The document discusses qualitative and quantitative research approaches in educational research. It provides definitions and characteristics of each approach, including commonly used terminology, underlying assumptions, goals, research design, data collection and analysis methods, and the researcher's role. Qualitative research is described as focusing on meaning, understanding, and social construction through naturalistic and interpretive methods. It aims to describe multiple realities rather than make generalized predictions. Quantitative research applies experimental methods and statistical analysis to test hypotheses and predict outcomes.

1. QUALITATIVE
METHOD

2. APPROACHES TO EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH:
QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITAVE APPROACHES.
Methodological concerns in educational research:
 Lack of a single, appropriate method to study education
 Quantitative (i.e., positivist)
 Qualitative (i.e., post-positivist, interpretive,
constructivist)
 Combination of both
Qualitative approach Quantitative approach
• insight, discovery, interpretation
• subjective understandings
• words and images
• why? in what way?
• hypothesis testing
• natural science
• numbers and facts
• quantity, amount, frequency

3. Underlying assumptions of quantitative and
qualitative approaches
 Quantitative
 There exists an external universe that human beings
can know.
 Events in the universe are determined by a finite set
of causes.
 The essential elements of events will recur.
 Qualitative
 There can be no knowledge of things-in-themselves,
only of things as they are accessible to human
consciousness.
 Human beings can examine their own experiences of
reality and accurately describe them.

4. Characteristics differentiating quantitative and
qualitative approaches
 Commonly used terminology
 Key concepts
 Goals
 Research design
 Subjects being sampled
 Data, data collection, and data analysis
 Researcher's role
 Context

5. Characteristics differentiating quantitative and
qualitative approaches:
Commonly used terminology
 Quantitative: positivist, experimental, hard data, statistical
 Qualitative: naturalistic, field research, ethnography,
phenomenology, anthropological, ecological, interpretive,
constructivist
Key concepts
 Quantitative: variables, operationalization, control, reliability, validity,
hypothesis testing, statistical significance, replication
 Qualitative: meaning, understanding, social construction, context.
Goals
 Quantitative: research tests theory, establishes facts, shows
relationships, predicts, or statistically describes
 Qualitative: research establishes grounded theory, develops
understanding, describes multiple realities, or captures naturally
occurring behavior

6. Research design
 Quantitative research uses designs that are highly
structured, formal, and specific (e.g., pretest, posttest
experimental control group design)
 Qualitative research uses flexible, unstructured designs
which evolve over the course of the research.
Subjects being sampled
 Quantitative studies involve many subjects who are
representative of the groups from which they are chosen.
Subjects are chosen using probabilistic sampling
techniques (i.e., random sampling, stratified random
sampling).
 Qualitative studies involve few subjects who have
specific characteristics or traits of interest to the
researchers. Because they are chosen using non-
probabilistic sampling techniques (i.e., purposeful
sampling), the subjects are not necessarily
representative of the groups from which they are chosen.

7. Data, data collection, and data analysis
 Quantitative studies use numerical data that is typically collected at
specific times (e.g., pretest and posttest) from tests, surveys,
structured observations, or structured interviews. Data is analyzed
statistically.
 Qualitative studies use narrative data (i.e., text) that is typically
collected over a long period of time from observations, interviews, or
reviews of documents or artifacts.
Researcher's role
 Quantitative researchers are characterized as detached, objective
observers of events. They remain distant from the subjects.
 Qualitative researchers are characterized as participant observers.
They have responsibilities to observe and report data that reflects
the subject's perspectives; to do so they must develop a long-term,
close, trusting relationship with the participants.
Context
 Quantitative researchers manipulate and control the setting to
assure the isolation of the variables of interest and the control of
extraneous variables.
 Qualitative researchers observe in naturalistic settings, that is, the
natural setting in which events occur.

8. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
 Meanings and processes (“the world from the point of view of the
people studied” Hammersley, 1992)
 Naturally occurring data.
 Observation rather than experiment.
 Unstructured rather than structured interviews.
 Inductive method, hypothesis: generating research rather than
hypothesis testing.
 Studying things in their natural settings.
 Making sense of or interpreting phenomena in terms of the
meanings people bring.
 Multi-method.
 Interpretive, naturalistic approach to its subject matter.
 Oakley (1994) suggest that ‘qualitative’ is used to describe research
which emerges from observation of participants.

9. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH DESIGNS
 A qualitative "approach" is a general way
of thinking about conducting qualitative
research. It describes, either explicitly or
implicitly, the purpose of the qualitative
research, the role of the researcher(s), the
stages of research, and the method of
data analysis.
 Here, some of the major qualitative
approaches are introduced.

10. Qualitative research designs
Qualitative research
designs
Ethnography
Etnomethodology
Grounded theory
Phenomenology
Narrative studies
Case studies

11. Case studies:
 In-depth study of a single program, event,
activity, group, or other entity over a sustained
period of time (e.g.,studying the reactions of
teachers and students to an internet-based
class)
 A case study is an intensive study of a specific
individual or specific context.
 There is no single way to conduct a case
study, and a combination of methods (e.g.,
unstructured interviewing, direct observation)
can be used.
 An in-depth analysis of one or more events,
settings, programs, groups, or other “bounded
systems”

12. Phenomenology:
 Studying a phenomena to fully understand its
essence (e.g., describe the essence of the
relationships between students and a school
counselors).
 Phenomenology is sometimes considered a
philosophical perspective as well as an
approach to qualitative methodology.
 Phenomenology is a school of thought that
emphasizes a focus on people's subjective
experiences and interpretations of the world.
That is, the phenomenologist wants to
understand how the world appears to others.

13. Ethnography:
 Studying an intact cultural group in a natural setting
during a prolonged period of time (e.g., understanding
the personal, social, and political interactions of
teachers in a specific school)
 It attempts to fully describe a variety of aspects and
norms of a cultural group to enhance understanding of
the people being studied.
 This qualitative approach comes from the field of
anthropology.
 The emphasis in ethnography is on studying an entire
culture.
 The most common ethnographic approach is
participant observation as a part of field research.
The ethnographer becomes immersed in the culture as
an active participant and records extensive field notes.
There is no preset limiting of what will be observed and
no real ending point in an ethnographic study.

14. Grounded theory:
 Studying a particular environment to generate or discover a
theory that describes it (e.g., understanding the meaning of
"inclusion" from the perspectives of the special needs
student, the regular student, and the teachers)
 The self-defined purpose of grounded theory is to develop
theory about phenomena of interest. Grounded theory is a
complex iterative process.
 It seeks to develop theory out of data collected during
the study.
 The research begins with the raising of generative
questions which help to guide the research but are not
intended to be either static or confining. As the researcher
begins to gather data, core theoretical concept(s) are
identified.
 Tentative linkages are developed between the theoretical
core concepts and the data. This early phase of the
research tends to be very open and can take months.
 Later on the researcher is more engaged in verification and
summary. The effort tends to evolve toward one core
category that is central.

15. Grounded theory:
 There are several key analytic strategies:
 Coding is a process for both categorizing qualitative data
and for describing the implications and details of these
categories.
 Memoing is a process for recording the thoughts and ideas
of the researcher as they evolve throughout the study.
 Integrative diagrams and sessions are used to pull all of
the detail together, to help make sense of the data with
respect to the emerging theory.
 Grounded theory doesn't have a clearly demarcated point for
ending a study. Essentially, the project ends when the
researcher decides to quit.
 You are finished when you have an extremely well-considered
explanation for some phenomenon of interest (the grounded
theory). This theory can be explained in words and is usually
presented with much of the contextually relevant detail
collected.
 Such ‘open-ended’ studies require meticulous recording; and
constant scrutiny of data to aid recognition of themes.

16. CASE STUDY
 Focus on one entity
 Defined by time and place
 Types of case studies:
 Historical organizational → focus on the development of an
organization over time
 Observational → study of a single entity using participant
observation
 Life history (i.e., oral history) → a first-person narrative
completed with one person
 Situation analysis → a study of a specific event from multiple
perspective
 Multi-case → a study of several different independent entities
 Multi-site → a study of many sites and participants, the main
purpose of which is to develop theory
 Concern with the limited generalizability of the findings

17.  Research problem statement:
 Focus on in-depth description and understanding
 Use of a single major question and several sub-questions
 Emerging nature of the problems
 Identifying and entering the research site:
 Access to all parts of the site (e.g., the participants,
documents, physical locations, etc.)
 Rapport → need to be "integrated" within the site to gain the
trust of the participants
 Often site entry takes a long time
 Selecting participants:
 Participants are usually identified as a part of the site of the
study (e.g., a classroom, teachers in a specific department,
etc.)
 Internal sampling → selecting specific participants, times, and
documents within a site

18.  Obtaining data:
 Observation
 Unstructured in nature
 Comprehensive → continuous and total over an
extended period of time
 Participant-observer role of the researcher
 Continuum between complete participant and
complete observer
 Use of field notes to record observations
 Two types of information
 Descriptions of what occurred
 Reflections of what the descriptions mean (i.e.,
speculations, emerging themes, patterns,
problems)
 Accuracy
 Extensive nature of notes

19.  Interviews
 Unstructured in nature
 Begins with a general idea of what needs to be asked and
moves to specific questions based on what the respondent says
 Types of interviews
 Key informant
 Life history
 Focus group
 Tape recording and transcribing interviews afford the opportunity
to study the data carefully
 Document analysis
 Written records
 Print (e.g., minutes from meetings, reports, yearbooks,
articles, diaries)
 Non-print (e.g., recordings, videotapes, pictures)
 Types of sources
 Primary → original work
 Secondary → secondhand interpretations of original work
 Commonly used to verify other observations or interview data

20.  Data analysis:
 Procedures
 Observations, interviews, and document analyses result in large
quantities of narrative data
 Analysis includes critically examining, summarizing, and
synthesizing the data
 Three stages of analysis
 Coding: organizing the data into reasonable, meaningful units
that are coded with words or very short phrases that signify a
category
 Emic categories - information provided by the
participants in their own language and organizational
units
 Etic categories - the researcher's interpretation of emic
data

21.  Summarizing the coded data
 Examining all similarly coded data and summarizing it with a
sentence or two that reflects its essence
 Computerized sorting of data is common and effective
 Pattern seeking and synthesizing
 Synthesizing identifies the relationships among the
categories and patterns that suggest generalization
 The researcher interprets findings inductively, synthesizes
the information, and draws inferences
 Pattern seeking
 Begins with the researcher's informed hunches and ideas
 Tentative patterns are identified and additional data
collected to determine if they are consistent with those
patterns
 Characterized by enlarging, combining, subsuming, and
creating new categories that make sense

22. Data analysis
Four types of data analysis
 Categorical aggregation → researcher codes data
and collects instances from which meanings will
emerge
 Direct interpretation → use of a single example to
illustrate meaning
 Drawing patterns → examines the correspondence
between two or more categories or codes
 Naturalistic generalization → suggestions as to
what others can take from the research and apply
to other situations

23. Ethnography
 An ethnography is an in-depth description and
interpretation of cultural patterns and
meanings within a culture or social group
 Culture → shared patterns of beliefs, normative
expectations, behaviours, and meanings
 Shared, not individualistic
 Problem statements:
 Foreshadowed problem → a general framework for
beginning a qualitative study.
 Specific question → a question(s) that emerge from
the interactive relationship between the problem
and data
 Often found embedded in the data analysis
 Changing nature of questions often necessitates changes
in the design (i.e., an emergent design)

24.  Identifying and entering the research site (same as
case study)
 Access to all parts of the site (e.g., the participants,
documents, physical locations, etc.)
 Rapport - need to be "integrated" within the site to gain the
trust of the participants
 Often site entry takes a long time
 Selecting participants
 Purposeful sampling strategies
 Maximum variation → selecting individuals or cases to
represent extremes (e.g., very positive or very negative
attitudes, highest and lowest achieving students).
 Snowball (i.e., network) → initially selected participants
recommend others for involvement
 Sampling by case → selecting individuals or cases for their
unique characteristics.
 Key informant → selecting an individual(s) particularly
knowledgeable about the setting and or topic.
 Comprehensive → selecting all relevant individuals or cases.

25.  Obtaining data (same as case study)
 Observation
 Interviews
 Document analysis
 Data analisis (same as case study)
 Observations, interviews, and document analyses
result in large quantities of narrative data
 Analysis includes critically examining, summarizing,
and synthesizing the data.
 Three stages of analysis
 Coding. (emic and etic- categories)
 Summarizing the coded data.( summarize similar data in a
sentence)
 Pattern seeking and synthesizing. (Identify the relationships
among the categories and patterns that suggest
generalization)

26. Criteria of Scientific Rigor
 Quantitative
 Veracity
(internal validity)
 Applicability
(external validity)
 Consistency (reliability)
 Impartiality or neutrality
(objectivity)
 Qualitative
 Credibility
 Transferable
 Dependency
(investigator profile, physical
social context, detailed
description)
 Conformable
(reference framework,
triangulation, checking with
participants…)

27. Standards for judging the quality of research
Criteria for Judging Quantitative
Research.
Criteria for Judging Qualitative
Research
Internal validity Credibility
External validity Transferability
Reliability Dependability (context, wide
description…)
Objectivity Confirmability (triangulation, other
participants…)