Preface to the special issue

Supported by the Australian Association for Research in Education (AARE), editors of this Special Issue together with expert volunteers launched a series of workshops in 2018 to address gaps in quantitative methods offerings in educational research in Australia. In September 2017, we (Drs. Sindu George and Paul Swan, Monash University) under the mentorship of established researchers (Professors Helen Watt at The University of Sydney, Paul Richardson at Monash University, and Philip Parker at the Institute for Positive Psychology and Education (IPPE) at the Australian Catholic University) successfully secured an AARE Strategic Initiatives Grant to organise the 2018 ‘Quantitative Summit’. These grants are awarded for capacity building of educational researchers to conduct high-quality research, providing forums for knowledge sharing and critical engagement, and promoting visibility and uptake of research by educational policy and practice.