With its goal of helping students become competent as both consumers and producers of educational research, this text presents all the skills and procedures needed, with a strong emphasis on evaluation of student performance. The text offers comprehensive instruction that encompasses the full spectrum of the field. Evaluation criteria are presented for each major research task included: problem definition; research planning; sampling; instrumentation; methodology; data analysis; and research reporting.
This was an amazingly helpful book as I wrote my literature review and crafted the frame for my thesis. It is so practical and organized, and I like how the mentor texts it presents are both strong and weak models. It is clear-cut and straightforward: everything I like in a nonfiction text.
I'll never understand why I had to read a book about how to do educational research (ie, write a thesis)...when my program does not require that I do so.
Sigh. Only 5 more chapters, and I could count as fully read. Not worth it.
I actually enjoyed using this book to help me to complete my research project. I recommend this for someone who is completing research in education or other disciplines. The examples are very clear to understand and I appreciate the reference charts at the back of the book.
It may be due to my advancing age and I don’t absorb info as well as I used to but this was the hardest slog and most frustrating textbook I’ve ever had to deal with and that includes incredibly badly written and highly abstract literary theory. I usually quite line getting current on latest trends in research in education but this defeated me.
I think a lot of the low reviews of this textbook are more related to the dryness of its topic than to any flaws in the writing. Learning about quantiative and qualitative research is just frankly not that interesting, but I appreciated the authors' attempts to acknowledge that the subject matter can be boring, and the descriptions were usually clear and useful. I will probably refer back to this book while writing my thesis, so it has been helpful.
This book is mind-numblingly dull and I wish I didn't have to read it. However, if I had any interest in conducting my own experiments, this book seems to offer the background knowledge I need to get started.
I read most of it for my class. It is a really great source for anyone planning a dissertation or thesis. I plan to use it extensively when/if I get to may dissertation....