This compelling book examines what theory means for both student and researcher and questions whether the confidence in educational theory is justified.

Lecturers, why waste time waiting for the post to arrive? Click on the above icon and receive your e-inspection copy today! ′Whether embarking on research as an undergraduate or for a doctorate, Gary Thomas′ book will be of great value to you. It is refreshingly different from other books about doing research: it′s informative, well-written, wide-ranging yet sufficiently detailed and above all it′s enjoyable to read! I recommend it highly′. Professor Peter Earley, Institute of Education, University of London Are you doing a research project? Do you need advice on how to carry out research? Using practical examples, this book takes you through what should happen at each phase in the project′s schedule. Gary Thomas explains the main design frames and methods of data collection and analysis used in education and social science research, and provides down to earth advice on how to weave these elements together into a coherent whole. Structured according to the main phases of doing a project, the book covers · deciding your topic and your research question · project management and study skills · doing a literature review · methodology and research design · design frames · ethics and access · how to analyse the information you gather · discussing findings, theorising, concluding and writing up This book is an essential read for undergraduate, postgraduate, CPD and doctoral students undertaking a project in the applied social sciences. Comments from tutors: ′I loved this book! It brought research methods alive′: Gill Richards ,Nottingham Trent University ′Unputdownable′: Joy Jarvis ,University of Hertfordshire ′Accessible and encouraging style′: Neil Stott ,Nottingham Trent University Comments from students: ′Brilliant′: Alison Patterson ′Love the visual models′: Susan Allan ′Filled me with optimism′: Anne Cowan ′Very entertaining as well as extremely useful′: Viv Brown Gary Thomas is Professor of Education at the University of Birmingham.

This volume critically explores themes of belonging, learning and community, drawing on a range of research studies conducted with adult learners in formal and informal contexts and employing interdisciplinary theory from education, feminist theory, cultural studies and human geography. Dominant but simplistic and regulatory ideas and practices of learning community in higher education and lifelong learning are critiqued. Instead, Jocey Quinn argues that learners gain most benefit from creating their own symbolic communities and networks, which help to produce imagined social capital. A rich variety of empirical data is used to explore and demonstrate how such imagined social capital works.

The literature of the behavioural and social sciences is full of theory and research on learning and memory. Teaching is comparatively a stepchild, neglected by those who have built a formidable body of theories of learning and memory. However, teaching is where learning and memory theory should pay off. "A Conception of Teaching" dedicates a chapter to each of the following important components: the need for a theory; the possibility of a theory; the evolution of a paradigm for the study of teaching; a conception of the process of teaching; a conception of the content of teaching; a conception of students’ cognitive capabilities and motivations; a conception of classroom management; and the integration of these conceptions. Written in a highly accessible style, while maintaining a base in research, Dr. Nathaniel L. Gage presents "A Conception of Teaching" with clarity and well situated within current educational debates.

This sharp, stimulating title provides a structure for thinking about, analysing and designing case study. It explores the historical, theoretical and practical bones of modern case study research, offering to social scientists a framework for understanding and working with this form of inquiry. Using detailed analysis of examples taken from across the social sciences Thomas and Myers set out, and then work through, an intricate typology of case study design to answer questions such as: How is a case study constructed? What are the required, inherent components of case study? Can a coherent structure be applied to this form of inquiry? The book grounds complex theoretical insights in real world research and includes an extended example that has been annotated line by line to take the reader through each step of understanding and conducting research using case study.

The second edition of The SAGE Handbook of Special Education provides a comprehensive overview of special education, offering a wide range of views on key issues from all over the world. The contributors bring together up-to-date theory, research and innovations in practice, with an emphasis on future directions for the role of special education in a global context of inclusion. This brand new edition features: " New chapters on families, interagency collaboration and issues of lifelong learning " The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities " Policy reform proposals " Equity and social justice in education " The impact of new thinking on assessment " Issues and developments in classification " The preparation and qualifications that teachers need The Handbook′s breadth, clarity and academic rigour will make it essential reading for researchers and postgraduate students, and also for practitioners, teachers, school managers and administrators.

This text guides readers through the different aspects of doing M-level work at either primary or secondary stage, & helps to develop a deeper professional understanding. Chapters include primary & secondary vignettes & examples to link theory into practice, as well as questions, activities & suggestions for further reading.