Hunter College, City University of New York, Department of Curriculum & Teaching

EDSTATS Primer

Session 7 - Action and Evaluation Research

Dr. Anthony G. Picciano, e-mail address: anthony.picciano@hunter.cuny.edu

Topics Covered in this Session

• Definition and Characteristics of Action and Evaluation Research
• Appropriateness/Limitations

Action and Evaluation Research

Action and evaluation research focus on the development, implementation, and testing of a program, product or procedure. They almost always occur in school settings and are frequently conducted by or with the assistance of teachers, administrators and other practitioners. While related, they are slightly different:

• Action research is a catchall label for research to study problems at the local school level. It usually focuses on the development, implementation, and testing of a new product, program, plan, or procedure.
• Evaluation research is done to determine the relative merits of various products and approaches used in education.

The characteristics of action and evaluation research can vary significantly and frequently will not follow the standard report format (purpose, hypothesis, methodology, findings) that we usually see with other research studies. Research questions rather than hypotheses are used. Report presentations can be both qualitative and quantitative especially making use of descriptive statistics (frequency distributions, mean, standard deviation).

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE TOPICS COVERED IN THIS SESSION, PLEASE REFER TO CHAPTER 7 OF A.G. PICCIANO "EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH PRIMER".

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