Eager to Learn Educating Our Preschoolers (2001) / Chapter Skim
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Appendix: Scientific Evidence
Appendix: Scientific Evidence
Pages 323-332
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From page 323... ...
Each method has its strengths and is best suited to a particular set of questions, and less well suited to a different set of questions. Despite the relative merits of all social science methods, their application in the service of research requires that several basic standards be met if the answers they yield are to be considered valid and valuable.
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From page 324... ...
The extent to which one particular theory can be viewed as uniquely supported by a particular study depends on the extent to which alternative explanations have been ruled out. A particular research result is never equally relevant to all competing theoretical explanations.
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From page 325... ...
Although no single study can rule out all alternative explanations, taken collectively, a series of partially diagnostic studies can lead to a strong conclusion if the data converge. This aspect of the convergence principle implies that we should expect to see many different methods employed in all areas of educational research.
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From page 326... ...
In most cases, however, qualitative studies sacrifice breadth for depth, and it is difficult to judge if the results are applicable or generalizable to a different population. Identifying Causal Relationships: Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Design If the purpose of the research is to identify cause-and-effect relationships between variables, then experimental and quasiexperimental studies are useful.
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From page 327... ...
For example, the research plan may require providing a treatment that is of much higher quality and intensity than ordinary child care or even public preschool education and Head Start where these are provided. When service availability varies geographically, study locations might be chosen based on the lack of close substitutes for the treatment.
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From page 328... ...
For example, studies that link smoking and cancer need not follow subjects all the way to premature death, when there are many studies linking the kinds of cancer caused by smoking to premature death. Identifying Relationships and Patterns: Correlational Studies Although experimental studies represent a most powerful design for drawing causal inferences, their limitations must be
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From page 329... ...
For example, the technique of partial correlation, widely used in studies cited in this report, makes possible a test of whether a particular third variable is accounting for a relationship. RESEARCH IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION Researchers in early childhood education study a vast number of questions.
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From page 330... ...
The samples employed in many studies are too small, however, to uphold the validity of this assumption. Use of Common Measures Versus Trying Innovative Measures Using measures that are commonly used by others in similar studies allows communication and comparison among different research groups and studies.
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From page 331... ...
This finding is supported in the literature showing how belief systems create environments in which particular beliefs are resistant to change even when the data support alternative points of view. The work of Shepard and Smith from the University of Colorado is an example of such research.
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From page 332... ...
Finally, does the researcher hold an individualist orientation, focusing on the child as the center of the model, or a more interactionist perspective, in which systems including the child, his or her family, and the school interact to shape development?
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