2. EXERCISE 1
Why do students withdraw from their studies?
Studied from 3 contrasting methods
In each case, imagine designing the project
What factors might you need to consider
(e.g. selecting samples, verifying accuracy)
in each case to produce a high quality study.
3. What type of question am I trying to ask?
- Exploring peoples’ perceptions?
- Analysing patterns of behaviours?
- Understanding reasons behind behaviours?
What is the most appropriate way of answering
that question?
- Quantitative / Qualitative / Mixed method ?
Is there a particular research strategy I will use?
• Experiment
• Correlation study / statistical comparison
• Observation
• Experiential study
• Content analysis of text
Selecting appropriate data collection tools
Interviews? Questionnaires? Observations?
Documentary evidence? Database records?
4. Locating & aligning research
Epistemology
What is the researcher’s ‘way of knowing’ that guides enquiry?
Objectivist, Subjectivist
Research perspective
Is a particular school of thought influential to research design?
Feminist, post-modernist, constructivist
Research design strategy
What strategy will be adopted for answering the research question?
Experiment, longitudinal study, narrative, observation, text analysis
Research method / instrument of data collection
How will data be collected?
Questionnaire, dataset, interview, observation schedule
A good research design will be coherent with clear links
between research question, project design and method of data
collection.
5. Viewed through an objective ‘lens’
There is only one reality
Researcher is detached, objective and aims to establish facts
Aim is to remove context and identify universal principle
Empirical ‘scientific’ evidence
Generalisable results
EXAMPLE: What predicts high performance in mathematics?
6. Viewed through a subjective ‘lens’
There are multiple realities
Reality is constructed in the minds of individuals
Researcher is immersed in research process and interpretation
Context is part of reality; natural setting needed for interpretation
Aim is to understand reasoning, decision-making, construction of
world views
EXAMPLE: How do students recognise excellent teaching?
7. Viewed through a critical theory ‘lens’
Whose interests are being served by policy?
What are underlying values and assumptions in texts?
What power-relationships are implied in structures?
How did we get to our current state of thinking?
Aims to critique society & culture for transformation
EXAMPLE: Is plagiarism a Western idea, rooted in concepts of
individualism & intellectual property?
8. Validity in quantitative ‘objectivist’ research
Characterised by:
• Predictability of theory
• Replicability of results
• Success of application of universal laws
• Removal of context
• Randomisation of samples
• Observability
• Appropriateness of instrumentation
• Appropriateness of statistical treatment of data
9. Validity in qualitative ‘subjectivist’ research
Characterised by, and validity defined by:
• Transparency in methods, researchers stance
• Choice of participants
• Honesty, richness, depth and scope of the data achieved
• Accuracy in catching meaning and interpretation
• Use of triangulation
• Disinterestedness and objectivity of the researcher (who is central
to the interpretation process).
• Preservation of context, representing natural setting accurately
• Socially situated and culturally rich data
10. Locating your study
- Is the question you are trying to answer aligned to appropriate
methodology?
- Is the literature you draw on from a specific paradigm, or does it
collate a range of methodologies?
- Will you locate study within a particular research paradigm?
- add to the empirical evidence
- Will you reference your research against a contrasting body of literature?
- provide qualitative insight into quantitative-dominated field
- Literature review: contrast objective vs subjective research?
- Will you add a unique disciplinary perspective to largely generic concepts
