Understanding Education Research: A Guide to Critical Reading

Now in its third edition, Understanding Education Research is designed to help students learn to read educational research articles carefully, systematically, and critically.

Readers learn how to categorize titles, decode abstracts, find research questions, characterize research arguments, break down methods and procedures, explore references, apply analysis strategies, and interpret findings. This textbook doubles as a quick reference guide that shows students how to easily develop the skills they need to become research literate, and this third edition has been updated to offer simple guidelines for qualitative, quantitative, and statistical approaches; up-to-date information on complex and confusing methodologies; discussions on understanding the role of AI; and insights on how students will use education research going forward.

Understanding Education Research is essential reading for teacher preparation educational research courses.

Gary Shank is Professor of Education at Duquesne University, retired and currently the Director of the Center for Qualitative and Semiotic Inquiry.

Janice Pringle is Associate Professor of Pharmacy and Director of the Program and Evaluation Research Unit at the University of Pittsburgh, retired.