American Education Research Changes Tack

Angrist, Joshua D.

doi:10.1093/oxrep/grh011

Cited by 49 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Another example of the integration and adaptation of methods is the use of quasi-experimental research designs based on naturally occurring experiments to produce causal claims. In the wake of the “credibility revolution” in economics (Angrist & Pischke, 2010) and the strong emphasis on an evidence-based approach to policy and interventions by the government (No Child Left Behind, 2002), an increased number of education researchers have utilized quasi-experimental research designs (Angrist, 2004). In Chapter 8, Gopalan et al describe the methods and standards for causal inference in education research formalized by the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC).…”

Section: Expanding the Boundaries Of Education Research By Borrowingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Moving Beyond the Paradigm Wars: Emergent Approaches for Education Research

Pivovarova¹,

Powers²,

Fischman³

2020

Review of Research in Education

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Section: Expanding the Boundaries Of Education Research By Borrowingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Moving Beyond the Paradigm Wars: Emergent Approaches for Education Research

Pivovarova¹,

Powers²,

Fischman³

2020

Review of Research in Education

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“…However, even though education researchers tended to turn away from research problems involving causality in the early 1980s, Angrist (2004) observed that this did not happen in all fields of social science. In particular, researchers within the field of economy have kept this interest, and they have picked up many of those issues put aside by the education researchers.…”

Section: Approaches To Valid Causal Inferencementioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is not the proper time and place to go into details about techniques for causal inference from observational data, but there may be reason to mention briefly some recent approaches. One statistical technique, which can be applied to cross-sectional data, is what is called 'instrumental variable' estimation (Angrist, 2004). This method can be used to overcome problems of omitted variables, and it is based on the idea that we should find a variable which is correlated with the independent variable that we try to determine the effect of, but which is uncorrelated with the omitted variables.…”

Section: Approaches To Valid Causal Inferencementioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of International Comparative Studies on Educational Quality on the Quality of Educational Research

Gustafsson

2008

European Educational Research Journal

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Large-scale survey studies of educational achievement are becoming increasingly frequent, and they are visibly present in both educational policy debates and within the educational research community. One main aim of these studies is to provide descriptions of inputs, processes and outcomes, and another aim is to provide explanations of how different factors interrelate to produce educational outcomes. These aims are difficult to reach, which in combination with the fact that the comparative studies are typically more policy driven than theory driven, are reasons why these studies are contested on quality grounds. In this article, a set of fundamental methodological challenges related to the validity of the measurement instruments and to the possibility of making inferences about causality are identified and discussed in relation to examples of different studies. Strengths and weaknesses of different research approaches are discussed, and it is proposed that the dichotomy between qualitative and quantitative approaches should be replaced with distinctions between lowand high-level inference approaches with respect to data, generalization and explanation. It is concluded that while the international studies easily invite misuse and misinterpretation, they also offer possibilities for improving the quality of educational research, because the high-quality data generated by these studies can be taken advantage of in research on causal effects of factors in and out of educational systems.

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“…Angrist, 2004). Educational research has been strongly criticised for its weakness in not even attempting to supply rigorous evidence on the effects of education (e.g.…”

Section: Explaining or Describing? Causality Confidence And Capacitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Constructing International Policy Research: The Role of CERI/OECD

Schuller

2005

European Educational Research Journal

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This article discusses how the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI) addresses the task of conducting international policy research. The article begins with a descriptive account of CERI's work, including the way member countries shape the research agenda. Several issues which relate to how research evidence is compiled within an international context are addressed. First, why the supposed priority area of lifelong learning is only weakly supported by systematic research is considered. The author raises the question of how we are to judge the quality and impact of international research work, especially where it is policy-related. He suggests that an increasing focus on the outcomes of education raises questions about causality in a policy research context. This leads to some brief consideration of evaluation of research, and of the country as a unit of methodological analysis. Finally, he asks what might be meant by learning from international experience.Cross-national education research is carried out by a number of international organisations, as well as by individuals and units working within national boundaries. In this article I examine, from the inside, the role played by one such international unit, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's Centre for Educational Research and Innovation, where I worked for four years in the 1970s, and now work again since 2003. How does the operation of units such as CERI, and the OECD more widely, influence the agenda and the nature of international research, and what are the potential implications for European research?According to Rinne et al, the OECD 'has become established as a kind of "eminence grise" of the educational policy of industrialised countries', and 'has claimed for itself a central position in the collection, processing, classification, analysing, storing, supplying and marketing of education policy information -the extensive control of information on education ' (2004, p. 456). The first observation is a clear judgement on the part of the authors, i.e. it is their own view of where the OECD stands. The second is more ambiguous: does it mean that the OECD has actually achieved this position of control, or merely that it claims it? In either case these are fairly extensive statements, which are both flattering and challenging to those of us who work within the OECD's Directorate for Education.Academic interest in the OECD's role in educational policy analysis and formation is growing (see Papadopoulos [1994] for a historical account of the OECD's education work up to a decade ago). A similar study to the Finnish one cited above is being carried out at the University of Bremen, located within a wider study of international governance, though the results will not be available until 2006(Martens et al, 2004. Both these projects cover OECD work on education at a very general level and over a long time span.

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American Education Research Changes Tack

Cited by 49 publications

References 24 publications

Moving Beyond the Paradigm Wars: Emergent Approaches for Education Research

Moving Beyond the Paradigm Wars: Emergent Approaches for Education Research

Effects of International Comparative Studies on Educational Quality on the Quality of Educational Research

Constructing International Policy Research: The Role of CERI/OECD

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