In this paper we analyze class size effects in the case of primary schools in Poland. We use two empirical strategies to avoid endogeneity bias. First, we use average class size in a grade as an instrumental variable for actual class size. This allows us to control for within school selection of pupils with different abilities to classes of…

The low performance of Chile in the TIMSS 1998/99 international study of mathematics and science achievement was a great disappointment for that country. To investigate the likely causes for low performance in mathematics, this study (1) compared Chile to three countries and one large school system that had similar economic conditions but superior…

A high rate of absence of teachers from their posts is a serious obstacle to delivery of education in many developing countries, but hard evidence on the problem has been scarce. This study, carried out as part of a new multi-country survey project, is the first systematic investigation in Peru into the extent and causes of teachers' absence from…

United States school districts continue to spend billions of dollars annually on various forms of technology equipment and services. Despite the widespread expectation that teachers routinely integrate technology into the curriculum to facilitate student achievement, there is substantial evidence that this is not occurring either in the manner or…

This study was about a single case of educational innovation and excellence in educational technology in a secondary school in Ontario. The researcher explored the question of how the innovation resulted from an individual effort and attainment remained a "contained entity" after its decade-long existence. From the lenses of multiple realities,…

The construct validity of the Bully/Victim Questionnaire (Olweus, 1996a) as a measure of bullying was examined. Although researchers have defined bullying and reactive aggression as two distinct types of aggression, this study examined how closely related they are using empirical data. Reports from students and teachers on measures of bullying and…

Narrative inquiry is a qualitative research approach that brings rigor and depth to the understanding of human experiences. It is important that the researcher become enmeshed in the school context in order to develop a heightened sense of the world view of participants. Critical to beginning a narrative inquiry are negotiating relationships and…

Based on theories of emotional intelligence, adult education, psychology of reading, and emotions and literature, this study was designed to develop and validate the Affective Response to Literature Survey (ARLS), a psychological instrument used to measure an emotional response to literature. Initially, 27 items were generated by a review of…

The increasing emphasis in the United States on high-stakes testing for students and schools generates a great deal of quantitative data, but these data are less frequently linked to other data that are more difficult to obtain such as data on risk factors that may affect how students do on these tests. To make such comparisons, a group of…

A focus on rurality has been largely absent from much contemporary educational policy discussion. At best, rural education is a peripheral concern just as rural areas are increasingly considered marginal to the development of a globalized, networked, fast capitalism. In Canada rural, coastal, northern, and single-industry communities that were…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the reliability and validity of the admission process for an undergraduate research program in health science and to assess the students' statement of purpose for entering the program. Admission data (high school marks, supplementary application information, and overall rater score) and first-year GPA…

Understanding children's experience is increasingly a key purpose of much educational research. In contrast to traditional approaches to the study of children that emphasized the socialization of children through various stages of development, researchers within the social constructionism perspective begin with an insistence that childhood is a…

This article is about the possibilities of conducting research with children productively. Children may need suitable prompts, occasions, or media for their expression. The discussion begins with an overview of the challenges or dynamics researchers can experience with any participants in qualitative research in the constructivist paradigm. It…

The new paradigm of studying childhood that has emerged in the past 15 years has significant implications for rethinking research with children. This article examines some methodological and ethical issues related to the role and responsibility of a researcher in the process of designing, structuring, and conducting research on childhood…

This article presents three research methods--Think Alouds, Think Afters, and Think Togethers--as ways of gathering data to describe the experiences of adolescents during instructional activities. These verbal report methods were used in two studies that examined the information-seeking processes of adolescents in Inuvik, Northwest Territories and…