Evidence-Based Education Policies: Transforming Educational Practice and Research

At the dawn of the 21st century, educational research is finally entering the 20th century. The use of randomized experiments that transformed medicine, agriculture, and technology in the 20th century is now beginning to affect educational policy. This article discusses the promise and pitfalls of r...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Educational researcher 2002-10, Vol.31 (7), p.15-21
Main Author: Slavin, Robert E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
2002 Dewitt Wallace-Reader's Digest Distinguished Lecture
20th century
Children
Children & youth
Cooperative learning
Early Reading
Education
Education policy
Education reform
Educational Change
Educational evaluation
Educational Policy
Educational Practices
Educational reform
Educational Research
Elementary School Teachers
Elementary Secondary Education
Experiments
Funding
Higher Education
Laboratories
Medical research
Mnemonics
No Child Left Behind Act 2001-US
Preschool education
Pretests
Proposals
R&D
Research & development
Researchers
Schools
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Summary:At the dawn of the 21st century, educational research is finally entering the 20th century. The use of randomized experiments that transformed medicine, agriculture, and technology in the 20th century is now beginning to affect educational policy. This article discusses the promise and pitfalls of randomized and rigorously matched experiments as a basis for policy and practice in education. It concludes that a focus on rigorous experiments evaluating replicable programs and practices is essential to build confidence in educational research among policymakers and educators. However, new funding is needed for such experiments and there is still a need for correlational, descriptive, and other disciplined inquiry in education. Our children deserve the best educational programs, based on the most rigorous evidence we can provide.
ISSN:0013-189X
1935-102X
DOI:10.3102/0013189X031007015