Contends that qualitative research is now an acceptable and respected methodology in the various fields of educational research. Concludes that considerable imagination and flexibility is necessary when evaluating research into educational issues in developing nations. (CFR)

Seven articles highlight evaluations that are especially investigative in nature to examine how common elements in these studies can be used to improve evaluation and practice. The evaluator is seen as detective, ethnographer and management consultant, national program monitor and analyst, and international development specialist. (SLD)

Discusses various responses to the author's book "Ways with Words--Language, Life and Work in Communities and Classrooms" (1983). Describes how these reactions have led the author to see things in the work that she had not seen before. Strengths and weaknesses of the book she identifies have implications for the conduct of future ethnographic…

This study of 18 novice Internet users employed a structured self-report method to investigate affective and cognitive operations in the following phases of World Wide Web searching: presearch formulation, search statement formulation, search strategy, and evaluation of results. Users also rated their self-confidence as searchers and satisfaction…

Observed universal and culturally specific features of play conditioned by ecological factors, social class, and gender in India. Found that, although ecological constraints conspired against the urban child's natural propensity to play with joyous spontaneity, there were also conscious community endeavors to create play environments. Children…

Draws on sociocultural theories of language and learning and research on bilingual families to examine home language practices of trilingual-immersion students. Ethnography was used to explore daily language use at home, children's views of their identity as trilingual, families' values of maintenance and additional language learning, and reasons…

An ethnographic study of a freshman composition class at the Universidad Autonoma de Santa Domingo (Dominican Republic) examined classroom practices and behaviors of the professor and students as students learned to improve their native-language reading and writing skills. Differences from U.S. classrooms are discussed in terms of the needs of…

This ethnographic study examined school literacy experiences of 10 young students with Down syndrome over two years. Two broad definitions of literacy were identified. When reading was a hierarchy of psychologically deduced subskills, children with Down syndrome were usually excluded, but when literacy was the construction of shared meaning in…

This article reviews the literature on high school athletics and the dynamics of athlete-coach relationships, describes the methodology of an ethnographic study of the culture of an inner-city high school swim team, and examines the characteristics and impact of one coach as he encouraged high academic achievement and talent development in his…

Uses ethnographic methods to examine cultural norms regarding inclusion and cooperation at a multiethnic middle school serving predominantly working-class Caucasians and Chicanos. The principal's strong leadership and the cultural congruity of socioeconomic norms help explain the high degree of cooperation and inclusion in the school. (SLD)

An ethnographic research project of the Center on Families, Communities, Schools, and Children's Learning focused on exploring how 137 urban African American families of different structures and income levels promoted and supported children's early school success. Survey data provide a positive picture of parent involvement and African American…

Maintains that the studies presented in this collection combine cultural with political analyses to illuminate educational processes. Elaborates on the key constructs, including contextualization with agency, sociopolitical dynamics in designing school practices, and personal self-definition in relation to sociocultural context. (Author/KB)

Discusses problems women academic scientists in India face because of gender. Women scientists are aware of how their position in the academy is different from that of men but have not made efforts to address their problems collectively. States that these women have a feminist perspective of a kind but have been disassociated from the women's…

Reviews three qualitative case studies on the educational systems of Japan, the United States, and Germany, conducted as a component of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). States that the studies provide a basis for understanding the differences in mathematics and science achievement among Japan, Germany, and the United…

Understanding culture is a critical part of the work of creating educational environments that meet the needs of diverse students. The three ethnographic works reviewed in this article can, each in its own way, inform the work of crafting an educational practice that is more responsive to students' cultural heritage. (BF)