The term “research-based” is one of those that has been so broadly used that it is no longer meaningful. It seems one can do about anything they want and they apply the “research-based” label to it. Just what must one do if they want really be doing research? Here is my definition of research: Research Read More
Category: Using Data
On Data Collection
“Data” has become the mantra of educators for more than a generation. In my observations of these folks, there seems to be little regard for the quality of our data or the ethics whereby it is collected. Forty years ago, the OECD published eight principles of data collection that still provide good guidance… as long Read More
Being Data-Driven is Nothing to Brag About
Being Data-Driven is Nothing to Brag About (c) 2016 Dr. Gary L. Ackerman “Data-driven” has been the mantra of educators for the last generation. This mantra captures the practice of using students’ performance on tests to make instructional decisions. This model can be criticized for several reasons including the dubious reliability and validity of tests, Read More
Lessons About Data
The pandemic has raised several issues with education at all levels. One of the most interesting to me has been the seeming disconnect between being “data-driven” and decisions related to keeping schools open. Clearly the decision to keep a school open for in-person instruction rather than relying on remote instruction is complicated. There are many Read More
Education… Science
For a generation, educators have claimed to be “data-driven.” Ostensibly, they seek to ground their decisions and policies in measurable observation, but their constructs are dubious, their measures invalid and unreliable, and their analysis sloppy. Data are selected to If the debate surrounding the Common Core is so dissimilar to science, the reasonable question becomes, Read More
Let’s Loose the Physics Envy… We Might Be Better Users of Data if We Do
My undergraduate studies included many science courses, that’s what happens when one is studying to be a science teacher. As a graduate student in education, my mentors introduced me to qualitative research methods. For 20 years, I have been attending educational research conferences (and occasionally presenting at them). I’m certainly no expert, but I am Read More
Educational Design Research as a Source of Data
Scholars and practitioners in many fields have developed use-inspired research methods specific to the problems they solve and the interventions they design. Educational design research (McKenny & Reeves, 2012). McKenny & Reeves (2014) captured the dual nature of educational design as a method for designing interventions and a method for generating theory, as they noted Read More
Let’s Understand Tests
In the “data-driven” world today, school leaders are always in search of data that will support their decisions. In many cases… no… in all cases (at least I have yet to find any instances in which it isn’t), the “data” comes from a test. I’m not going to consider the potential problems with tests (including Read More
On Continuous Variation
My afternoon walks have been spent listening to some audio books… Richard Dawkins’ The Ancestor’s Tale has been my most recent selection. Listening to Dawkins describe the confusion that can happen when we expect continuous variation to be discontinuous, I heard much that was familiar and much that explains some of our difficulties in education Read More
Tired Thoughts After Reading About Design Research
I finished all of the books on my “to read” pile, and I just haven’t gotten to placing another order yet… I maintain my list on Amazon, but have committed to buying all of my books from independent book sellers, so the stream of new to me books has been interrupted. Fortunately, my copy of Read More