美國「教育研究」評析   免費試閱

A Critical Review on "Education Research" in the United States

自1990年以來，經濟合作與發展組織（Organisation Economic Co-operation and Development, OECD）、聯合國教育、科學及文化組織（United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, UNESCO）等國際組織開始對各國的教育研究進行一系列的評估，發現到許多教育研究的經驗證據薄弱，而教育知識也多流於拼湊，無法對教育政策提供有效的建言；為解決上述的難題與困境，各國紛紛針對自身的教育研究進行檢討並提出改進策略。本研究旨在探究美國教育研究的發展與沿革，包含教育研究制度化的過程（包括學會、科系、研究組織、刊物等）及《RAND基金會報告書》與《提升學生學習：對教育研究的策略性計畫與使用》報告書等相關報告資料，並分析由美國教育研究學會（American Education Research Association, AERA）出版的官方刊物Educational Researcher，自1972年創刊號至2009年12月的期刊中有關「教育研究」的研究方法與研究領域的歷史更迭及轉變，進一步歸納出「教育研究」在美國的歷史沿革、現況，以及由美國教育科學院（Institute of Education Science, IES）所主導「嚴謹」與「相關」的教育科學化發展趨勢。

Since1990, international organizations like the Organisation Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) have been conducting a series of research projects engaging in an historical and critical examination of education research around the world. Unfortunately, most of these projects have found serious weaknesses in the outcomes and products of academic research in the field of education. They have also discovered that knowledge about education systems is patchy, and it is hard to produce “evidence” to inform policy. To solve these problems, a number of researchers have been reviewing education research in their own countries and trying to provide strategies to improve the quality of such research. The principal investigator of this study collected historical archives on education research in the United States and in this paper reviews a series of research reports, including the RAND Reports and Improving Student Learning: A Strategic Plan for Education and Its Utilization. He also analyzes the changing roles of the National Institute of Education (NIE), the Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI), and the Institute of Education Science (IES). The researcher has conducted long term meta-analysis ofthe American Education Research Association (AERA) sponsored academic journal, Educational Researcher, from 1972 to 2009, to analyze the development of education research via research disciplines and research methods in the United States. Finally, the author hopes to figure out the current status of education research in the United States, as well aspredict future trends under the leadership of the Institute of Education Science, which is pushing to increase the rigor and relevance of such research.