The Role of Context in Educational RCT Findings: A Call to Redefine "Evidence-Based Practice"

Autor/inn/en	Kaplan, Avi; Cromley, Jennifer; Perez, Tony; Dai, Ting; Mara, Kyle; Balsai, Michael
Titel	The Role of Context in Educational RCT Findings: A Call to Redefine "Evidence-Based Practice"
Quelle	(2020), (9 Seiten) PDF als Volltext (1); PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei (2) Verfügbarkeit
Zusatzinformation	ORCID (Kaplan, Avi) Weitere Informationen
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Monographie
DOI	10.3102/0013189X20921862
Schlagwörter	Stellungnahme; Context Effect; Educational Research; Randomized Controlled Trials; Causal Models; Evidence Based Practice; Generalization; Research Design + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Bildungsforschung; Pädagogische Forschung; Kausalanalyse; Forschungsdesign
Abstract	In this commentary, we complement other constructive critiques of educational randomized control trials (RCTs) by calling attention to the commonly ignored role of context in causal mechanisms undergirding educational phenomena. We argue that evidence for the central role of context in causal mechanisms challenges the assumption that RCT findings can be uncritically generalized across settings. Anchoring our argument with an example from our own multi-study RCT project, we argue that the scientific pursuit of causal explanation should involve the rich description of contextualized causal effects. We further call for incorporating the evidence of the integral role of context in causal mechanisms into the meaning of "evidence-based practice," with the implication that effective implementation of practice in a new setting must involve context-oriented, evidence-focused, design-based research that attends to the emergent, complex, and dynamic nature of educational contexts. [This article was published in "Educational Researcher" v49 n4 p285-288 2020.] (As Provided).
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01