Qualitative research is based on the direct observation of human activity and interaction in an ongoing, naturalistic fashion. Qualitative researchers are concerned with the internal life of schools; what is really occurring in classrooms, corridors, cafeterias, and playgrounds. Qualitative researchers look at what people ordinarily take for granted with fresh eyes and see events, with all their subtleties and nuances. Qualitative researchers participate and observe, or simply observe; they conduct concentrated studies of single individuals and groups; they interview, use field notes, audio and videotaped data, film, personal and official documents, photographs, various forms of unobstrusive data as well as quantifiable data. They study uses of physical space and analyze book and magazine content. They use sampling techniques, occasionally compare one group with another, and often combine qualitative and quantitative research methodologies. Their studies may last from a few months to a few years, but their goal remains to observe and study human activity in its natural setting. The author provides short synopses of 13 education related qualitatively based studies. He also summarizes six major qualitative research studies. Responses to this paper are offered by William D. Corbett and Anne Roney. (JMK)