This book is developed to enable students to think clearly and critically about the scientific process of research. The author emphasizes that the ability to think clearly about research methods, reason through complex problems, and evaluate published research are important in today's changing educational landscape. Students using this book will understand how and why researchers think like they do. Key features include: (1) Guiding students through the stages of the scientific process: thinking about research, formulating hypotheses, selecting experimental research designs, collecting and analyzing data, and completing research analyses and critiques; (2) Focusing on the practical aspects of writing a research proposal: enhancing students' ability to think like researchers with features such as "Critical Thinker Alerts," "Highlight and Learning Checks," "Key Terms," "Critical Perspectives," and "Application Exercises"; and (3) Instructor's resources on CD-ROM and a Web-based student study site. The book targets consumers of research, and is designed for both introductory courses to research methods in education at the advanced undergraduate level, and also for graduate courses where students need a refresher of research methods. The book may also benefit students in courses such as Education Foundations, Teacher Education, Educational Psychology, Special Education, and Counseling Education. Five parts include 15 chapters. Part I, Foundations, includes: (1) Educators as Critical Thinkers; (2) Thinking about Research; and (3) Diversity of Educational Research. Part II, Research as Process, includes: (4) The Research Problem; (5) Research Language; and (6) Theory and Practice. Part III, Data Collection, contains: (7) Research Bias and Control; (8) Sampling in Research; and (9) Measurement in Research. Part IV, Design and Analysis, includes: (10) Common Experimental Research Designs; (11) Common Non-Experimental Research Designs; (12) Qualitative Design and Analysis; and (13) Statistical Data Analysis. The book concludes with Part V, Consumer to Producer: (14) Research Analysis and Critique; and (15) Writing Research Proposals.