ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the authors explore the politics that arise in the research and evaluation of school reform efforts. They draw on qualitative data gathered in a study of comprehensive school reform to elucidate methodological issues in several areas. The authors discuss how they were perceived as researchers, how participants used their research and their presence in political ways, and how they questioned their own role in the research process. They discuss challenges in the data-gathering process, including the selection of interviewees for the study. The authors focus on qualitative data collected in a study of schools implementing comprehensive school reform models to illuminate the politics that arise when researching school reform efforts. Considerations arise in the process of data gathering and analysis, and many researchers are considering the impact of the research process itself. Researchers should recognize that conflict is virtually inevitable.
