Educational Research Week 1

Instructor: IZAHAM SHAH ISMAIL

Course: EDU 702
Information

Class
Book(s)

Location
Required Text

Schedule
Additional

Office – DD’s office
Materials

Online

Phone –

Handouts
55227406/0163434535/0182
167978

Email –izahamsi@gmail.com
Housekeeping

Assessments
Research portfolio

Electronic

Blog-
edu702.blogspot.com
Introduction

What is research

Why carry out research

Types and approaches

Terminologies
What is research to
you?
Look at titles….
• E readiness in Botswana
• A case study of young Korean English learning experiences in the United States: A
socio-cultural perspective
• A Qualitative Study of the Development and First Year of Implementation of the
Blacksburg Electronic Village
• Role and Functions of School Psychologists in Virginia: A ten year follow up
• Determining effects of text-to-speech synthesis in a multimedia learning
environment on science achievement for students with learning disabilities in
reading
• A study of the relationship between involvement in decision-making and morale
among Virginia public elementary school teachers
Is it..about problems?

Response to a problem?

To an issue

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
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?

How do we “do” science?
“doing” science?

If our intuition, common sense, and folk wisdom is not

enough to make valid conclusions about behavior...

Must test our hunches and ideas
How we “do” science

Typical way we approach a problem:

Make observations, read literature

Come up theory (general explanation).

Develop testable statement (hypothesis) from theory.
CAN’T STOP THERE!!!

Pick research method, test hypothesis.

Collect data. See if supports hypothesis.
How we “do” science

Example:
Children’s aggression & exposure to violent media.

Theory:

An explanation of phenomenon (using an integrated
set of principles that organizes or predicts
observations).
General claim about behavior.

Example?
 How we “do” science

Can’t stop there…

Hypothesis:
A testable prediction implied by the theory.
Must be a specific & disconfirmable statement.

Example?
 The scientific method

1 2 3 4

Formulate the Test the Collect data Decide to

Theory
hypothesis (a hypothesis accept or
tentative (design a study reject
proposition to establish hypothesis
about the whether the
relation between relationship
two or more between the
theoretical constructs are
constructs) as predicted)
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
The purpose of scientific research
Purpose

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.
Examples
• E readiness in Botswana
• Navigating the university system:
The effects of Chinese and Indian
graduate students' social networks
on academic progression
• Determining effects of text-to-
speech synthesis in a multimedia
learning environment on science
achievement for students with
learning disabilities in reading
• A study of the relationship
between involvement in decision-
making and morale among Virginia
public elementary school teachers
 So what then is

EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH?
An educational research is..
 A systematic, and organized effort
to investigate and provide
trustworthy information about
educational problems, issues and
topics
PPSMI/ ETEMS
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.
Systematic processes in educational
research

1 2 3 4

Identify a Design a study Collect data Report findings

problem to test Analyze and – give answers,
hypothesis/ interpret data solve problem
Review known answer the based on
information in research analysis
the problem questions
area – put
forward a
hypothesis/
formulate
research
questions
Why carry out research?

Describe? Predict? Control? Explain?

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
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
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
Compare

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
 Educational Research

Purposeful Ethical Systematic Valid

Reliable
outcomes
Validity and Reliability

Validity
Reliability

Outcomes are accurate?
Outcomes are

Data collection provide trustworthy?
accurate data?
Can depend on the

Analysis suitable for outcomes?
answering the research
Can replicate data?
questions?
Terminologies
 variable
 any characteristic that is not always the same
 characteristics that vary
 Dependent ?
 Independent?
 relationship
 A statement about variables
 hypothesis
 Statement that can be tested
 theory
 An explanation of how and why things happen
 Tested
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
Consider

Research 1
Research 2

Investigates how the
Investigates how peer
period of the oscillation of mentoring impacts the
the pendulum depends on learning motivation of
its length graduate students
Research 1

Variables

Dependent

Independent

Others –

Hypothesis

Theory

Instrument

Analysis
Research 2

Variables

Dependent –Motivation

Independent – ?

Others –

Hypothesis

Theory

Instrument

Analysis
How do we define motivation
‘operationally’?

Specify actions or operations to measure motivation

States that he/she spend more time working on academic
tasks

States that she/he can’t wait to go to class

Display interests – pays attention

Observed to ask questions about subject

Turns in all homework/assignments on time

??
The effects of INVOLVEMENT IN a
structured wellness program on
physical and mental well-being of
SECONDARY school teachers

What are the variables?

Is there a relationship to be
tested?
What must be operationalised?
Identify research area

Your personal interest

Accessibility

Socially relevant / useful

Reiterate the significance of your would-be research
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.
Do background reading

Systematic

Start with newspaper, magazines, tv news

Read textbook

Read reports

Read journals
Exercise

Educational Issues in Malaysia

Choose one issue

Think of a research that

Describes

Predicts

Controls

Explains