NotesFAQContact Us
Collection
Advanced
Search Tips
Back to results
Peer reviewed Peer reviewed
Direct linkDirect link
ERIC Number: EJ849566
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2009
Pages: 24
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0013-161X
EISSN: N/A
Need to Address Evidence-Based Practice in Educational Administration
Kowalski, Theodore
Educational Administration Quarterly, v45 n3 p351-374 2009
Purpose: This article presents a case for addressing evidence-based practice (EBP) in educational administration. Content is arranged around four objectives: (a) summarizing the status of educational administration as a profession, (b) defining evidence and the model, (c) explaining EBP's social and professional merit, and (d) identifying barriers that may prevent the concept from being understood correctly, accepted philosophically, and implemented appropriately. Proposed Conceptual Argument: The need to consider EBP is framed by society's demand for greater accountability from professions, the realities of practice in an information-based society, and a proclivity to rely on the theory of legal accountability to improve schools. In the aftermath of the No Child Left Behind Act, critics have portrayed educational administration as a field lacking internal accountability, epistemological consistency, and a focused research agenda. The alleged deficiencies may be contributing to an erosion of state licensing laws for superintendents and principals and casting a cloud over the future of educational administration departments. Implications: Reliance on external accountability in the absence of internal accountability is unlikely to improve schools or to provide social authority for educational administration. Instead of continuing to agree to disagree over the most fundamental issues, scholars in this field need to define EBP in a manner that integrates empirical evidence, tacit knowledge, and values and then conduct research to determine the concept's effectiveness. (Contains 7 notes.)
SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: http://sagepub.com
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Adult Education; Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Laws, Policies, & Programs: No Child Left Behind Act 2001
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A