INTRODUCTION
Welcome!
In this room, you will become acquainted with a wide range of resources for educational research, planning, and practice that are available online. The contents and scope of the collections contained here will continue to evolve with the times, and as more resources come to my attention, I will seek new ways to organize and present them in this room.Please note, if you are seeking resources on higher or postsecondary education these will be found separately in my Educational Research Room.
After you finish touring the contents of this room, be sure to check out other resources in Scott's Library and Scott's Counseling, Health and Wellness Room as well as the extensive home page maintained by Bobbi Kerlin, Bobbi's Place. Together, we are the authors of the online publication, Teach 2000: The Educators' Guide to the Internet and World Wide Web.
New Visitor Tips
Visitors may wish to begin their research by conducting an ERIC search (see educational research databases below) or by touring the Queen's University education website (Canadian references). You may also want to refer to my research tips before continuing.Learning how to conduct research on the Internet can at first seem like a thoroughly overwhelming task. First-time visitors to this collection may benefit from also touring these resources available elsewhere in Scott's Library: "Internet Research for Skeptics" and "Becoming a Better Web Researcher", two of my monthly library "Web Links Features", and Scott's Web Workroom, for a more thorough overview of the research and practical potential of the Internet and the World Wide Web.
One final word of caution is in order: Visitors are advised to spend time becoming acquainted with the breadth and scope of contents included within this and other web resource collections before selecting individual websites to tour and evaluate. With proper effort, you will become a very effective web researcher!
Hints for Educational Researchers
The most effective forms of educational research are informed by sound theory. I recommend for visitors to also utilize Scott's Library Subject Collections in developing your research topics. Of particular benefit are these collections:
- sociology
- diversity and multiculturalism studies
- organizational studies
- policy studies
- psychology
- gender studies
Having trouble developing a research topic or locating appropriate information on the Web? Try conducting a general web search using one or more search engines or web directories and a variety of keywords according to the directions provided. For further research assistance, visit the Library Reference Room.
You may also find help with your educational research by consulting with the Clearinghouse on Education-related Internet lists for education-based lists.
CONTENTS
Return to Scott's Library Entrance
Getting Started with Your Research Project
One of the best resources for beginning your thinking about an educational research project is the online "Brief Handbook of Educational Research". Another helpful resource on developing a social or educational research focus is provided by Bill Trochim at Cornell University. His evolving online book, Knowledge Base will help to answer many questions you might have about the process and products of research.
ERIC Search Tools
ERIC is the Educational Resources Information Clearinghouse, a major database of reviewed materials for educational research (published and unpublished) sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education. The ERIC database has been in existence since 1966 and is updated monthly in print form through the guides, Current Index to Journals in Education (CIJE) and Resources in Education. More recently, ERIC materials have become available via CD-ROM format (available in many libraries) and electronically via the Internet and the World Wide Web.ERIC maintains a number of "information clearinghouses" which specialize in particular areas of educational research and subsequently provide reviews of materials falling under their domain of expertise. Each clearinghouse maintains its own website and many of these sites contain sophisticated search methods for exploring the range of materials collected and reviewed. One example is the ERIC Clearinghouse for Educational Management home page, which includes a selection of ERIC Digests of Educational Management Resources. For a complete selection of the ERIC clearinghouses, visitors are encouraged to visit the ERIC Educational Management Website Index or select the Times-Mirror resource site below.
Note: Users are advised to try each of the ERIC web addresses for maximum research potential and also the telnet access to the University of Saskatchewan. It is also recommended that you gain access to a printed copy of the Thesaurus of ERIC Descriptors to assist in identifying the system used by ERIC for organizing its database.
Announcing a new ERIC search tool from the Catholic University of America. It's called "ERIC Wizard", and permits web searches of the ERIC database using ERIC thesaurus resources. Try ERIC Wizard for yourself to see how it compares to the other resources I've included below.
ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation Home Page
Additional ERIC search websites:
ERIC Document Reproduction Service Home Page
U.S. Department of Education: Publications Available in ERIC
U.S. Dept. of Education: ERIC Digests Archive (1992-97)
Introductory ERIC Search Tools:
AskERIC: ERIC Research Database (Syracuse University)
ERIC Products Website: Aspen Systemwide Services
Note: The Aspen site includes the following helpful resources:
-
"All about ERIC: An Introductory Guide"
-
"About the ERIC Database" (Including descriptions of ERIC resources)
-
ERIC-Sponsored Virtual Communities (Over 30 Internet discussion lists)
The Catholic University of America (CUA) sponsors the ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation, and also provides this comprehensive website. Of particular note are the multiple search engines, including ERIC Digest, a database of over 1600 studies of cutting-edge educational issues.Search ERIC (Catholic Univ. of America ERIC search page)
There are other sources of ERIC information on the Web as well. One of the most comprehensive is the Times-Mirror site, which provides access to Websites for each of the individual ERIC information clearinghouses as well as many other educational research and development databases.Times-Mirror Internet Resources for Educators (excellent resource page--includes many ERIC resources)
Other Databases:
Education Week on the Web: "A Report Card on the Condition of Public Education in the 50 States"
Center for Networked Information Discovery and Retrieval
Disability-related Sites on the World Wide Web
Disability Research Resources (U of Kansas Dept. of Special Education)
Federal Resource Center for Special Education
Special Education Resources on the Internet (SERI)
National School-to-Work Internet Gateway
University of Arkansas/Little Rock Education Home Page
C-EDRES Educational Resources on the Internet (U.S./Canadian)
The WWW Virtual Library: Education Links
Changes in Federal Spending for Education (Commercial Software Information)
EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH
AGENCIES AND CENTERS
American Educational Research Association (AERA) Home Page
AERA Annual 1997 Meeting: Conference Papers Online
U.S. Department of Education (DOE) Information Website
Education Researchers' Guide, U.S. DOE
A Teacher's Guide to the U.S. Dept. of Education
National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) Home Page, U.S. DOE
NCES Publications and Resources
NCES: Ed Search: Education Statistics on Disk
"The Condition of Education, 1997" (USDOE Annual Educational Statistics
Report)
"Digest of Education Statistics, 1997" (U.S. Dept. of Ed.)
1992-96 Digests of Education Statistics (zip files)
U.S. DOE Report: Federal Investment in Educational Research in Future
Years
Eisenhower National Clearinghouse (ENC) for Math and Science Education (U.S.
DOE)
National Science Foundation: Directorate of Education and Human Resources
Page
National Science Foundation: Division of Elementary, Secondary, & Informal
Education (ESIE)
National Science Foundation: Division of Research, Evaluation, and
Communication
National Teaching and Learning Forum (NTLF)
National Center for Research in Vocational Education (NCRVE) Website
Clearinghouse: Education-Related Internet Discussion Lists Directory
EDUCATIONAL AND STATISTICAL RESEARCH
METHODS RESOURCES
I. Statistical Resources:
Note: Additional statistical references are available in the sociology and philosophy collection of Scott's Library.
New Resource!
This series of pages by Bill Trochim at Cornell is designed to walk the reader through a series of decisions about research design (including the number of variables in the problem, treatment of the variables with respect to the scale of measurement and the distribution of the variables). Based on your choices various statistical tests are recommended with a bibliography of suggested reading material. The site contains an extensive glossary of statistical terms.
University of Texas Stats Sites (excellent resources and help guide)
Univ. of Washington Statistics Website (Dept. of Statistics)
The Statistical Instruction Internet Palette (SIIP) for Statistics Instruction
Tor Neiland's Stats Tidbites Website (additional help guides)
Nancy Roberts, Statistics Geek (Statistics Guides and Assistance)
StatLib: Statistics Resource Library
Resampling Statistics Homepage (including many statistics resources)
"The Pitfalls of Data Analysis", by Clay Helberg, M.S.
Two common statistical data analysis computer software packages are SAS and SPSS. In addition to the guides below, I recommend purchasing the book, The Basics: SPSS For Windows published by SPSS Incorporated, Chicago, Illinois.U of Texas SPSS Help Guide (getting started and assorted SPSS tools)
SPSS Home Page (assorted statistical research resources)
Stats on the Web (SPSS Recommended Sites)
Assorted Statistics Newsgroups and Listservers
Statistical Research Website for K-12 Teachers and Grade 9-12 Students
U.S. Census Bureau Statistical Abstracts
II. Survey Research Methods and Resources:
An excellent resource for examining the growing use of the Internet for survey research is MIT's guide to resources on Internet survey methodology."What is a Survey?"An article that explores and evaluates the benefits of using the Internet for survey research is "Using the Internet for Survey Research", by R. Coomber, from the journal, Social Research Online.
The following pamphlet, sponsored by the American Statistical Association (ASA), is an excellent introduction to general aspects of survey research:
This pamphlet contains three sections: (1) "What is a Survey?"; (2) "How to Plan a Survey"; and (3) "How to Collect Survey Data?"
Additional survey resources from the ASA include:
Ethical Guidelines for Statistical Practice
III. Qualitative Research Methods and Theory-based Resources:
The following reference is a comprehensive source of qualitative research information and research-related Internet discussion lists maintained by Bobbi Kerlin. Included is a collection of online Master's theses and doctoral dissertations we have been developing. Watch for this site to continue developing in the months ahead!The Qualitative Research Page
List of Online Research Discussion Groups
Research Paradigms, Theory, and Methods Resources
K-12 ASSOCIATIONS AND COMPUTER NETWORK NEWS
American Association of School Administrators
Association for Supervision & Curriculum Development HomePage
Includes:
Charter School Research Website
CyberHigh: High School Classes on the Web
Eduzone: Internet Aids to K-12 Teachers and Educators
ICONnect: Helping Students, School Librarians, and Teachers with the Web
Interactive Teacher (includes search tools--downloads slowly)
Learning Productivity Network, Univ. of Buffalo
Learning Research and Development Center
Learning Through Collaborative Visualization (CoVis)
The Learning Web: U.S. Geological Survey Website for K-12 Education and Exploration
MCREL: Mid-Continent Regional Educational Laboratory Home Page
North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (NCREL) Home Page
Net Scout Services: Internet Research Providers to Educators
Regional Alliance for Math and Science Education Reform: The Hub
Teachers' Edition Online (Online Companion for Teachers)
Teachers.net Website for Teachers
TECHNOLOGY PLANNING RESOURCES
In addition to the planning resources in this collection, educators will find many more links in my Web Workroom, including a special section of hot links for teachers and school librarians.
U.S. and Global References:
"The Learning Connection": Benton Foundation Report on Status of Technology in U.S. Schools (Major Report)
From Now On: Special Issue on "Creating Broad Policies for Student Use of the Internet"
Guidelines for Educational Use of Networks
TC World: An Online Resource for Technology Coordinators
EDTECH Educational Technology Discussion List Home Page
Computer and Network Help for Educational Institutions
National Center for Technology Planning Home Page
National Center for Technology Planning Gopher (List of Regional Plans)
Pathways to School Improvement: Guide to Educational Technology Planning
MCREL: The Impact of Technology on Schools and Learning (excellent resource)
Resource Page for Technology Coordinators
California Dept. of Education K-12 Network Technology Planning Guide
Oregon Department of Education Statewide Educational Technology Plan
Canadian References:
Note: Additional resources for Canadian education are available in the Canadian Education Resources Collection.
Ontario Ministry of Education and Training: Technology Incentive Partnership Program (TIPP) Resources
Canadian Teachers' Federation Resources: "Intersections on the Information Highway"
EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP, POLICY, AND SCHOOL RESTRUCTURING RESOURCES
Note: Additional policy resources for the U.S. and Canada are available in the Policy Studies collection of Scott's Library.Recommended Educational Leadership Links, ED 5233 Class Summer 1996An area of continuing research interest to me is the critical examination of leadership and policy issues in the restructuring of educational systems and institutions and the role of instructional technology in the process and outcomes of restructuring. Whether brought on by financial matters, calls for "educational reform" or changes in policy regarding what curriculum is considered "essential" or "relevant" to the 21st century, public education is undergoing significant change. A critical question for further examination is: What forms of leadership are most effective in facilitating change?
Other collections in Scott's Library may help to answer these questions:
- How do gender differences affect leadership patterns in organizations?
- How can we integrate studies of leadership with studies of organizations to provide a more sophisticated examination of the systemic factors shaping leaders' behaviors?
- What is the relationship between public policy and educational restructuring?
- How do the the fields of sociology and psychology inform our studies of leadership?
- What can we learn from examining procedures of mediation, negotiation, and conflict resolution (including the role of unions and labor relations) with respect to leadership and restructuring?
This resource collection will continue to grow as I locate more resources in the U.S. and Canada related to restructuring at the K-12 education level.
Note: Additional leadership links are located in the July Web Links Collection under "Leadership in Changing Times".
North Central Regional Educational Lab (Leadership References)
New Links for New Times Cyber-symposium on Schools (Columbia University)
Policy Center Network Directory for U.S. Educational Policy Institutes
Educational Policy Resources for Research, Larry Bowen
University of Illinois Educational Policy Resources
TOP-RATED
EDUCATION WEBSITES AND LINKING SOURCES (Including Kids' Resources)
For a complete guide to sites for teachers and school librarians, be sure to look at the following sources:Ask Dr. Math (Math Help Tips for Kids)
- Web Workroom: Hot Sites for Teachers and School Librarians
- Teach 2000: The Educators' Guide to the Internet and World Wide Web
Recommended educational web sites related to specific subject areas are available separately in my Library subject collections directory.
CCCnet (interactive Sesame-Street-like website)
Children's Express: Information and Education Edited "By Children, for Everyone"
Cool School: The Best Sites on the Web for Teens and Teachers (Vassar College)
Futurekids School Technology Website
International Peace Museum Project for K-3 Students
KidLink: Linking Children Around the World
K.I.D.S.: Kids Investigating and Discovering Home Page
NickNacks: Telecollaborative Learning Around the World
SmartKid: Linking Parents, Kids, and Teachers on the Net (Excellent Resource)
Straight Talk About Schools: Interactive Site for Teens
ONLINE JOURNALS
OF EDUCATIONAL POLICY, THEORY, AND RESEARCH
For a broader range of online journals and news sources, be sure to visit the Reading Room.American Demographics
Contemporary Educational Psychology
Continuous Improvement Monitor (Online journal of Quality in Education)
Educational Leadership (Association of Supervision & Curriculum Development Journal)
Educational Policy Analysis Archives (Online Journal)
"From Now On": The Educational Technology Journal
International Electronic Journal for Leadership in Learning
Journal of Educational Administration
Journal of Interactive Learning Research
Journal of Interactive Media in Education
Journal of Technology Education
MISQ Discovery: E-Journal on Qualitative Research
The Qualitative Report (Newsletter from Nova Southeastern Univ.)
SyllabusWeb: "The Definitive Technology Magazine for High Schools, Colleges, and Universities
The Tao of Technology and Education