Methods Discussion Outline • Sources of knowledge • Educational research as scientific inquiry • Types of research designs – Quantitative – Qualitative – Analytical – Mixed methods • Functions of research • Research report formats Sources of Knowledge • All of us frequently make decisions related to our professional lives – Some decisions are very, very important, others quite trivial – Some decisions are made in very formal, deliberate manners, others quite capriciously • Where do we turn for such knowledge? Sources of Knowledge • What is the likely basis upon which each of the following questions could be answered? – What is the best way to relax, today? – What are we going to do for the holidays this year? – What are the legal implications of the new attendance policy? Sources of Knowledge
• Three legitimate sources for decisions
of this nature – Personal experience – Tradition – Authority • Characteristics of these sources – Idiosyncratic – Informal – Subjective in nature Sources of Knowledge • What is the likely basis upon which each of the following questions could be answered? – Will Gabrielle benefit by being held back in the second grade next year? – How many students should be scheduled into Ms. North’s third grade class? – Does block scheduling have an effect upon students’ achievement? Sources of Knowledge
• Research is the most legitimate source for
questions of this nature – Research is a systematic process that is guided by accepted procedures to establish credibility • Data collection • Data analysis • Interpretation – The systematic, testable, and objective nature of research permits careful examination of the process and results Sources of Knowledge • Describe some of the more important decisions you’ve made recently in your work with students, faculty, or clients. • On what basis did you rely to make these decisions? Research as Scientific Inquiry • Scientific inquiry is the search for knowledge using recognized methods in data collection, analysis, and interpretation • The purpose of scientific inquiry is to develop knowledge – Describe phenomena – Examine empirical relationships between or among phenomena – Test whether such relationships are causal in nature The basic steps of research... Scientific and disciplined inquiry is an orderly process, involving: ● recognition and identification of a topic to be studied (“problem”) ● description and execution of procedures to collection information (“method”) ● objective data (“analysis”) ● statement of findings (“results”) Research as Scientific Inquiry
• Knowledge is typically presented in the
form of theories – A theory is a set of propositions that explain the relationships among phenomena – A theory is a means of simplifying and understanding complex realities • Examples of learning theories Educational Research
• Lack of a single, appropriate
methodological approach to study education • Two major approaches – Quantitative – Qualitative Educational Research • Differentiating characteristics – Goals • Quantitative: tests theory, establishes facts, shows relationships, predicts, or statistically describes • Qualitative: develops grounded theory, develops understanding, describes multiple realities, captures naturally occurring behavior – Research design • Quantitative: highly structured, formal, and specific • Qualitative: unstructured, flexible, evolving Educational Research • Differentiating characteristics – Participants • Quantitative: many participants representative of the groups from which they were chosen using probabilistic sampling techniques • Qualitative: few participants chosen using non- probabilistic sampling techniques for specific characteristics of interest to the researchers – Data, data collection, and data analysis • Quantitative: numerical data collected at specific times from tests or surveys and analyzed statistically • Qualitative: narrative data collected over a long period of time from observations and interviews and analyzed using interpretive techniques Educational Research • Differentiating characteristics – Researcher’s role • Quantitative: detached, objective observers of events • Qualitative: participant observers reporting participant’s perspectives understood only after developing long-term, close, trusting relationships with participants – Context • Quantitative: manipulated and controlled settings • Qualitative: naturalistic settings Types of Research Designs Research Designs
Quantitative Qualitative Analytical Study Mixed Method
Quantitative Designs • Two major categories – Experimental • The investigation of causal effects through direct manipulation of an independent variable and control of extraneous variables – Non-experimental • The investigation of the current state of a variable or the relationships, other than causal, between variables Quantitative Designs • An example of an experimental design – Randomly assign students to one of two classrooms in which the same social studies unit is being taught. Teach the first class using the traditional lecture approach, the second class using co-operative learning groups. Examine the achievement differences between the two groups to see if the type of “approach” to instruction had an effect. – This study is characterized by the investigation of cause (instructional approach) and effect (achievement), manipulation (choice of instructional approach), and control (same unit being taught, random assignment, etc.) Quantitative Designs • Differentiating the three types of experimental designs – True experimental • Random assignment of subjects to groups – Quasi-experimental • Non-random assignment of subjects to groups – Single subject • Non-random selection of a single subject Quantitative Designs • Examples of non-experimental designs – Approximately 10% of Louisiana’s public school students do not finish high school. – The GPA of students participating in extra-curricular activities is higher than that of student who do not participate – Student attitude is moderately related to achievement – Several factors are related to the high dropout rate in Louisiana. These include the student’s age, academic record, repetition of grade(s), gender, and ethnicity. – These studies are characterized by descriptions (dropout rate, GPA differences, opinions) or relationships (attitudes and achievement, factors related to dropping out) Quantitative Designs
• Differentiating the four types of non-
experimental designs – Descriptive • Makes careful descriptions of the current situation or status of a variable(s) of interest – Comparative • Compares two or more groups on some variable of interest – Correlational • Establishes a relationship (i.e., non-causal) between or among variables – Ex-post-facto • Explores possible causes and effects among variables that cannot be manipulated by the researcher. Qualitative Designs
• Much less precision in the definitions of
and distinctions between qualitative designs in comparison to quantitative designs • Four major categories of designs – Case study – Phenomenology – Ethnography – Grounded theory Qualitative Designs • Case Study – An examination of a specific instance of a phenomena in its natural context viewed from the perspective of the participants • This study explored the meaning of “inclusion” for three disabled students who had been placed in a regular education setting. • This study examines in-depth a phenomena of interest to the researcher (i.e., the meaning of inclusion) in a natural context viewing it from the participant’s perspectives Qualitative Designs • Phenomenology – A description of the meaning of an experience • The purpose of this study was to examine the meaning of being “left out” for an adolescent • This study examines in-depth the experiences of being “left out” from the perspectives of the adolescent experiencing this phenomena Qualitative Designs • Ethnography – A description the beliefs and practices of a cultural or social group or system • The purpose of this study was to identify and describe the conflicts that experienced second- grade teachers encountered as they switched from a traditional approach to teaching mathematics to a constructivist-sociological approach • This study examines the beliefs and practices of second grade teachers experiencing a common phenomena related to their approach to teaching Three Es
• Enquire • Examine • Experience Qualitative Designs • Grounded theory – A description of a conceptual understanding of a particular phenomenon • The purpose of this study was to understand the relationship of the bar to the teachers who frequented it on Friday evenings. We found that teachers used the bar to facilitate their movement from “professional” to “personal” self. • This study examined a phenomena of interest to the researcher (i.e., teachers congregating at a particular bar on Friday evenings) and developed a conceptual understanding of it. Analytical Designs • Descriptions of historical, legal, or policy issues through an analysis of documents, oral histories, and relics • Two basic approaches – Concept analysis – the study of educational concepts (e.g., co-operative learning, leadership, etc.) to describe the different meanings and the uses of the concept – Historical analysis – the systematic collection and criticism of documents that describe past events of relevance to education Analytical Designs
• An example of a concept analysis
– The purpose of this study is to examine the meanings and uses of the term standards-based curriculum. – This study examined the varied meanings, interpretations, and uses of an important curricular concept. Analytical Designs
• An example of an historical analysis
– The purpose of this study is to examine the changes in standardized testing over the last 40 years. – This study addresses the historical developments characterizing the use of standardized tests over a 40 year period. Mixed Method Designs • The use of quantitative and qualitative designs and methods within a single study • Allows the researcher to better match the approach to gathering and analyzing data to the research questions • Relative emphasis given to any particular method varies widely Action Research Design
• Systematic investigation that aims to
improve professional practice/s • Emphasis on teachers, counselors, and administrators • Brings together characteristics of systematic inquiry and practice Four Functions of Research
• Basic: research designed to test or refine
theory
• Applied: research conducted in a field of
common practice and concerned with the application and development of research based knowledge The research continuum… laboratory field pure evaluation research research BASIC APPLIED
theory current development problems
why it works what works
produces concepts provides data
Four Functions of Research
• Action: research designed to solve a specific
classroom or school problem, improve practice, or make a decision at a single local site
• Evaluation: research designed to assess the
merit and worth or a specific practice in terms of the values operating at a site Educational Report Formats
• Title and author
• Abstract • Introduction – Quantitative: specific research questions – Qualitative: general problem statement • Review of the literature – Quantitative: extensive – Qualitative: brief Educational Report Formats • Research problem statement or questions – Quantitative: specific, narrow questions and hypotheses – Qualitative: general, foreshadowed questions • Method and design – Quantitative: participants, instruments, and procedures – Qualitative: participants and settings/sites Educational Report Formats
• Results – Quantitative: statistical explanations – Qualitative: narrative descriptions • Discussion • Conclusions • References Approaches to reasoning... Inductive… …developing generalizations from a limited number of specific observations or experiences …highly dependent on the number and representativeness of the specific observations used to make the generalization Approaches to reasoning...
Deductive… …developing specific predictions from general principles, observations, or experiences …dependent on the truth of the generalizations used as a basis for its logic Relating reasoning with research methods…
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