Great Books

Born of the author's own experience working with teachers and principals, Action Research, Fourth Edition, provides a research-based step-by-step outline of how to do action research. The author guides teachers and administrators through the action research process via numerous concrete illustrations; positioning it as a fundamental component of teaching.   Action Research helps to develop teachers and administrators with professional attitudes, who embrace action, progress, and reform.   Features   Balanced coverage of quantitative data collection and analysis techniques Chapter 4, Data Collection Techniques, covers collection techniques for the most frequently used qualitative and quantitative data, including observations, interviews, teacher-made tests, and standardized test data. Chapter 6, Data Analysis and Interpretation, guides students through data analysis and provides techniques, coding guidelines, and examples for analyzing both quantitative and qualitative data. Additional coverage of mixed methods research has been added throughout the book.   A focus on producing critical consumers of action research A new chapter, Evaluating Action Research (Chapter 9), helps students become critical consumers of research.  Included in Chapter 9 is an article from an action research journal that is analyzed using the new criteria for evaluating action research. Appendix A, Action Research in Action, contains an extended example and evaluation of an action research case study.   An expanded coverage of ethics Chapter 2, Ethics, provides an expanded discussion of ethical guidelines and provides guidance for seeking and obtaining Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval.   Integration to the MyEducationLab for Action Research website The fourth edition of Action Research includes margin note integration with MyEducationLab for Action Research, a dynamic online learning environment that provides students with the opportunity to build a better understanding of action research through engagement with real products from the research process.      A user-friendly format Chapter objectives give students targets to shoot for as they read and study Key Concept boxes provide students with an efficient review of important vocabulary and theory Research in Action checklists provide students with guidelines to use in each stage of the action research process

This compact, user-friendly book provides everything a teacher needs to know to conduct an action research project, in a clear, step-by-step presentation.   This book guides the learner through comprehension and interpretation of both qualitative and quantitative techniques in action research methods and then describes all phases of the process, including selecting a topic; collecting, analyzing, and reporting data; reviewing the literature; and presenting the report.   There are many new strategies and examples of projects that can be used for professional growth and development included with this edition, as well as more examples, ideas for possible research questions, & many new forms and graphics that have been added.  

Develop the research skills you need for success in academic, career, and everyday situations with THE WADSWORTH GUIDE TO RESEARCH. Recognizing that technology is a part of your daily life, the authors will show you how to apply the research skills you use every day (buying a car, choosing a movie, etc.) to academic and professional settings. Annotated student samples, Research in Action scenarios, and Techno Tips show you the "how" and "why" of researching, and the key research technologies important to su

Praise for the Third Edition of Qualitative Research: "Sharan B. Merriam synthesizes twenty years of developments in qualitative research with clarity and acumen." ?Michael Quinn Patton, author, Qualitative Research and Evaluation Methods "Here is a qualitative research methods book that reinforces the connection between professional experience and qualitative inquiry." ?Robert Stake, author, The Art of Case Study Research and Multiple Case Study Analysis "In this new edition, Sharan Merriam once again presents the world of qualitative research in language engaging and accessible?for new and experienced readers alike. If you can have only one book about qualitative research, this is it!" ?Patricia M. Reeves, associate professor, School of Social Work, University of Georgia "Mystified by qualitative research? You couldn't ask for a better guide than Sharan Merriam, who introduces you to the fundamental concepts of this research method, explains its complex forms, and then shows you exactly how to do a high-quality qualitative study." ?M. Carolyn Clark, coeditor, The International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education

This text emphasizes the reflective processes used in planning and conducting action research studies, data analysis techniques (quantitative and qualitative), and displaying and explaining results. It provides specific information needed to complete each step of the action research cycle with chapter activities that help the student/reader conduct projects focused on school improvement. Each activity includes a research paper component that helps students create a research paper as they complete the activities.

James L. Harner's Literary Research Guide, which Choice calls "the standard guide in the field," evaluates important reference materials in English studies. Since the publication of the first edition in 1989, tens of thousands of students and educators have used the Guide as an aid to scholarly research.In the new edition Harner has added entries describing resources published since May 2001 and has revised nearly half the entries from the fourth edition. The fifth edition contains more than 1,000 entries, which discuss an additional 1,555 books, articles, and electronic resources and cite 723 reviews. Readers of earlier editions will notice the inclusion of substantially more electronic resources, particularly reliable sites sponsored by academic institutions and learned societies, to account for the proliferation of bibliographic databases, text archives, and other online resources. This edition also features a new section on cultural studies.The annotations for each work describe its type, its scope, its major limitations, and its organization present parts of a typical entry list the type and number of indexes evaluate coverage, organization, and accuracy explain its uses in research cite significant reviews that more fully define the importance or uses of the work or its place in the scholarly tradition note related works, including supplementary, complementary, or superseded ones not accorded separate entries in the GuideThe Guide concludes with name, title, and subject indexes.

Written by a top scholar in the field, Practitioner's Guide to Using Research for Evidence-Based Practice gives essential and practical guidance on how to integrate research appraisal into evidence-based practice endeavors to ensure the best client care. This reader-friendly book presents you with the knowledge you need about various research designs and methods so that when engaging in the evidence-based practice (EBP) process, you can determine which interventions, programs, policies, and assessment tools are supported by the best evidence.

Preparing students for the ever-changing demands of conducting research in today's world, Bookmarks: A Guide to Research and Writing establishes a new benchmark for college research guides, serving as a bridge between old and new traditions for researchers who expect to work regularly in both print and electronic environments. Written in a lively, conversational tone, Bookmarks: A Guide to Writing and Research, offers concrete strategies and models to help students select a topic, refine it, and develop it into a full-fledged research hypothesis; find and position sources; use sources in appropriate and responsible ways to further their projects; and document and complete their final projects for print or electronic publication. In addition to offering such practical advice, the text also asks students to consider important rhetorical issues, such as how to most effectively address an audience and how to craft a considered, balanced argument. Bookmarks encourages students to use new technologies to find reliable information and to use the technologies to locate sources that are most appropriate for their topics and purposes.

With teacher research you can make practice-changing discoveries inside your own classroom. But first you must understand the process itself: How do you do it? How do you make the time for it? What can you learn from it? How do you tell the world about your findings? In What Works? Elizabeth Chiseri-Strater and Bonnie Sunstein have answers to these questions and many more. What Works? is a comprehensive look at what goes into teacher research and what you'll get out of it. Whether you're answering some persistent question about your classroom, thinking about your curriculum, taking a course, researching for a grant application or National Board Certification, Chiseri-Strater and Sunstein have laid out action research as an easy-to-understand process. They've organized What Works? as a teacher-friendly instruction manual, introducing each of the tasks of teacher research one by one-from shaping a question, to designing a study, to conducting it, to disseminating your results. Each step of the way you'll read supportive advice, see illustrations from projects around the U.S., find exercises that hone the skills necessary to do research, encounter numerous creative suggestions for expanding the range and scope of traditional action research, and learn what a vital and important influence it can be on your instruction. Whether you're a veteran teacher or a novice, What Works? will answer your toughest questions about teacher research so that you can get down to the business of improving your teaching by using research to answer your toughest classroom questions.

This book introduces students to social science research from the consumer's point of view. The authors believe that while social science may not require that every student of the discipline will have to conduct research studies, it is still essential for students to successfully read, understand and evaluate the research published in their field. To that end, the authors of this text have streamlined their narrative, omitting the burden of technical jargon, and focusing on the broad elements common to all kinds of social science research, such as experimental, survey, and case study. Questions to Ask, found at the end of each chapter, highlight the specific criteria to consider when evaluating research and offer a clear and accessible presentation of the general principles in social science research.