Discusses student tracking system development in terms of purposes, audience, organizational issues, and data utilization. Considers benefits (e.g., facilitates reporting behavioral outcomes, and illuminates the complementary/conflicting nature of college services) and costs (e.g., direct costs for computer programing, postage, printing, etc., and…

Outlines the future development of Chinese higher education institutions. Argues that institutions contribute to modernization by evolving new technologies and producing qualified personnel dedicated to "socialist modernization." Recommends long-term planning, incorporating technology, more accessibility, staff-development education, and…

Summarizes research on middle level schools and students that contributes to ongoing debates concerning grade span, school size, grouping of students, departmentalization, curriculum, instruction, advisory groups, interdisciplinary teaming, school-transition activities, extra-help programs, and student evaluation practices in the middle grades.…

Identifies important criteria for assessing the quality of educational research and applies these 20 identified criteria to 2 recent international comparative studies in education, the Second International Science Study and the first International Assessment of Educational Progress. The major types of criteria are utility, propriety, and accuracy.…

Presents a code of ethics to guide educational research, grouped in the following categories: (1) responsibilities to the field; (2) research populations, educational institutions, and the public; (3) intellectual ownership; (4) editing, reviewing, and appraising research; (5) sponsors, policymakers, and other users of research; and (6) students…

Examines the difficulties of two elementary school teachers as they learn to use cooperative learning in the classroom. They experience ambiguity because their current understanding of practice is not sufficient to help them solve the problems they encounter. Ambiguity is dealt with by modifying their practices or their appreciative systems. (SLD)

Research is reviewed on the supports provided to parents in the assessment of and intervention with problem behavior of children with mental retardation. It is concluded that while research has made considerable advances, research gaps on the development of practical applications of "parent friendly" programs are still evident. (Contains…

Discussion of the research-to-practice gap in special education focuses on the dissemination problems of scale, school politics, and social and institutional contexts, including schools of education. Recommendations include improving access to a teacher friendly research knowledge base, improving preservice education, creating broader staff…

This theme issue is devoted to discussions of early childhood policy issues. "Creating a Shared Vision: How Policy Affects Early Childhood Care and Development" (Judith L. Evans) defines policy, discusses the motivation for changing or creating national policy and the process for changing such policies, and provides a sample design for…

In order to achieve significant results, crucial criteria for stabilizing a network's capacity for dialog are high levels of commitment to offer high quality knowledge, two-way translation from research knowledge to practitioners and from practice to researchers, a maximum size, face-to-face communication, infrastructure, and funds for…

These five papers prepared for the annual Technical and Further Education (TAFE) Senior Executives' Conference emphasize policy implications. "Does Research Influence Policy?" (W. Hall) makes the point that some important policy decisions have been taken on nonexistent or flimsy research evidence. The next four papers are research…