Folks,
Not to belabor a point (nor to interrupt the discussion of Gordon's
article), but here are a couple of excerpts from a recent Office of
Educational Research and Improvement call for proposals. It is a sad
illustration of the current U.S. government's policy toward
educational research and the constitution of science. Note
particularly the final paragraph on preferred scientific research
methodology.
The full text can be found at
http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/announcements/2001-4/122101c.html
Cheers,
King
Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI), Cognition and
Student Learning (CASL) Research Grant Program
Specifically, proposals are solicited that address either 1 or 2 below.
1. Mechanisms of basic information processing, such as the
following, and their relation to significant problems in learning or
academic achievement.
a. Attention.
b. Working memory.
c. Learning processes: Acquisition and retention.
d. Storage in and retrieval from long-term memory.
e. Interference and inhibition.
2. Mechanisms of higher order cognition, such as the following, and
their relation to significant problems in learning or academic
achievement.
a. Executive function and monitoring.
b. Metamemory/memory strategies.
c. Meaning extraction (literal and figurative) for words,
sentences, discourse, and complex events.
d. Inference and critical thinking: derivation of semantic,
logical, and pragmatic inferences, situation models, and other mental
representations.
e. Similarity, categorization, and analogical reasoning.
f. Non-verbal reasoning (e.g., spatial, scientific, quantitative
reasoning).
g. Conceptual development (e.g., biology, music, calculus).
h. Judgment and decision-making.
The proposal must indicate method and why the approach taken
optimally addresses the research question. Any approach must
incorporate a valid process that allows for generalization beyond
the study participants. Proposals must indicate which of the following
approaches is to be used:
1. Experiment (control group; randomized assignment--both
required).
2. Quasi-experiment (comparison group, stratified random
assignment, groups comparable at pretest, statistical adjustment for
comparability).
3. Correlational study (simple, multiple/logistic regression,
structural equation modeling, hierarchical linear modeling).
4. Other quantitative (e.g., simulation).
5. Descriptive study using qualitative techniques (e.g.,
ethnographic methods; focus groups; classroom observations; case
studies; single subject designs).
The design of studies should be clear: Independent and dependent,
or predictor and criterion, variables should be distinguished. Proposed
research is expected to employ the most sophisticated level of design
and analysis that is appropriate to the research question. For research
questions that cannot be answered using a randomized assignment
experimental design, the proposal should spell out the reasons why such
a design is not applicable and why it would not represent a superior
approach (compared to the selected design).
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Fri Nov 01 2002 - 01:00:07 PST