Reviews development issues in Thailand and the response of nonformal education. Concentrates on the potential of qualitative evaluation in creating more responsive policies and programs. Draws on experiences with 43 Thai participants in an earlier workshop, "Evaluation in Nonformal Education in Thailand." (CH)

By not specifying what they will attend to, and by virtue of the relatively extended amount of time they devote to exploring their phenomena, qualitative inquirers have practically no limit to what they can uncover. This is illustrated through data on the role of ethnicity in an ethnically diverse high school. (Author/BJV)

Many ideas attributed to the whole-language approach are not new. Whole language demands that literacy instruction be indirect, unsystematic, and nonintensive and that scope-and-sequence charts be abandoned. Experimental research has judged the major tenets of whole language to be erroneous--a point accepted even by whole-language leaders favoring…

This article suggests that the choice by institutional researchers to use qualitative or quantitative research is often dictated by time, money, resources, and staff and not necessarily with an understanding of the underlying philosophical assumptions structuring beliefs about methodology, knowledge, and reality. These underlying assumptions are…

This paper reviews how sociocultural theory conceptualizes teaching and learning, fundamental constructs of the theory and methodology, and basic guidelines for discourse analysis. It applies these concepts to three research areas: the social construction of disability, contingent instruction between adults and learners, and miscommunication…

This article reviews the theoretical assumptions and methodological orientations of phenomenology and contrasts it with the logical positivist model used in the natural sciences. It applies these concepts to research in special education. (DB)

Explores the ongoing debate over quantitative versus qualitative research, arguing that qualitative research has evolved from a methodological approach into a social and political ideology. The current emphasis on narrative ways of sharing knowledge raises concerns about evaluation and hypothesis testing. (SLD)

Explores circumstances and themes in which American Indian female administrators perceive dissonance in their work environment. Problems of organization, morale, and role modeling behavior were revealed. Respondents indicated that certain aspects of their culture conflicted with the role of supervisor, that male supervisors saw females as clerical…

This article examines factors affecting the provision of mainstream family support services to parents with intellectual disability in Australia. Qualitative procedures resulted in identification of common issues and a conceptual matrix. The three key factors were: client characteristics, resources available, and the involvement of other agencies.…

Brings together viewpoints on the qualitative and quantitative research paradigms with regard to educational research in general and to literacy research in particular. Elucidates some of the persistent disputes in the research community. Discusses research traditions in literacy research. Considers the contexts in which new paradigms arise.…

Used a constructivist teaching/learning approach to improve first year preservice primary teachers' confidence in, and attitude to, teaching science. Benefits reported were ownership of knowledge, development of pedagogic skills, and the use of group work to develop ideas. Concerns raised included uncertainty when exploring knowledge for…

Policy analysis in higher education is distinct from but is informed by and can contribute to both institutional research and institutional planning. Policy analysis extends beyond data analysis, using many qualitative research methods and a degree of intuition, and focuses on specific issues, not systems as does planning. (MSE)

This paper uses qualitative research data and examples from a high school drama class to examine how achieving full learning membership for students with severe disabilities requires teachers, in collaborative and consultative relationships, to provide all students with crucial supports by flexibly working within three inclusion parameters…

Examines the effectiveness of quantitative and qualitative evidence in impacting initial attitude change and the persistence of that change. Finds that both types of evidence are equally effective in changing attitudes but that the attitude change elicited by qualitative evidence tends to be significantly more persistent over time and that recall…

Points out that variability in focus, method, and conceptual level of case studies causes difficulties in validating such studies. Notes method variations raise questions about validity. Claims the validity of case studies lies in their usefulness as projective models. States teachers can generate their own theories where practical educational…