June 6 Post - An Overview of Educational Research

When conducting educational research, there are three overarching types of research that may be conducted (Please refer to your Research Overview table as you examine this information.). They are the following:

1. Basic Research - research to create and test theories (e.g., Gardner's theory of Multiple Intelligences, Piaget's theory of cognitive development, Maslow's theory of the hierarchy of human needs, etc.). This is the research conducted by educational researchers to create and test the theories they are developing.


2. Applied Research - research to determine how people can apply theories to the classroom, school, or related settings. This research is typically completed by someone outside the classroom, school, or related setting where the research is being conducted. The goal is to determine how theories, applications, methods, and so forth work in an actual real-life context.


3. Action Research - research conducted by a person inside the classroom, school, or related setting by himself or herself, with others in the school, or with others outside the school. This is the research completed by teachers, principals, curriculum directors, and so forth within their schools and classrooms to improve practice and achievement. Some people refer to this type of research as Teacher Research.

Irregardless of what type of research is being conducted or who is conducting the research, there are two approaches that may be used. One is a qualitative approach. The other is a quantitative approach. The following links help distinguish the two approaches:

1. http://www.aiuniv.edu/Student-Life/Blog/October-2012/Qualitative-Vs-Quantitative-Research



2. http://wilderdom.com/research/QualitativeVersusQuantitativeResearch.html



3. http://www.southalabama.edu/coe/bset/johnson/lectures/lec2.pdf

If you desire to ask parents, students, or teachers questions about how they feel about something, their understandings about some key concept, or what their beliefs are about a new school policy; you will likely be doing qualitative research. If, on the other hand, you want to know if a new method improves test scores better than an old one, how parents rate a new character education program, what the relationship is between a group of students' GPA's and their number of class absences, or if males or females did better on a quiz after using accelerated instruction; you will be doing quantitative research.

There are six large headings of research (seen on your Research Overview Table). Two fit under the Qualitative Approaches heading, and four fit under the Quantitative Approaches heading. They are the following:

1. Historical (under Qualitative Approaches). Researchers who use this design are typically answering questions such as the following: How has the use of punishment changed in X school district over the past 15 years, what reading methods have been used in Y school over the last 10 years and why, and what methods of instruction have been used with at-risk students in Z school in the last 6 years? Such questions are answered through interviews, open-ended questionnaires, focus group interviews, and other such tools to give the researcher rich narrative feedback. Examining the past is the emphasis.


2. Qualitative (under Qualitative Approaches). Researchers using this design are typically answering questions such as the following: What do teachers believe about the effectiveness of the current reading approach being used in X school, what thinking processes do students use when attempting to solve algebraic equations, or what study strategies do parents and students believe are the most effective for students who are preparing for the Benchmark exams? Such questions are answered through interviews, open-ended questionnaires, focus group interviews, and other such tools to give the researcher rich narrative feedback. Examining the present is the emphasis.


3. Descriptive (under Quantitative Approaches). Researchers using this design are typically answering questions such as the following: How do teachers rate the new character education program being used in Z school, how do parents rate the school to home communication efforts in Y school, or what are students feelings about the Accelerated Reader program as indicated by a Likert survey? Such questions are answered through numbers obtained through Likert surveys (statements that a rater can strongly agree to strongly disagree with), rating scales, and checklists among other such tools. These data are analyzed numerically to provide various types of information.


4. Correlational (under Quantitative Approaches). Researchers using this design are typically answering questions such as the following: What is the numerical relationship between Benchmark test scores and hours doing homework, what is the numerical relationship between time spent reading and quiz scores, or what is the relationship between hours of weight lifting and number of muscular injuries. Such questions are answered by getting two numbers from all the participants in the study and then doing a statistical calculation to see if there is a relationship between the two sets of numbers. So, for example, if we have a class of thirty students, we could ask each of them to report their homework hours, and then we could get test scores for all thirty. We could then do a statistical test (to be learned about later in the course) to see if there is a numerical relationship between these two sets of numbers.


5. Causal-comparative (under Quantitative Approaches). Researchers using this design want to know if there is a difference in scores between two groups of people based upon a "fixed variable" or a variable that cannot be changed. Variables such as these include gender, socioeconomic status, age, use of drugs, family structure, use of tobacco, and so forth. Some of these are nearly impossible to change, and for others, it is unethical to do so (e.g., you cannot ask one group of students to do drugs and another to not do drugs so that you can do a study about how this effects test scores. However, you could do this study after the fact based on what they tell you.). Questions asked might include the following: Is there a difference in test scores between males and females after using the Accelerated Math program, is there a difference in GPA between students from high versus medium versus low socioeconomic statuses, or is there a difference in class absences between those students who have used drugs versus those who have not? To answer these questions, we would collect data on the two different groups and analyze these results statistically to determine if, in fact, there was or was not a difference.


6. Experimental (under Quantitative Approaches). Researchers using this design want to know if there is a difference between two group's test scores, absences, GPA's, points earned, or some other variable based on the changing of what is called an independent variable. Questions that might be asked include: What is the difference in test scores between 3rd-graders using the Accelerated Math program versus those using the Saxon Math program, what is the difference in absences between 10th-graders participating in the voluntary character education program versus those who do not, or what is the difference in GPA's for those 8th-graders using the inquiry science method versus those using the direct instruction science method? Such questions are answered best by assigning students into different groups and then measuring the students achievement or participation through tests, homework scores, hours engaged, GPA, points earned or some other such variable.

There are other examples of research questions that have been written by previous students included on Blackboard. In addition, it is now your turn to try your hand at writing some research questions. Please proceed to the Discussion Board on Blackboard to participate.