This document provides an overview and guide for an educational research course. It includes introductions to key concepts like the scientific method, types of research designs, and steps for conducting research projects. Specifically, it outlines the course objectives, covers topics like the nature of science and basic/applied research, describes common research methodologies like descriptive, experimental and historical approaches, and provides assignments for students to complete over the course term.

1. EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH I
FIRST BIMESTER
ESCUELA: CIENCIAS DE LA EDUCACION
MENCION: INGLES
NOMBRES: Lcda. Alexandra Zuniga Ojeda
PERIODO: ABRIL/AGOSTO 2009
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2. Welcome
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3. 7
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LA GUÍA DIDÁCTICA
PARTES QUE COMPREDE
DAT S INFODATOS INFORMATIVOSA IVOS
IINTRODUCCIÓN
OBJETIVOS
CONTENIDOS
ORIENTACIONES PARA
EL ESTUDIO
ACTIVIDADES
COMPLEMENTARIAS
O RECOMENDADAS
ANEXOS
EVALUACIONES
A DISTANCIA
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QUÉ ES
ES LO QUE EL
PROFESOR EN EL
SISTEMA PRESENCIAL
 Instrumento didáctico.
 Auxiliar del texto básico.
 Guía al estudiante en el
aprendizaje de la asignatura.
 Orienta en el manejo del texto.
 Especifica las actividades o
tareas que los alumnos deben
desarrollar como evaluación a
distancia.
DESARROLLO DE LOS
CONTENIDOS6
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4. GENERAL OBJECTIVES
 Define basic concepts of Educational
Research.
 Identify the multiple research designs and
their characteristics.

5. CHAPTER 1
SCIENCE AND RESEARCH
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6. What is Science?
 Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary “…
knowledge attained through study or
practice,"
 Wikipedia: Science refers to any
systematic knowledge or practice. In its
more usual restricted sense, science
refers to a system of acquiring
knowledge based on scientific method,
as well as to the organized body of
knowledge gained through such
research. 6

7. What is research?
 Creswell (2008) “Research is a process
of steps used to collect and analyze
information to increase our
understanding of a topic or issue.”
 Anderson (1998) “Research in education
is a disciplined attempt to address
questions or to solve problems through
the collection and analysis of primary
data…”

8. Why is Educational Research
important?
 Education needs improvement.
 Educators face a lot of problems.
 Research: Problem-solving activity
 Develops results that help to
answer questions.
 Answers help to do things better.
 Educators become more efficient.

9. How to Research
 Identify a research problem (a problem or
issue in education that needs to be solved)
 Review the literature (locate valuable
information related to the topic)
 Specify a purpose for research (the
objective or intent of your research)
 Collect data (means to gather information from the
sample)
 Analyze and interpret the data (analyze the
information gathered )
 Write the Report 9

10. Sources of Knowledge
 Authority (experience of monarchs, despots and clerics)
 Tradition (The passing down of customs of a culture
from generation to generation.)
 Expert opinion (Broad awareness and familiarity
with the subject matter)
 Personal experience (People’s experience)
 Reason common sense (Involves reasoning by
observing specific cases)
 Documentation (Usually government documents or
knowledge that society keeps stored)
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11. Other sources
 Libraries (specialized library and become with
library)
 Books (provide summaries and general backgrounds)
 Periodicals (journals)(major inf. of prior
researches)
 Theses and dissertations (new areas of
research in the same field)
 Conferences (are indicator of what research is in
vogue.
 On-line data bases (technological tool a vast
amount of research inf.)
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12. 12

13. Ways of reasoning
Deductive reasoning
A thinking process in which one proceeds from
general to specific statements using
prescribed rules of logic.
 Deductive reasoning arrives at a specific conclusion
based on generalizations.
The major premise,
The minor premise,
The conclusion
PREMISE
a proposition that forms
the basis of an
argument.

14. Example
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All men are mortal
Socrates is a man
(Therefore,)
Socrates is mortal
conclusion
minor premise
major premise

15. Inductive reasoning
 Inductive reasoning takes events and
makes generalizations.
 In inductive reasoning a conclusion is
reached by observing examples and
generalizing from the examples to the
whole.
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16. Examples
1. I always hang pictures on nails.
Therefore: All pictures hang from nails.
2. Many speeding tickets are given to
teenagers.
Therefore: All teenagers drive fast.
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17. Summary
 In a good deductive argument, the premises
entail the conclusion. That is, if the
premises are all true, then the conclusion
has to be true.
 In a good inductive argument, the premises
make the conclusion probable. That is,
despite that the premises are true, the
conclusion is probably true.
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18. Forms of Research
 Basic Research
Basic research is concerned with
searching for knowledge, that is
fundamental and contributes to theory
formation.
Gay and Airasian (2003) Basic research
involves the process of collecting and
analyzing information to develop or
enhance a theory.
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19.  Applied Research
This research is concerned with
knowledge which has immediate
applications.
Gay and Airasian (2003) Is conducted to
evaluate its usefulness in solving
practical educational problems.
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21. Forms and Types of Research
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22. How can the researcher
influence the research?
 By having expectations for certain
outcomes.
 By making influenced interpretations
of observations.
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23. The influence of the Researcher
 Selection of the topic
 Design of the experiment
 Interaction between the researcher
and experimental conditions
 Interpretation of the data
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24. CHAPTER 2
Types of research and the
Scientific Method
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25. Scientific Method
 Wikipedia. Scientific method refers to bodies of
techniques for investigating phenomena,
acquiring new knowledge, or correcting and
integrating previous knowledge. To be termed
scientific, a method of inquiry must be based on
gathering observable, empirical and measurable
evidence subject to specific principles of
reasoning.
 A scientific method consists of the collection of
data through observation and experimentation,
and the formulation and testing of hypotheses.25

26. 26Anderson (2000)

27. In summary
What is a research Method?
 “Is an approach to addressing a
research question or problem…”
 “Research methods all need data,
though its precise nature varies from
one approach to another as does the
method by which it is processed…”
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Anderson (2000)

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Steps of the Scientific Method
Comparison between
Mason and Bramble (1997) Wikipedia
1.Identification of a
problem area
2.Clarification and
definition of the problem
1.Define the question
or problem
2.Gather information
and resources
(observe)
3.Proposal of a plausible
solution and observation
according to an approach
3. Form hypothesis

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Steps of the Scientific Method
Comparison between
Mason and Bramble (1997) Wikipedia
4.Decisions of the proposed
solution based upon the data
gathered and observations made.
4.Perform experiment and
collect data
5.Analyze data
5.Comparison of the proposed
solution with previous findings and
other observation to determine how
the solution may be integrated
with what is already known.
6.Interpret data and draw
conclusions that serve as a
starting point for new
hypotheses
7.Publish results
8.Retest (frequently done by
other scientists)

30. Types of Research
Classic categorization
by Tamayo y Tamayo (2005)
Types of
Research

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Research Type Methods/ Approaches
Descriptive Case study
Content analysis
Ethnography
Historiography
Observation
Experimental Comparative
Correlational
Ex-post facto
Quasi-experimental
Observation

32. Tips to conduct a research
 Be aware of the different types of
research.
 With this knowledge, select the correct
method to be used in the research.
 The types of research can be combined
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33. General Steps for research
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The planning
process
The research process
Clarify or define
the problem/need
Think about the research
Specify the project time
frame
Identify the topic
Define the research questions
Gather
information
Conduct a literature search
Write a literature review
Anderson (2000)

34. 34
The planning
process
The research process
Identify strategies,
tools, and methods
and then consider
alternatives and
SWOT (strengths ,
weaknesses,
opportunities,
threats)
Select a research design
Define a study population
Develop data collection
instruments
Discuss the limitations
Forecast the ethical issues
Project how the data will be
analyzed
Create the budget
Anderson (2000)

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The planning
process
The research process
Implement Collect data
Analyze and interpret data
Evaluate Write and disseminate
research findings
Identify lessons learned
Anderson (2000)

36. Characteristics of educational research
1. Educational Research attempts to solve a
problem.
2. Research involves gathering new data from
primary or first-hand sources or using existing
data for a new purpose.
3. Research is based upon observable experience or
empirical evidence.
4. Research demands accurate observation and
description.
5. Research generally employs carefully designed
procedures and rigorous analysis.
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37. 6. Research emphasizes the development of
generalizations, principles or theories that
will help in understanding, prediction
and/or control.
7. Research requires expertise-familiarity with
the field; competence in methodology;
technical skill in collecting and analyzing
the data.
8. Research attempts to find an objective,
unbiased solution to the problem and takes
great pains to validate the procedures
employed.
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38. 9. Research is a deliberate and unhurried
activity which is directional but often
refines the problem or questions as the
research progresses.
10.Research is carefully recorded and reported
to other person interested in the problem.
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Anderson (2000)

39. Historical Research
 Slavin (2007)To find connections
between events in the past.
 In education, it can help to explain
why particular educational practices
did or did not work in the past.
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The steps of the Historical Research
First
stage
The problem is formulated. Availability of
the necessary data.
Second
stage
Collection of historical data.
Third
stage
Determine the authenticity and accuracy of
the material.
Fourth
stage
Knowledge gained is integrated and
synthesized into explanations.
Fifth
stage
The data and interpretation of previous
steps are integrated to form a more general
concept.

41. Descriptive Research
 Mason and Bramble (1997) “Represents a broad
spectrum of research activities having the
common purpose of describing situations,
events, or phenomena…”
 In other words, descriptive research
involves a variety of activities which
describe present situations in real contexts
and the description might be quantitative or
qualitative.
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42. Quantitative: description of data is based on
counts or measurements which are
generally reduced to statistical indicators
such as frequencies, means and ranges.
(quantification of the phenomena)
Qualitative: data can be presented in prose,
or through audio tape, photographs of
films.
(observations, impressions and
interpretations of researchers.
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43. Ex Post Facto Research
 “After the fact” referred to as causal
comparative.
 Investigations are conducted to search
for causes of things that have already
happened by comparing previously
established conditions.
 It is useful when the variables being
investigated cannot be controlled by the
experimenter. (could be a problem)
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44. Experimental/Quasi-Experimental
 Involves systematic manipulation of
experimental conditions in which
extraneous influences are controlled or
eliminated.
 Experimental studies involve
comparing conditions under various
setting of the treatment
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Experimental and Quasi-Experimental
Subjects might be divided into two groups (random
assignment of subjects)
One group undergo a treatment condition
(experimental or treatment group)
The other group receives a neutral treatment
(control group)
Group comparison after the treatment is applied
The only difference between the two groups
should be the treatment.

46. Assignment First Bimestre
OBJECTIVE PART
Activity 1
 True and false statements.
ESSAY PART
Activity 2
 Write two examples of deductive and two
examples inductive arguments and write the
concept of each one.
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47. Activity 3
Find an article in a professional journal
that reports a research study, then
identify the steps of the scientific
method and write the correct
information under the name of the
corresponding step.
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48. Activity 4
 Describe in your own words each type of
research. And give the title of a research
done according to each type and the source
from which you retrieved each one.
Historical Research
Descriptive Research
Experimental Research
Quasi-Experimental Research
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49. Final Suggestions
 Work with a dictionary all the time.
 When you retrieve information from
the internet copy the name of the
source, so you can cite and avoid
plagiarism.
 Search any source in English or Spanish
that can contribute to understand the
topics of this subject.
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50. QUESTIONS ???
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