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Research Methods in Education

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Why Study Educational Research?

To become "research literate."  

Because we live in a society that's driven by research

To improve your critical thinking skills

To learn how to critically evaluate published research.  

To learn how to conduct research in case the need arises one day.

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Objectives of Educational Research There are five major objectives of educational research.

  Exploration. This is done when you are trying to generate

ideas about something. Description. This is done when you want to describe the

characteristics of something or some phenomenon. Explanation. This is done when you want to show how

and why a phenomenon operates as it does. If you are interested in causality, you are usually interested in explanation.

Prediction. This is your objective when your primary interest is in making accurate predictions. Note that the advanced sciences make much more accurate predictions than the newer social and behavioral sciences.

Influence. This objective is a little different. It involves the application of research results to impact the world. A demonstration program is an example of this.

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Categories of research

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Quantitative Qualitative

Purpose Study relationship, cause and effect

Understand social phenomena as it is

Design Developed prior to the study

Flexible and Evolves during study

Approach Deductive, test theory Inductive, generate theory

Tools Standardized and objective instrument or pre-selected instrument

Face-to-face interaction and the researcher is primary data collection tool

Sample Fairly large Small

Analysis Statistical analysis of numeric data

Narrative description and interpretation

Which category of research to choose?

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Nature of questions or problems being studied not preference for methods(some suitable for quantitative and some suitable for qualitative)

Suggestions: may use both to verify he findings of the other; as a groundwork for the other; explore different aspects of the same research questions

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Quantitative

Experimental Non-experimental

Descriptive researchPre-experiment

True experiment

Quasi-experiment

[many designs]

Ex post facto

Correlation research

Survey research

Experimental research

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The most rigorous

Actually establish different treatment and study the effect

Result clear cut interpretation

Example: a history teacher may want to know how can he teach important concepts to his students?

He may compare two different approaches to teaching history

Correlation research

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To establish relationship between two or more variables

Gather data on two or more variables and seek to determine relationship

Concurrent correlation studies Relationship is drawn from the same point in

study. Example: relationship between …. Predictive correlation studies

Using one characteristics to predict the other. Example: use SPM grade to predict CGPA

Ex post facto

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Also known as causal-comparative study To determine the cause of the difference

between two group of people when experimental research is not possible

No manipulation of IV The IVs are known as categorical IV Example to determine if family structure

(single-two parent family) cause poor performance in education

Survey research

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Purpose to explore and describe Do not investigate relationship Large sample Slice of time

Developmental study

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Trend study Cohort study Panel study Data are gathered at several points in

time

Case study

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Involve small sample Purpose similar to survey and trend studies More depth Direct observation or interviews Single subject, a club, a school, a teenage gang Also known as a type of qualitative research

Qualitative

Ethnography: an in-depth study of natural occurring behavior within a culture or social group

Case Studies in-depth study of a single unit (an individual, a group, a program, an organization etc.)

Document or content analysis

Analyzing or interpreting recorded materials within its own contact

Naturalistic Observation

Unconstructive observation. People being observed are aware of the observation

Focused interview

Unstructured and open-ended format to draw subject response on a topic of interest

Historical Research

Analyze documents and artifacts to what has happened in the past.

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Questions that educational researchers normally ask

Theoretical [focus on developing theories or testing theories]

Practical[aim at solving specific problem]

What is intelligence? How effective is peer tutoring?

How does the child learn? What is the relative effectiveness of method a compared with method B?

Why does one forget? How does teaching…. Affect….?

More commonly done is to test the existing theory

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Basic and Applied Research

BasicAimed at obtaining empirical data to formulate and expand theory.

Aim is to expand the frontiers of knowledge without regard to practical application

AppliedAimed at solving immediate problems (usually)

Can be used to test theories as well

Not aimed at generalization

[a study on the effectiveness of a teaching method on…]

Can be used for generalization depending on the nature of research

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Action Research

Focuses on solving practitioner’s local problems. It is generally conducted by the practitioners after

they have learned about the methods of research and research concepts that are discussed in your textbook.

It is important to understand that action research is also a state of mind; for example, teachers who are action researchers are constantly observing their students for patterns and thinking about ways to improve instruction, classroom management, and so forth.

Start

Are the data primarily in the

form ofNumbers or

Words

NumbersWords

QualitativeQuantitative

Does the researcherHave control over IVYesExperimental

Is random assignment

used?YesTrue Experimental

No

Quasi-Experimental

Survey

Ex Post facto

No

Non-Experimental

Is the study investigate how variables change

together?

No Yes

Is the direction and strengthOf the relationship of the

Two variables among the sameSubjects or paired subjects

studiedNo

YesCorrelational

TYPICAL STAGES IN RESEARCH

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Select a problem Review literature

Design the research Collect data

Analyze data Interpret the findings

Report results