Sociology and Qualitative Methodologies in Educational Research.

In this article, Mary Haywood Metz traces the development of qualitative methodology in sociology from its early roots in the Chicago School, through its status as a marginalized tradition within sociology, and to its current widespread use in educational research. She makes important distinctions between qualitative methods and qualitative methodology, and distinguishes between anthropological and sociological approaches to ethnography. Metz also discusses how qualitative sociology, in focusing on the internal processes of schools, has contributed to the study of both teaching and schools as organizations. Finally, in discussing the future of qualitative research in education, Metz expresses concern that certain types of research may overwhelm and replace ethnographic methodology by co-opting the label of qualitalive research, and proposes a methodological detente..