Abstract: Compared with other scientific disciplines, there has been slower progress and less accumulation in educational scientific knowledge. For education research to be a scientific discipline with rapidly accumulated knowledge and progress, it's necessary to vigorously strengthen the scientific empirical research. In this area, the United States took the lead in making strategic planning. After entering the new century, the United States launched a strategy of evidence-based educational empirical research, through a large-scale transformation and upgrading of the existing educational research paradigm. This strategy has produced initial results but was questioned and rejected by many educational researchers, who believe that it is unnecessary and unlikely to implement such an external reform strategy. However, all the rejection has not formed a substantive challenge to the significance and value of empirical research on education.

Key words: empirical research, education science, knowledge progress