Chapter 7: The Role of Mixed Methods in Increasing the Relevancy of Education Policy Research and Evaluation

Since the 1960s, there has been increased federal involvement in educational policy and practice that has translated into both increased federal spending and a growing demand for evidence of policy and program effectiveness (Burch & Heinrich, 2016). In this evidence-based milieu, there has been a parallel call for advances in state data systems as well as the need for more complex research methodologies to ascertain not only whether policies and programs are working, but how and why they are effective or how they could be improved (Burch & Heinrich, 2016; Mertens & Wilson, 2012; Spillane et al., 2018; Timans et al., 2019). This, in turn, has led to a growing consensus about the need for more diverse methodologies, such as mixed methods research (MMR; Timans et al., 2019) and evaluation in federal grantmaking (Burch & Heinrich, 2016; Curry & Nunez-Smith, 2015). Meanwhile, there has been increased attention in educational research journals on articles that challenge the quantitative-qualitative binary and advocate for more integrated approaches (Firestone, 1987; Johnson & Onwuegbuzie, 2004; Madey, 1982; Onwuegbuzie & Leech, 2005; Morgan, 2007; Sale et al., 2002; Teddlie & Tashakkori, 2003).