Scientific Culture and Educational Research

Abstract

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 requires federal grantees to use their funds on evidence-based strategies. The law includes definitions of research quality, which are also featured prominently in the administration’s strategic plan and in draft language for the re-authorization of the U.S. Office of Educational Research and Improvement. These initiatives pose a rare opportunity and formidable challenge to the field: What are the most effective means of stimulating more and better scientific educational research? In this article, which draws on a recently released National Research Council report, the authors argue that the primary emphasis should be on nurturing and reinforcing a scientific culture of educational research. Although the article focuses on scientific research as an important form of educational scholarship, the call for building a stronger sense of research community applies broadly. Specifically, the authors argue that the development of a scientific culture rests with individual researchers, supported by leadership in their professional associations and a federal educational research agency.