ABSTRACT

A revolution is taking place in the way that research techniques are being used and applied in the social sciences and education. More recently, the combined use of quantitative and qualitative data has been emphasized, and its use heralds a new methodology called 'mixed methods research'. Mixed methods research involves the collection and analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data and its integration. A consensus is developing that the defining feature of mixed methods research is not only the collection and analysis of qualitative and quantitative evidence but the systematic integration of the two. In order to best understand the specific application of mixed methods to assessment, one need to first detail how mixed methods has intersected with the field of evaluation. Challenging the notion of comparing qualitative and quantitative results as the sole purpose of mixing methods within evaluation studies, Greene, Caracelli, and Graham (1989) developed a conceptual framework for mixed methods evaluation designs.