Each chapter concludes with "Summary," "Exercises" and "References." Preface I. INTRODUCTION TO EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH: DEFINITIONS, RESEARCH PROBLEMS, PROPOSALS, AND REPORT WRITING. 1. The Meaning of Research.Why Should I Study Research?The Search for KnowledgeScienceThe Role of TheoryOperational Definitions of VariablesThe HypothesisThe Research HypothesisThe Null Hypothesis (Ho)Populations SamplingRandomnessThe Simple Random SampleRandom NumbersThe Systematic SampleThe Stratified Random SampleThe Area or Cluster SampleNonprobability SamplesSample SizePurposes of ResearchFundamental or Basic ResearchApplied ResearchAction ResearchAssessment, Evaluation, and Descriptive ResearchTypes of Educational Research 2. Selecting a Problem and Preparing a Research Proposal.The Academic Research ProblemLevels of Research ProjectsSources of ProblemsEvaluating the ProblemUsing the LibraryFinding Related LiteratureReferences and BibliographyFair Use of Copyrighted MaterialsThe Research ProposalThe First Research ProjectSubmitting a Research Proposal to a Funding AgencyThesis ProposalEthics in Human Experimentation History of Research Ethics Regulations From Regulations to Practice. 3. The Research Report.Style ManualsFormat of the Research ReportMain Body of the ReportReferences and AppendicesThe Thesis or DissertationStyle of WritingReference FormPaginationTablesFiguresThe Line GraphThe Bar Graph or ChartThe Circle, Pie, or Sector ChartMapsOrganization ChartsEvaluating a Research Report II. RESEARCH METHODS. 4. Historical Research.Purpose of Histroical Reseach on American EducationHistory and ScienceHistorical GeneralizationThe Historical HypothesisHypotheses in Educational Historical ResearchDifficulties Encountered in Historical ResearchSources of DataPrimary Sources of DataPrimary Sources of Educational DataSecondary Sources of DataHistorical CriticismExternal Criticism Internal CriticismExamples of Topics for Educational Historical StudyWriting the Historical Report 5. Descriptive Studies: Assessment, Evaluation, and Research.Assessment StudiesThe SurveySocial SurveysPublic Opinion SurveysNational Center for Education StatisticsInternational AssessmentActivity AnalysisTrend StudiesEvaluation StudiesSchool SurveysProgram EvaluationAssessment and Evaluation in Problem SolvingDescriptive Research Causal Comparative Research Correlational Research Follow-up Research Other Descriptive ResearchReplication and Secondary AnalysisThe Post Hoc Fallacy 6. Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Research.Early ExperimentationExperimental and Control GroupsVariablesIndependent and Dependent VariablesConfounding VariablesControlling Extraneous VariablesExperimental ValidityThreats to Internal Experimental ValidityThreats to External Experimental ValidityExperimental DesignPre-experimental DesignsTrue Experimental DesignsQuasi-Experimental DesignsFactorial Designs 7. Single-Subject Experimental Research.General ProceduresRepeated MeasurementBaselinesManipulating VariablesLength of PhasesTransfer of Training and Response MaintenanceAssessmentTarget BehaviorData Collection StrategiesBasic DesignsA-B-A-B DesignsMultiple Baseline DesignsOther DesignsEvaluating Data 8. Qualitative Research.A Qualitative Research Model.Themes of Qualitative ResearchResearch QuestionsTheoretical TraditionsResearch StrategiesDocument or Content AnalysisThe Case StudyEthnographic StudiesData Collection TechniquesObservationsInterviewsReview of DocumentsOther Qualitative Data Collection TechniquesData Analysis and InterpretationCombining Qualitative and Quantitative Research 9. Methods and Tools of Research.Reliability and Validity of Research ToolsQuantitative StudiesQualitative StudiesPsychological and Educational Tests and InventoriesQualities of a Good Test and InventoryValidityReliabilityEconomyInterestTypes of Tests and InventoriesAchievement TestsAptitude TestsInterest InventoriesPersonality InventoriesProjective DevicesObservationValidity and Reliability of ObservationRecording ObservationsSystematizing Data CollectionCharacteristics of Good ObservationInquiry Forms: The QuestionnaireClosed FormThe Open FormImproving Questionnaire ItemsCharacteristics of a Good QuestionnairePreparing and Administering the QuestionnaireA Sample QuestionnaireValidity and Reliability of QuestionnairesInquiry Forms: The OpinionnaireThurstone TechniqueLikert MethodSemantic DifferentialThe InterviewValidity and Reliability of the InterviewQ MethodologySocial ScalingSociometryScoring Sociometric ChoicesThe Sociogram"Guess-who" TechniqueSocial-distance ScaleOrganization of Data CollectionOutside Criteria for ComparisonLimitations and Sources of Error III. DATA ANALYSIS. 10. Descriptive Data Analysis.What Is Statistics?Parametric and Nonparametric DataDescriptive and Inferential AnalysisThe Organization of DataGrouped Data DistributionsStatistical MeasuresMeasures of Central TendencyMeasures of Spread or DispersionNormal DistributionNonnormal DistributionsInterpreting the Normal Probability DistributionPractical Applications of the Normal CurveMeasures of Relative Position: Standard Scores The Z Score (Z)The T Score (T)The College Board Score (ZCb).StaninesPercentile Rank.Measures of RelationshipPearson's Product-Moment Coefficient of Correlation (r)Rank Order Correlation (r)Phi Correlation Coefficient (f)Interpretation of a Correlation Coefficient OutliersMisinterpretation of the Coefficient of CorrelationPredictionStandard Error of EstimateA Note of Caution 11. Inferential Data Analysis.Statistical InferenceThe Central Limit TheoremParametric TestsTesting Statistical Significance The Significance of the Difference between the Means of Two Independent GroupsThe Null Hypothesis (Ho)The Level of SignificanceDecision MakingTwo-Tailed and One-Tailed Tests of SignificanceDegrees of FreedomA One-Sample Z TestStudent's Distribution (t)Significance of the Difference between Two Small Sample Independent MeansHomogeneity of VariancesSignificance of the Difference between the Means of Two Matched or correlated Groups (Nonindependent Samples)Statistical Significance of a Coefficient of correlationAnalysis of Variance (ANOVA)Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) and Partial CorrelationMultiple Regression and CorrelationNonparametric TestsThe Chi Square Test (c2)The Mann-Whitney Test Outliers and Missing Data 12. Computer Data Analysis.The ComputerData OrganizationComputer Analysis of DataDescriptive Statistics Graphs Multiple Regression ANOVA Results from Analyses of Appendix B DataStatistics on the World Wide WebQualitative Analyses Using Computer Software Appendix A: Statistical Formulas and Symbols. Appendix B: Sample Data. Appendix C: Percentage of Area Lying Between the Mean and Successive Standard Deviation Units Under the Normal Curve. Appendix D: Critical Values for Pearson's Product-Moment Correlation (r). Appendix E: Critical Values of Student's Distribution (t). Appendix F: Abridged Table of Critical Values for Chi Square. Appendix G: Critical Values of the F Distribution. Appendix H: Research Report Evaluation. Appendix I: Answers to Statistics Exercises.