How to Design and Evaluate Research in Education

1. How to Design and Evaluate Research in Education Jack R. Fraenkel and Norman E. Wallen Chapter 1

2. The Nature of Research:Ways of Knowing Ways of knowing Sensory experience (incomplete/undependable) Agreement with others (common knowledge wrong) Experts� opinion (they can be mistaken) Logic/reasoning things out (can be based on false premises) Why research is of value Scientific research (using scientific method) is more trustworthy than expert/colleague opinion, intuition, etc.

3. Ways of Knowing:Scientific Method Scientific Method (testing ideas in the public arena) Put guesses (hypotheses) to tests and see how they hold up All aspects of investigations are public and described in detail so anyone who questions results can repeat study for themselves Replication is a key component of scientific method

4. Scientific Method Continued Scientific Method (requires freedom of thought and public procedures that can be replicated) Identify the problem or question Clarify the problem Determine information needed and how to obtain it Organize the information obtained Interpret the results All conclusions are tentative and subject to change as new evidence is uncovered (don�t PROVE things)

5. Types of Research Types of Research Experimental (most conclusive of methods) Researcher tries different treatments (independent variable) to see their effects (dependent variable) In simple experiments compare 2 methods and try to control all extraneous variables that might affect outcome Need control over assignment to treatment and control groups (to make sure they are equivalent) Sometimes use single subject research (intensive study of single individual or group over time)

6. Types of Research:Correlational Research Looks at existing relationships between 2 or more variables to make better predictions Causal Comparative Research Intended to establish cause and effect but cannot assign subjects to trtmt/control Limited interpretations (could be common cause for both cause and effect�stress causes smoking and cancer) Used for identifying possible causes; similar to correlation

7. Types of Research:Survey and Ethnographic Survey Research Determine/describe characteristics of a group Descriptive survey in writing or by interview Provides lots of information from large samples Three main problems: clarity of questions, honesty of respondents, return rates Ethnographic research (qualitative) In depth research to answer WHY questions Some is historical (biography, phenomenology, case study, grounded theory)

8. Types of Research:Historical Research Historical Research Study past, often using existing documents, to reconstruct what happened Establishing truth of documents is essential Action Research (differs from above types) Not concerned with generalizations to other settings Focus on information to change conditions in a particular situation (may use all the above methods) Each of these methods is valuable for a different purpose

9. Three General Types of Research General Research Types Descriptive (describe state of affairs using surveys, ethnography, etc.) Associational (goes beyond description to see how things are related) correlational/causal-comparative Intervention (try intervening to see effects using experiments or quasi-experiments)

10. Other Types of Reserach Meta-analysis. Locate all quantitative studies on a topic and synthesize results using statistical techniques (average the results). Effect sizes. Action-research. Teacher as researcher. Single-subject research.

11. Quantitative vs Qualitative Approaches to Research Quantitative (numbers) Facts/feelings separate. World is single reality. Emphasize casual relationships. Researcher removed. Established research design. Experiment prototype. Generalization emphasized. Qualitative (verbal descriptions) Socially-constructed multiple realities. Concerned with understandings from viewpoint of participants. Participatory. Flexible, emergent, research designs. Limited generalization.

12. Overview of the Research Process (Fig. 1.4, in the Text) Problem statement that includes some background info and justification for study Exploratory question or hypothesis (relationship among variables clearly defined) Definitions (in operational terms) Review of related literature (other studies of the topic read and summarized to shed light on what is already known) Subjects (sample, population, method to select sample)

13. Overview of the Research Process (Fig. 1.4, Continued) Instruments (tests/measures described in detail and with rationale for their use) Procedures (what, when, where, how, and with whom); Give schedule/dates, describe materials used, design of study, and possible biases/threats to validity Data analysis (how data will be analyzed to answer research questions or test hypothesis)

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