Letters

To the Editor:

Kudos to Kenneth R. Howe for calling on educational experts to "use their scholarly knowledge and methodological expertise to ensure that the issues relevant to the topic of research are addressed rigorously and even-handedly" ( "Free Market Free-for-All," Commentary, April 10, 2002.) All too often, in picking up a report or study, one can guess the conclusion based upon who wrote or published it. Yet, the question is how this ideal can be brought to be.

There is a widespread perception that the editorial boards of education research journals are dominated by liberals. This is likely to be true. Moreover, education researchers, who serve as the peers that review, also are likely to lean to the left. I say this not as an aggrieved conservative; it's merely an observation based on my experience with education research journals. So, while I cannot speak for Chester E. Finn Jr., I would imagine this is one of the reasons why some education policy people do not think too highly of peer reviewing. Beneath the veneer of the objective peer-review process, there is a structural bias that slants the tables against studies that offend the reigning orthodoxy. True or...