Educational Research

1. Educational Research

2. Lecturer info Recommended texts Materials Online Handouts Research portfolio Electronic Non digital Research Colloquium Invited “speakers” Housekeeping

3. Introduction • What is research • Why carry out research • Types and approaches • Terminologies

4. If we knew what it was we are doing, it would not be called research, would it be? Albert Einstein

5. What is research to you?

6. Is it..about problems? • Response to a problem? • Solving a problem? • What do you do when solving a problem? • Understand the problem • Devise a plan to obtain a solution • Use the plan • Evaluate the outcome

7. E readiness in Botswana

8. General definition • Research is the formal systematic application of the scientific and disciplined inquiry approach to the study of problems

9. General definition • Research is the formal systematic application of the scientific and disciplined inquiry approach to the study of problems • What do we mean by scientific?

10. The scientific method 1 2 3 4 Formulate the hypothesis (a tentative proposition about the relation between two or more theoretical constructs) Test the hypothesis (design a study to establish whether the relationship between the constructs are as predicted) Collect data Decide to accept or reject hypothesis

11. A research is.. • A diligent search or inquiry - scientific investigation and study to discover facts • All claims open to question • Knowledge can be observed and tested again

12. The purpose of scientific research • To Describe - describe the shape, colour, change over time, relation to other constructs and so on.. • To Predict - given what is known the scientist attempts to predict what might happen.. • To Control - by manipulating certain variables the scientist is interested in determining whether it will lead to controlling a particular condition. • To Explain in the form of a Theory - ultimately the scientist is interested in forming a theory to explain the phenomena being investigated.

13. So what then is EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH?

14. An educational research is.. • A systematic, and organized effort to investigate and provide trustworthy information about educational problems, issues and topics

15. PPSMI/ ETEMS

16. Characteristic of research • Research begins with a question in the mind of the researcher. • Research demands a clear statement of the problem. • Research requires a plan • Research seeks direction through appropriate hypotheses or research questions • Research deals with facts and their meaning.

17. Systematic processes in educational research 1 2 3 4 Identify a problem Review known information in the problem area – put forward a hypothesis/ formulate research questions Design a study to test hypothesis/ answer the research questions Collect data Analyze and interpret data Report findings – give answers, solve problem based on analysis

18. Next :Why carry out research?

19. Why carry out research? Describe? Predict? Control? Explain?

20. Why carry out edu research? • To provide evidence to help people decide which opinions are correct – or more correct • To help develop better ways to think about the field of education

21. Why carry out edu research? • To investigate problems or questions concerned with improvement of education (Sowell, 2001) • contribute to the advances of knowledge and theory • provide insights into societal concerns • solve a particular problem within a particular setting

22. Educational research continuum • Basic • contribute to the advances of knowledge and theory • Applied • provide insights into societal concerns • solve a particular problem within a particular setting • Evaluation • Decision making

23. Basic Apply to many people and situations Relate to general theory Results may not have immediate or clear implications for practice Applied Apply to specific group of people and situations Not necessarily related to broader field of knowledge Results have immediate and clear implications for practice Compare

24. Educational Research Valid Reliable outcomes Purposeful Ethical Systematic

25. Validity Outcomes are accurate? Data collection provide accurate data? Analysis suitable for answering the research questions? Reliability Outcomes are trustworthy? Can depend on the outcomes? Can replicate data? Validity and Reliability

26. Terminologies • research methodology • The study of research methods • A singular that does not admit of a plural • research technique • A specific means, approach or tool-and-its-use, whereby data is gathered and analysed, and inferences are drawn • research method • The manner in which a particular project is undertaken

27. Terminologies • variable • any characteristic that is not always the same • characteristics that vary • relationship • A statement about variables • hypothesis • Statement that can be tested • theory • An explanation of how and why things happen • Tested

28. Terminologies • Research instrument • Anything used to collect information • Questionnaire • Researcher as the instrument • Deduction • Starts with a theory, apply to data • Tested • Induction • Data leads to theory

29. Research 1 Investigates how fluid cools off Research 2 Investigates how the motivation of TESL students change with the utilization of different technology in class Consider

30. Research 1 • Variables • Dependent -Temperature of fluid • Independent – Time • Others – type of fluid, room temperature • Hypothesis • Temperature decreases with time • Theory • Newton’s law of cooling • Instrument • Thermometer • Analysis • Tabulate, graph

31. Research 2 • Variables • Dependent –Motivation • Independent – ? • Others – level of difficulty, personal problems etc • Hypothesis • The more recent the technology, the higher the level of motivation • Theory • “No specific theory” – but have been researched • Instrument • Questionnaire • Analysis • Compute correlation coefficient

32. How do we define motivation ‘operationally’? • Specify actions or operations to measure motivation • States that he/she likes research class • Display interests – pays attention • Observed to ask questions about subject • Turns in all homework/assignments on time

33. Are younger students more anxious in math courses compared to older students? What are the variables? Is there a relationship to be tested? How to operationalise “anxiety”?

34. Identify research area • Your personal interest • Accessibility • Socially relevant / useful • Reiterate the significance of your would-be research

36. English language research • University of Edinburgh http://www.lel.ed.ac.uk/research/ • Syntax & Semantics Research- research in both of these core areas of linguistic theory, and in the interfaces between them and other areas, such as pragmatics. • The Phonetics & Phonology - researchers treating a very broad range of topics - "from speech synthesis to OT" - as part of a unified field of activity; hardly anyone in the group can readily be pigeonholed as a "phonologist" or a "phonetician". • The Centre for Speech Technology Research (CSTR) - concerned with research in all areas of speech technology including speech recognition, speech synthesis, speech signal processing, information access, multimodal interfaces and dialogue systems. • The Language in Context Research - investigates how the social, interpersonal and discursive context of language shapes its forms and uses. • The Developmental Linguistics Research - undertakes theoretical and experimental research on language acquisition, language attrition, and language change. The fundamental research aim is to investigate the nature of the constraints on how linguistic knowledge can vary over time, both within and between individuals.

37. Do background reading • Systematic • Start with newspaper, magazines, tv news • Read textbook • Read reports • Read journals

38. Problems Theory Issues Variable Concerns Topic Concept Methods Big picture

39. Exercise Educational Issues in Malaysia