This qualitative study addressed information and communications problems in the social sciences in the United Kingdom. A total of 42 social scientists and information providers were interviewed. Areas of concern included quality of information, access, communication, bibliographic control, language, terminology, and time constraints.…

Outlines a theoretical perspective to the philosophy of mathematics that views mathematical knowledge as relativistic rather than absolutist. Reports a field study that was carried out to examine the consequences of the framework. Discusses implications of the research for mathematics teaching. (DB)

Urges developmental educators to undertake classroom research. Offers guidance on the formulation of research questions. Compares four research methodologies: correlational, experimental, descriptive, and ethnographic research. Reviews potential problems. (DMM)

The methodological issue of qualitative versus quantitative research is addressed, and the argumentation of research using interview methods for research is explored. Warrants of the type that are used in arguments generating conclusions from interview data are included. (KR)

An analysis of the views about teaching mathematics held by eight preservice elementary teachers enrolled in a course emphasizing small group discussion and exploratory approaches to problem solving, familiar mathematics, and tasks aimed at creating cognitive conflict. Some progress as reflective learners of mathematics was indicated. (Contains 43…

Describes skills, relationships, and beliefs disclosed by six voluntary teacher participants in a peer coaching workshop. Participants had difficulty with all the communication and agenda skills they were trained in. They asked few open-ended questions, paraphrased infrequently, and used few facilitative probes. Instead, they used evaluation,…

Conducting qualitative research takes researchers to places and into lives to generate new knowledge. When researchers move beyond academic curiosity to caring, they cross a fine line. This article recounts a three-year study of middle-schoolers, in which subjects and researchers moved beyond invasive inquiry to develop common ground, mutual…

A nine-month field study of a software-engineering firm's work practices revealed that the group's collective use of time perpetuated its members'"time famine." A crisis mentality and rewards for individual heroics were responsible. Altering the way engineers used their time at work enhanced their collective productivity. (66 references)…

Describes a qualitative study that explored 12 older adults' successful adjustment to vision loss. These individuals identified factors (internal and external resources) related to their successful adjustment and offered advice to others facing the challenges of visual impairment. (DB)

Describes a qualitative investigation into teachers' views of annual reviews as required under the British Special Educational Needs Code of Practice. Emphasis is on the need to reduce the paperwork required of schools and local education agencies in relation to annual reviews. Issues identified concern statutory administrative systems, individual…

Reviews qualitative (historical and ethnographic) studies of education in Japan that advance a general understanding of educational theory and practice. Japan, which is neither an educational paradise nor an examination hell, is the source of much data of value to educational research in the United States. (SLD)

Describes the Home Instruction Program for Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY), a two-year home-based early-education intervention program designed to help parents with limited formal education prepare their children for school. Presents findings from a two-site HIPPY study, a one-site case study, and a three-site qualitative study. (SLD)

Investigates whether supervisors of counselors in private practice consider themselves to be personally responsible for the work of their supervisees, what responsibilities they consider themselves to have, and how they manage their responsibilities. Participants indicated a preference to supervise only those counselors in whose work they already…

Investigates the quantitative and qualitative evolution of debate-creating vs. accounting references in 90 French medical articles published between 1810 and 1995. Suggests that nineteenth-century French academic writing tends to be more polemical or oppositional than cooperative by contrast to its twentieth-century counterpart. Suggests that the…

Interviews with 10 parents of children with severe disabilities in early childhood inclusive settings identified factors that influence parent participation in their child's education including the school's beliefs about inclusion, receptivity to parents, and willingness to change. Parent-professional partnerships were facilitated by trust, shared…