Introduction to Educational Research

A Critical Thinking Approach

New to the Second Edition

• Greater guidance for thinking critically about research conclusions, including how to avoid traps—seductive claims that easily mislead many practitioners—how to sharpen your thinking
• Enhanced description of bias in research, including those rarely recognized, and how this threatens sound judgment.
• Expanded coverage of qualitative data, practical suggestions for its analysis and interpretation, and examples of sound applications of qualitative research designs in the literature
• New sections on important topics that have arisen in recent years, including data mining with practical examples of how this is done, as well as research designs now recognized for their value in testing causal connections (e.g., regression-discontinuity)
• Greater coverage of action research and reflective practice, including discussion of models with ample illustrations and examples of successful applications
• Inclusion of new concepts (e.g., cherry picking) to explain why research is so commonly misinterpreted
• Expanded material on mixed method designs and their value (including entry into the Critical Perspectives Toolbox)
• New examples of key concepts applied to contemporary research in broad areas of education

Key Features

• Critical Thinker Alerts are spread throughout the 15 chapters. Each one describes a key concept in research coupled with a discussion question designed to enable clear thinking.
• Highlight and Learning Checks provide conceptual recaps and opportunities for student engagement.
• Critical Perspectives present "Critical Thinking Toolboxes" (and associated questions) within a context that describes key concepts (e.g., control, sampling, etc.) across four major research traditions in education: quantitative, qualitative, action, and mixed method research.
• Critical Terms are defined throughout.
• More Examples direct students to the web-based Student Study Site, which contains additional learning activities and resources that facilitate the learning objectives of each chapter.
• Application Exercises can be used for additional learning checks, student projects, or optional enrichment.