Supporting a Culture of Replication: An Examination of Education and Special Education Research Grants Funded by the Institute of Education Sciences

Abstract

Despite the important role that replication studies play in building scientific evidence, recent reports show that few replications have been conducted in education. The goal of the current study was to examine how many efficacy and effectiveness research grants funded by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) were replications, what types of replications they represented, and whether applicants explicitly stated their intent to conduct a replication. Data showed that IES has not funded any direct replications that duplicate all aspects of the original study, but almost half of the funded grant applications can be considered conceptual replications that vary one or more dimensions of a prior study. The majority of funded grant applications did not explicitly state an intent to conduct a replication.