Why is research important

• Propose theories• Test theories• Increase understanding• Improve teaching and learning

Why is it important for you?

Two Schools of Research

Qualitative Quantitative

Skim and consider

• Purpose• Kinds of data collected• How data were collected• How data were analyzed

Qualitative v. QuantitativeQualitativeHypothesis generatingNaturalisticConcept developmentEvolving approachSpeculativeDescriptive dataSmall, nonrepresentative sampleProcess/how, whyInductiveNot generalizable

QuantitativeHypothesis testingExperimentalTheory testingStructured ProcessDetailed & specificQuantitative dataLarge, random samplesOutcomes/whatDeductiveGeneralizable

Historical Perspective

• Quantitative• 60’s brought social change and a change of

questions from WHAT to HOW AND WHY• Mixed methods

Common questions

• Generalizable• Subjective• Observer Effect• Reliable• Scientific (Empirical)• Can both methods be used together• Valid• Which is better

5 basic categories

Phenomenology• How one or more individuals understand a

phenomenon• Looking at something through the eyes of

those being observed

Ethnography• “culture” of a group of people• Community is important

Case study• Detailed account of one or more special cases

Grounded theory• Generating a theory • Grounded on observational evidence

Historical Research• Understand events that have already occurred

Action Research

• Can be qualitative/quantitative/mixed• Undertaken by individuals for their own,

personal use• Improve one’s teaching, leadership, address a

specific local concern• Focus on an individual, classroom, school,

district

Qualitative or Quantitative

• This study examines changes in the public schools’ legal responsibilities regarding students with disabilities over the past 50 years.

• This study involved a group of teachers investigating ways to determine strategies to engage their students in math.

Q or Q

• This study was conducted to determine whether the Acme Interest Test provided similar results to the Acne Interest Test.

• This study divided fifth grade students in a school into two groups at random and compared the results of two methods of conflict resolution on students’ aggressive behavior.

Q or Q

• This study administered a questionnaire to determine how social studies teachers felt about teaching world history to fifth graders.

• Likert-type scale 1 2 3 4 5• Open-ended question

When is Qualitative Research Appropriate?

• Theory development• Complexities and processes• Identify variables• Why something works or not• Looking at informal/unstructured linkages and

processes in organizations• Studying new phenomena

Deciding on a method

• Bread is Dangerous

Disadvantages of Qualitative Res.

• Requires practice and training to be an observer

• Takes time, costly, difficult to replicate• Field notes are lengthy and difficult to

interpret• Observer may be biased• Difficult to write down everything• Active participation decreases validity

Advantages of Qualitative Res.

• Provides a complete picture of the environment being studied

• May provide a longitudinal perspective• Leads to new insights and hypotheses• Hypotheses are grounded in a naturalistic

setting• Less likely for researcher to overlook

phenomena that do not “fit” expectations

Get a taste• Asked of undergraduate seniors and MAT

students looking for initial certification:

• Overall at this point in your education, do you believe your college mathematics and science courses have contributed to your preparation as a teacher? What has influenced this belief?

• Review answers and come up with generalizations that you can back up!

Closure

• Flow of the research classes• Difference between qualitative and

quantitative methodologies• Concerns with qualitative methods• Idea of what kinds of questions can be

answered qualitatively• Feel for qualitative research