Policy Precedes (my) Research

This week the California State Board of Education (SBE) voted to require all 8th graders get tested in algebra (L.A. Times article here). Currently 8th graders can take either the Algebra 1 test or the General Math test (geared to "pre-algebra" standards) depending on whether they actually took Algebra 1 or some pre-algebra course in 8th grade. So the SBE decision essentially forces all 8th graders into Algebra 1 whether they are ready for the course or not.

Proponents of algebra for 8th graders point to benefits from early access to algebra and issues of equality. Opponents argue that many 8th graders are not prepared to succeed in algebra and are being set up for failure.

This exemplifies the timing disconnect between research and policy. The big picture purpose behind my proposed research is to shed some quality empirical evidence on this debate. Do students, particularly low achieving students, have better high school success if they take algebra or pre-algebra in 8th grade? Well it looks like the decision makers went ahead and presumed an answer to that question before I got a chance to answer it ... but that doesn't mean I can't test their presumptive answer.

Methodological side note: will this decision influence responses from school staff if asked how they currently decide to place a student in algebra or pre-algebra? My plan was to interview school staff to figure out how they go through the decision making process for different types of students but will the fact that such a decision is now defunct limit their honesty?

The Art of Science

Social science research is often criticized for not being as rigorous as "real" scientific research and there is a strong call, particularly in education, for "scientific-based" decisions and programs. The general perception is that practitioners in fields like medicine make decisions driven by scientific evidence while practitioners in fields like education make decisions driven by personal and anecdotal experience.

So when I heard my brother's medical school graduating class recite the Hippocratic oath a few weeks back I was somewhat surprised. The oath contains multiple references to practicing the "art" of medicine but no reference to the "science."

Reflective Practice

A chapter by Michael Seltzer and Mike Rose in the Sage Handbook for Research in Education (2006) keyed my interest in formally reflecting and documenting the subjective aspects of the research process.

In that chapter Seltzer and Rose speak about reflective practice as "thinking about what we are doing, why we are doing it, what might be flawed about it, and how best to convey the important aspects of the process to others" (p. 477). They then go on to discuss:

• the importance of context
• attending to alternative explanations
• the importance of getting close to the data

In regards to attending to alternative explanations is the "need to try to understand the selection process by which individuals wind up in the different groups that we wish to compare" (p. 487). Hence justification for investigating the policies and process schools utilize to place 8th graders in Algebra 1 or pre-Algebra.

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Seltzer, M. & Rose, M. (2006). Constructing Analyses: The development of thoughtfulness in working with quantitative methods, in Conrad, C. F. & Serlin, R. C., Eds. The Sage Handbook for Research in Education. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.