Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
Saturday, January 10
Introduction to Educational
Research EDF 689
Credits
Locke, Silverman, Spirduso
Gay, K.
Ariasian
Shipps and Firestone
Gephart, M.
Parker, W.
Educational Research
Overview of the morning
– A description of educational research
– Scientific and disciplined inquiry (Schulman)
– Functions of educational research
– Specific approaches
Quantitative designs
Qualitative designs
– Guidelines for determining the appropriateness of an
approach
– Limitations of scientific and disciplined inquiry
Educational Research
Formal definition
– The application of a scientific and disciplined
inquiry approach to the study of educational
problems
Goal
– To explain or help understand educational
issues, questions, or problems
Educational Research
Secondary purposes
– Help others understand research results
– Use results to improve teaching and learning
– Raise new topics for study
Educational research as an evolving,
ongoing process
How do we know stuff
How do you know things? Where does
information come from?
Educational Research
Six ways we can know something
– Tradition
– Expert opinion
– Personal experience
– Intuition
– Logic
Inductive
Deductive
– Research
Educational Research
Tradition
– Doing things as they have always been done
– Limitations
Often based on an idealized past
Can be distant from current realities and the complexities
associated with them
Experts or authorities
– Relying on the expertise or authority of others
– Limitations
Experts can be wrong
Experts can disagree among themselves as in a “second
opinion”
Educational Research
Personal experience
– Relying on one’s knowledge of their prior experiences
– Limitations
How one is affected by an event depends on who one is
One frequently needs to know something that cannot be
learned through experience
Intuition
– Relying on your “gut” feeling
– Limitations
Difficulty verifying results
Educational Research
Inductive reasoning
– Reasoning from the specific to the general
– Limitations
In order to be certain of a conclusion one must
observe all examples
All examples can be observed only in very limited
situations where there are few members of the
group
Educational Research
Deductive reasoning
– Reasoning from the general to the specific
– Limitations
You must begin with true premises in order to
arrive at true conclusions
Only organizes what is already known
Educational Research
Research
– Systematically studying problems using a
scientific and disciplined inquiry approach
– Limitations
Difficulty removing errors related to the complexity
of human behavior in varying contexts
Difficulty controlling researcher bias
Educational Research
Research provides the most unbiased and
verifiable understanding
Some decisions require such evidence, others
do not
– Class size and retention policies need to be based on
evidence from research given the importance of such
policies
– Basing these policies on tradition, experts, personal
experience, intuition, or logic subject them to criticism
related to the limitations of each source of knowledge
Educational Research-Activity
Basic research
– Conducted to develop, test, or refine theory
– Examples related to learning theory
Piaget
Constructivism
Mastery learning
Gardner’s multiple intelligences
Functions of Research
Applied research
– Conducted to examine the usefulness of theory in
solving practical educational problems
– Examples
Developing seventh grade social studies curriculum around a
problem-solving approach to learning
Examining the effectiveness of a computer-based algebra
program developed around a mastery learning approach
Accommodating varied learning styles when teaching
lessons in modern literature
Functions of Research
Evaluation research
– Conducted to assess the merit or worth of a
specific practice in terms of the values
operating at a specific site
Merit is exemplified by a program accomplishing
what is was supposed to accomplish
Worth is exemplified by the value attached to a
program by those using it
Functions of Research
Evaluation (continued)
– Examples
The computerized algebra program being used in
Williams Middle School has been installed
properly, is being used properly, and student
achievement is increasing as a result of its use
The computerized algebra program being used in
Williams Middle School is perceived to be an
efficient and effective expenditure of district funds
Specific Approaches to Research
Differentiating characteristics
– Underlying assumptions of the researcher
– Purpose of the research
– Research questions
– Research designs
Specific Approaches
Differentiating characteristics
– Interaction between the researcher and
subjects
– Variables
– Data collection and analysis
– Reports
Specific Approaches
Complementary nature of quantitative and
qualitative approaches
– Different purposes of research
Explanatory
Exploratory
– Consideration of the strengths and
weaknesses of different approaches for
specific purposes
Qualitative versus Quantitative Research
Glesne and Peshkin suggest
that
Quantitative researchers prefer the
measurable
Qualitative researchers prefer, or at
least enjoy, the ambiguous
Quantitative Designs
Purposes
– Describe current conditions
– Investigate relationships
– Study causes and effects
Four major designs
– Descriptive/survey
– Correlational
– Causal comparative
– Experimental
Quantitative Designs
Descriptive/survey
– Purpose – to describe current conditions
– Examples
How many students drop out of school in Louisiana?
What are the attitudes of parents, students, and teachers to
an extended school year?
What kinds of activities typically occur in sixth-grade art
classes, and how frequently does each occur?
What have been the reactions of school administrators to
innovations in teaching physical science?
To what extent are elementary teachers using math
manipulatives?
Quantitative Designs
Descriptive/survey (continued)
– Characteristics
Use of large samples
Use of tests, questionnaires, and surveys
Focused on information related to preferences, attitudes,
practices, concerns, or interests
Statistical analysis of numerical data
– Potential problems
Instrument development
Low response rates
Honest responses from subjects
Quantitative Designs
Correlational (what relationship exists?)
– Purpose – to ascertain the extent to which two or
more variables are statistically related
– Examples
What is the relationship between ACT scores and freshmen grades?
Is a teacher’s sense of efficacy related to their effectiveness?
Do significant relationships exist between the types of activities used
in math classrooms and student achievement?
Quantitative Designs
Correlational (continued)
– Characteristics
Measurement with a correlation coefficient
One group of subjects measured on two variables
Use of instruments to measure variables
Focused on the direction and nature of the
relationship
Quantitative Designs
Correlational (continued)
– Potential problems
Instrument development
Inferring cause and effect relationships
Quantitative Designs
Causal-comparative
– Purpose – to explore relationships among variables
that cannot be actively manipulated or controlled by
the researcher
– Examples
What is the effect of part-time employment on the achievement of
high school students?
What characteristics differentiate students who dropout from those
who do not?
What is the effect of attending a “magnet” school on student
attitude?
Quantitative Designs
Causal comparative (continued)
– Characteristics
Selection of subjects from at least two groups in
which the cause (i.e., the independent variable)
has already occurred
Statistical comparisons of the effect (i.e., the
dependent variable) using at least two groups
– Potential problems
Inferring cause and effect relationships
Quantitative Designs
Experimental
– Purpose – to establish cause and effect
relationships between variables
– Examples
Examine the effect of teaching with a 1) co-
operative groups strategy or 2) traditional lecture
approach on student’s achievement
Examine the effect of teaching with manipulatives
or a traditional algorithm approach on the test
scores of algebra students
Quantitative Designs
Characteristics
– Stringent procedures for selecting subjects
and assigning them to groups
– Manipulation of the causal variable
– Control of extraneous variables
– Statistical analysis of numerical data
Quantitative Designs
Potential problems
– Inability of researcher to adequately control
extraneous variables
– Use of complicated research designs
– Complex statistical analyses of data
Qualitative Designs
Purpose – provide field focused, interpretative,
detailed descriptions and interpretations of
participants and their settings
Four designs
– Action research
– Historical research
– Ethnography
– Grounded theory
Qualitative Designs
Action research
– Purposes
To provide a solution to an educator’s problem in their own
school or organization
To improve practice or understand issues
– Examples
How can our college move to a performance based model for
undergraduate teacher preparation programs?
How can disciplinary policies be enforced consistently in our
school?
Qualitative Designs
Action research (continued)
– Characteristics
Cyclical nature of data collection and analysis
Four basic steps – identify a problem, collect data, analyze
data, and take action to resolve the problem
Typically the educator “owns” the problem in that they carry
out the research themselves
– Potential problem
Insular nature of the process can affect the rigor of the study
Qualitative Designs
Historical research
– Purpose – to gain insight into past events, issues, of
personalities to better understand the current situation
– Examples
The difficulties being experienced while implementing a
standards based curriculum can be understood more
completely if one recognizes the historical top-down control
of curriculum imposed on teachers by the State Department
of Education
Current parochial school policies can be better understood
with knowledge of the role these schools have played in the
education of students in the community for the last fifty years
Qualitative Designs
Historical research (continued)
– Characteristics
Focus on specific individuals, social issues, events,
or policies
Documents and artifacts are the primary sources
of data
Data is already available and is complied,
presented, and interpreted
Data is examined carefully for authenticity and
truthfulness
Qualitative Designs
Historical research (continued)
– Potential problems
Authenticity
Truthfulness
Reliance on secondary sources
Values of researcher can affect interpretation
Qualitative Designs
Ethnography
– Purpose – to obtain an understanding of the shared
beliefs and practices of a particular group or culture
– Examples
What is the nature of the problems a teacher encounters
when he begins using a constructivist approach to instruction
after having taught for ten years using a very traditional
approach?
What does “inclusion” mean to a special needs child who is
placed in an inclusionary classroom?
Qualitative Designs
Ethnography (continued)
– Characteristics
The study is conducted in the natural setting for a
lengthy period of time
Emerging research design
Participants are observed in naturally occurring
activities
Researchers develops trust with participants
Cyclical nature of data collection and analysis
Qualitative Designs
Ethnography (continued)
– Characteristics (continued)
Observation and interviews are the dominate data collection
strategies
Inductive nature of the data analysis
– Potential problems
Insufficient time spent in the field
Poor data collection efforts or insufficient data collected
Poor data analysis
Researcher bias
Qualitative Designs
Grounded theory
– Purpose – to derive theory from the analysis of
identified patterns, themes, and categories emerging
from data
– Examples
What theories underlie the school change efforts of teachers
in a parochial elementary school?
What underlying theory explains teacher’s changing from
traditional assessment beliefs and practices to alternative,
performance-based assessment beliefs and practices?
Qualitative Designs
Grounded theory (continued)
– Characteristics
Respect for participant’s beliefs and views
Qualitative data collection using analytic strategies
Inductively reasoned synthesis of data through the
use of constant comparison analysis
Conceptual nature of the process
Qualitative Designs