The editing of a handbook that is devoted to describing research in a well-established, yet still evolving, field
is a formidable task. It involves developing a framework for describing the field, inventing an approach for dividing
the field into sections and chapters, identifying particular authors, persuading them to write chapters, following
the progress of the chapters, sending the chapters out for review, making suggestions for changes--and finally,
writing a Preface. This Preface describes the decisions that were made by the Editorial Advisory Board and me in
relation to the content and organization of this handbook, as well as in relation to the nature of the sections
and chapters as they eventually came together in this volume.
The project began a number of years ago when the publications committee of the American Educational Research Association
(AERA) informed me that I was nominated to become the editor of the fourth edition of the Handbook of Research
on Teaching. If interested, I was to write a letter to the committee suggesting how I would approach the task were
I chosen as editor. In that letter, I stressed the need for three emphases that would guide the development of
the framework for the Handbook. The first emphasis was to attempt to place the field of research on teaching within
a larger foundational context, that is, to place research on teaching within the many descriptive and normative
ideas about thinking, learning, and action that were and still are swirling around us. The purpose of this emphasis
was to provide students and scholars of research on teaching with an understanding of the field as it operates
within the larger frame of social scholarship. The second emphasis was on including research on teaching and pedagogy
that is not always described within research on teaching chapters but that might instead be considered multicultural,
ethnic, and gender studies. And the third was to ensure inclusion of research on teaching that has been conducted
outside the boundaries of the United States.
An Editorial Advisory Board was selected that provided advice on both the standard conceptions of research on teaching
and the emphases described above. We met in Tucson, Arizona, over a 3- day period and again at a 1-day meeting
during an AERA conference. The purposes of the first session were to determine the overall frame and approach of
the Handbook, to map the sections and chapters, and to begin to suggest possible authors for the chapters. The
following sections explain some of the issues with which we had to deal to determine chapter titles, content, and
potential authors.
The Purpose of a Handbook
It was agreed that the Handbook of Research on Teaching has been and should continue to be written for students
of and scholars in research on teaching. The Handbook is also meant for scholars in other fields who want to look
in depth at an area within research on teaching. The emphasis in the chapters is placed on representing and organizing
research that has been conducted, with some attention to suggesting lines of future research. The Board agreed
that the Handbook is not meant to be interpretations of research for the sole purpose of the improvement of practice.
Obviously, much of the research is useful in practice, and, in fact, some chapters deal specifically with the use
of research in practice. However, this Handbook is not one that translates research into practice suggestions.
Further, it is meant to describe research that has already been conducted rather than to explain underdeveloped
areas that require more research attention.
The State of the Field
Very few areas of conflict in the field of research on teaching were represented in the publication of the Handbook
of Research on Teaching, Third Edition. Perhaps the strongest disagreements revolved around the various methods
of conducting research on teaching. However, détente between qualitative and quantitative (Rist, 1977) had
pretty well arrived by 1986. Since the third Handbook was conceived, much has happened that has, in the words of
some, created chaos in the field. Many research threads do not necessarily overlap, and the work conducted within
one approach may not be understood or even be understandable to those in another. Between the time of the last
Handbook (Wittrock, 1986) and this one, there has been turbulence in research on teaching similar to that in other
fields. Postmodernism raises questions that jar the very foundations of our understanding of research. Those questions
concern the nature of knowledge, who owns it, who produces it, and how it may be used. This commotion goes beyond
the old qualitative�quantitative controversy as elucidated in the 1986 Handbook, particularly with Erickson's (1986)
chapter. It now focuses on the very nature of research and knowledge, its representation, and the uses of research
in the improvement of practice.
As members of the Editorial Advisory Board struggled with developing an approach to the Handbook that related to
the state of the field, they discussed two suggestions. The first approach was to unscramble the field, that is,
to place some order over it. The sense here was that, by tidying up the field, we had an opportunity to affect
future research, making it, perhaps, more coherent. The second approach was to try to represent the nature of the
field, that is, to represent the alternative if not competing approaches to the study of teaching. Of course, we
understood that the act of writing chapters and placing them between the covers of one volume is an interpretive
process. Any attempt to summarize a field places a stamp on it. But the consensus of the Board was to represent
the field of research on teaching--excellence, chaos, warts, and all.
What to Include, What to Exclude, and How to Organize
Although we reached an agreement quite rapidly on the overall approach to representing the field, our concerns
then focused on how we would fit all that we wanted in one volume and how it would be organized. We quickly agreed
that this Handbook would not just include the same chapter titles as the 1986 Handbook with updated content. The
field had simply changed too much to consider this option, although--particularly in the subject-matter section--some
of the same titles appear. A second consideration in this set of decisions focused on the proliferation of research
handbooks now available to scholars. This proliferation is particularly the case for handbooks that describe research
on a particular content or subject-matter area. Handbooks now exist in many subject-matter areas (e.g., reading,
mathematics, science, music, art, etc.). In each of those handbooks, one can find chapters that touch on the content
that would be of interest in the Research on Teaching handbook. What, then, would a chapter titled "Research
on Teaching Mathematics" include? It could not really summarize a complete subject-matter handbook or several
editions thereof. Did we really need the subject-matter chapters now that almost all topics had their own handbooks?
In addition to considering the availability of handbooks in many subject-matter areas, we also assessed the expectation
of scholars and students concerning the inclusion of chapters. We agreed, for example, that scholars and students
would expect subject-matter chapters; therefore, they are included in this Handbook. We also decided that the chapters
would focus on work that had been conducted since the 1986 Handbook. This decision helped us to determine the nature
and content of the chapters. For example, considerably more work since 1986 has addressed issues of qualitative
than quantitative methodology, suggesting that this Handbook should emphasize qualitative methodology. We also
decided that, in addition to chapters of the standard length, we would include a set of shorter chapters. These
shorter chapters would allow us to include a number of topics that, although they do not necessarily warrant a
large handbook chapter themselves, could stand on their own, rather than be buried within a subsection of a larger
chapter.
The titles of the sections are quite standard with few surprises: Foundations; Methodology; Subject Matter; The
Learner; Policy; Teachers and Teaching; Social and Cultural Contexts and the Role of the Teacher; and Instruction.
Three of these sections, however, will be discussed below because of the somewhat unusual ways in which they were
organized and configured.
Foundations
We usually think of educational foundations as education ideas that are considered and scholarship that is conducted
within social disciplines such as philosophy, history, economics, anthropology, and sociology. Interestingly, educational
psychology is not considered as foundational scholarship and usually warrants its own department within schools
of education.
With respect to the study of teaching, a considerable amount of the research has been conducted within the frame
of educational psychology. Thus, in previous handbooks of research on teaching, educational psychology was ever-present
in most chapters that summarized the research. Several chapters in each Handbook have represented foundations,
such as chapters on philosophy and history of teaching as well as a "frameworks"-type chapter.
In this Handbook, we attempt to locate research on teaching within broader and more inclusive frameworks of current
social and philosophical thinking. Of the two long "frameworks" chapters, one represents a traditional
approach to research on teaching (Floden), and one operates at the edges (Hamilton & McWilliam). In addition,
a series of short chapters examine research on teaching as it relates to important ideas and seminal thinkers.
Those thinkers, although not necessarily in the field of research on teaching, have certainly affected it. This
selection is not meant to represent an inclusive list of social theorists who have affected our ways of thinking
in the field. The works are, however, meant as examples that suggest the importance of considering the field of
research on teaching as affecting and being affected by broad intellectual trends in social thinking.
Methodology
Historically, the various editions of the Handbook on Teaching have had considerable effects on research methodology
in research on teaching and in general educational research. For example, Campbell and Stanley's (1967) seminal
chapter on experimental and quasi-experimental designs appeared in the first Handbook (Gage, 1967), Rosenshine
and Furst's (1973) chapter on classroom observation was published in the second Handbook (Travers, 1973), and Erickson's
(1986) influential chapter on interpretive research is found in the third Handbook (Wittrock, 1986).We spent considerable
time analyzing trends in research methodology since the 1986 Handbook, intending to continue this tradition.
Our first concern focused on the recent effect that qualitative methodology has had on the field. While qualitative
methodology began to enter the field during the late 1970s, interest in and use of these methodologies have expanded
considerably since the conception of the 1986 Handbook. Several handbooks are now devoted to qualitative methodology
(Denzin & Lincoln, 1994; Lecompte, Milroy, & Preissle, 1992). In addition, journals such as the American
Educational Research Journal, although not always dominated by articles using qualitative methodology, are certainly
publishing a sizable number.
In the meantime, several important quantitative breakthroughs have significantly affected our understandings of
the teaching�learning process in large-scale data analysis. Thus, it was important to represent both fields. The
quantitative chapter (Crawford & Impara) addresses the importance of quantitative approaches for the use of
research on teaching in policy development and in the improvement of education. Several chapters were planned for
the qualitative subsection. We also sensed that qualitative methodology is not a unified or singular field; to
portray all ways of thinking within one chapter by one or even several authors would be difficult. Thus, we planned
a large chapter (Donmoyer) and a number of small ones. The large chapter would describe the proliferation of qualitative
methodologies, and the small ones would address specific issues and aspects in this approach to research.
Subject Matter
The subject-matter chapters raised some interesting issues about what we could expect within such chapters given
that other handbooks devoted to research on subject matter had been published, each with a considerable number
of chapters that focused on teaching and instruction. Our solution was that the Handbook's chapters should be relatively
short, analytical�conceptual summaries of research summaries that included considerations of research methodology
and next steps. In addition, we determined that a large chapter focusing on curriculum and teaching (Leinhardt)
would be extremely helpful at this time.
Topics Not Included
If, from the reader's standpoint, chapters are missing from this Handbook, several explanations may be provided.
The first is that the particular topic, though important and interesting, has not received enough research attention
since 1986 to warrant a full chapter. The second reason that a chapter may not be found in the Handbook is a chapter
may have been planned but never completed. In several instances, chapters were not completed and, therefore, could
not be included in this edition of the Handbook. The third reason is that a conscious decision was made to not
devote a full chapter to a particular topic, for example, the topic of educational technology. We concluded that
educational technology would be scattered throughout the chapters, and, given the state of the educational technology
field--particularly its relationship to research on teaching--it did not justify its own chapter. Yet it is quite
clear at this point that this topic should have received the attention that a chapter devoted to the topic can
provide. Although many chapters discuss work on educational technology, those instances are scattered and are not
organized around the specific topic of educational technology. In hindsight, then, a chapter devoted to educational
technology should have been included in this Handbook. Undoubtedly, readers will identify other topics that should
have received their own chapters.
The Finished Product
I expect that many different judgments will be made about the nature and worth of this edition of the Handbook.
From my standpoint, we accomplished what we set out to do. More foundational chapters appear in this volume, a
number of specific chapters are devoted to equity and multicultural topics (those issues are also addressed in
other chapters), and the research extends beyond the United States.
As it is, the Handbook presents a quite complete picture of research on teaching that really cannot be described
as "chaotic." It certainly does reflect, however, the current and sometimes competing schools of thought
about the nature of possibilities for the research and writing about social action that is devoted to teaching.
Although the chapters reflect the field, many chapters in this volume are destined to affect the field of research
on teaching as well as other areas of educational research and social action. Again, some chapters and topics in
the methodology section speak to fields beyond research on teaching as do some chapters within foundations and
subject-matter sections. Within the chapters that are devoted specifically to research on teaching, the quite different
lenses that are used to approach the topic, for example, teaching as dialogue (Burbules & Bruce), may help
us continue the exploration of teaching action in all its interesting formations and complexities.
In all, the chapters are deep and suggest a robust field of research that is characterized by evolving research
methodologies and strong, diverse conceptual frameworks. Importantly, such chapters also suggest that this field
of research maintains a strong interest and involvement in and concern for educational practice, which is an important
consideration as we contemplate the purposes of educational research. Ultimately, educational research should inform
practice--policy, school administration, teaching, instruction, and parenting. And above all, it should speak to
student learning and to student development in the important aspects of human life, including the cognitive, moral,
physical, emotional, artistic, and social. The ideas, information, and questions in this volume will guide our
educational practice and continuing research for the years to come.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I wish to thank the many people who have helped with this massive task. Deborah Anders, University of Arizona;
Cathie Fallona, University of Southern Maine; the Editorial Advisory Board members; the chapter reviewers; the
publication staff at AERA; and my friends and family who have tolerated my various mental states while traversing
the ups and downs of this long and diffcult process. I also thank Chris Clark and his graduate students at Michigan
State University who provided critical feedback on the organization of the Handbook.
REFERENCES
Campbell, D. T., & Stanley, C. (1967). Experimental and quasi-experimental designs for research on teaching.
In N. Gage (Ed.), Handbook of research on teaching (pp. 171�246). Chicago: Rand McNally.
Denzin, K., & Lincoln, S. (Eds.). (1994). Handbook of qualitative research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Erickson, F. (1986). In M. Wittrock (Ed.), Handbook of research on teaching (3rd ed., pp. 119�161). New York: Macmillan.
Gage, N. (Ed.). (1967). Handbook of research on teaching. Chicago: Rand McNally.
Lecompte, M., Milroy, W. L., & Preissle, J. (Eds.). (1992). The handbook of qualitative research in education.
San Diego: Academic Press.
Rist, R. (1977). On the relations among educational research paradigms: From disdain to détente. Anthropology
and Education Quarterly, VIII(2), 42�49.
Rosenshine, B., & Furst, N. (1973). The use of direct observation to study teaching. In R. M. W. Travers (Ed.),
Second handbook of research on teaching (pp. 122�183). Chicago: Rand McNally.
Travers, R. M. W. (Ed.). (1973). Second handbook of research on teaching. Chicago: Rand McNally.
Wittrock, M. (Ed.). (1986). Handbook of research on teaching (3rd ed.). New York: Macmillan.
Virginia Richardson
University of Michigan
Summary
The new, fourth edition of the Handbook of Research on Teaching reflects current and sometimes competing schools
of thought and presents exciting possibilities for educational research and writing. This 1,296-page Handbook explores
the potential impact such work can have on fields beyond research on teaching.
A resource for students and scholars, the revised and updated Handbook presents the robust field of research on
teaching characterized by evolving research methodologies and strong, diverse conceptual frameworks. Ultimately,
this research will inform practice-policy, school administration, teaching, instruction, and parenting. Above all,
this educational research will speak to student learning and development in significant aspects of human life,
including the cognitive, moral, physical, emotional, artistic, and social. This volume, with 51 chapters organized
in eight sections, will guide educational practice and research in the 21st century.
Table of Contents
Part 1: FOUNDATIONS
Research on Effects of Teaching: A Continuing Model for Research on Teaching
Robert E. Floden
Ex-Centric Voices that Frame Research on Teaching
David Hamilton and Erica McWilliam
"Family Connections" as a Factor in the Development of Research on Teaching
Greta Morine-Dershimer
Dewey After Derrida
Jim Garrison and Mary Leach
Reflections on Teaching
Maxine Greene
Teaching as Communicative Action: Habermas and Education
David Coulter
The Caring Teacher
Nel Noddings
(Mis)Understanding Paulo Freire
Donaldo Macedo and Ana Maria Araujo Freire
Through the Mediation of Others: Vygotskian Research on Teaching
Luis C. Moll
Part 2: METHODOLOGY
Critical Issues, Current Trends, and Possible Futures in Quantitative Methods
John Crawford and James C. Impara
Paradigm Talk Reconsidered
Robert Donmoyer
Qualitative Educational Research: The Philosophical Issues
Kenneth R. Howe
Changing Conceptions of Culture and Ethnographic Methodology: Recent Thematic Shifts and Their Implications for
Research on Teaching
Margaret Eisenhart
Narrative Research on School Practice
Sigrun Gudmundsdottir
Validity as an Incitement to Discourse: Qualitative Research and the Crisis of Legitimation
Patti Lather
Mixing Social Inquiry Methodologies
Jennifer C. Greene
Advances in Teacher Assessments and Their Uses
Andrew C. Porter, Peter Youngs, and Allan Odden
Practitioner Research
Kenneth M. Zeichner and Susan E. Noffke
Part 3: SUBJECT MATTER
Instructional Explanations: A Commonplace for Teaching and Location for Contrast
Gaea Leinhardt
The Teaching of Second Languages: Research Trends
Charles R. Hancock
Research on Writing
Melanie Sperling and Sarah Warshauer Freedman
Research on the Teaching of Reading
Rebecca Barr
Research on the Teaching of Literature: Finding a Place
Pamela L. Grossman
Mathematics
Deborah Loewenberg Ball, Sarah Theule Lubienski, and Denise Spangler Mewborn
The Revolution in Research on Science Teaching
Richard White
School Health Education
Liane M. Summerfield
Research on Teaching in Physical Education
Kim C. Graber
Classroom Research in the Visual Arts
Cynthia Colbert and Martha Taunton
Research on History Teaching
Suzanne M. Wilson
Review of Research on Social Studies
Peter Seixas
Teaching and Schooling Effects on Moral/Prosocial Development
Daniel Solomon, Marilyn S. Watson, and Victor A. Battistich
Vocational and Occupational Education: Pedagogical Complexity, Institutional Diversity
Frank Achtenhagen and W. Norton Grubb
Part 4: The LEARNER
Consider the Difference: Teaching and Learning in Culturally Rich Schools
Mary E. Dilworth and Carlton E. Brown
The Learner: "Race," "Ethnicity," and Linguistic Difference
Carmen I. Mercado
Contemporary Research on Special Education Teaching
Russell Gersten, Scott Baker, and Marleen Pugach, with David Scanlon and David Chard
Feminist Perspectives on Gender in Classrooms
Sari Knopp Biklen and Diane Pollard
Part 5: POLICY
Standard Setting in Teaching: Changes in Licensing, Certification, and Assessment
Linda Darling-Hammond
International Experiences of Teaching Reform
James Calderhead
Part 6: TEACHERS and TEACHING
Teachers' Work in Historical and Social Context
Dee Ann Spencer
Teaching as a Moral Activity
David T. Hansen
The Power of Collective Action: A Century of Teachers Organizing for Education
Susan Moore Johnson and Katherine C. Boles
Teachers' Knowledge and How It Develops
Hugh Munby, Tom Russell, and Andrea K. Martin
Teacher Change
Virginia Richardson and Peggy Placier
Part 7: SOCIAL and CULTURAL CONTEXTS and the ROLE of the TEACHER
Classroom Cultures and Cultures in the Classroom
Margaret A. Gallego, Michael Cole, and The Laboratory of Comparative Human Cognition
School-Community Connections: Strengthening Opportunity to Learn and Opportunity to Teach
Meredith I. Honig, Joseph Kahne, and Milbrey W. McLaughlin
Part 8: INSTRUCTION
Choreographies of Teaching: Bridging Instruction to Learning
Fritz K. Oser and Franz J. Baeriswyl
The Role of Classroom Assessment in Teaching and Learning
Lorrie A. Shepard
Theory and Research on Teaching as Dialogue
Nicholas C. Burbules and Bertram C. Bruce
Teaching in Higher Education
Robert J. Menges and Ann E. Austin
Teaching in Middle Schools
James A. Beane and Barbara L. Brodhagen
Teaching in Early Childhood Education: Understanding Practices through Research and Theory
Celia Genishi, Sharon Ryan, and Mindy Ochsner, with Mary Malter Yarnall
