Irena Andrews (Programme Leader) Andy DaviesKeith Turvey (Course Leader)Richard Wallis

MA Education (Teaching Leaders)

KV712 Research Contexts Professional Enquiry 2013/14 

Constructing knowledgeMasters level research aims to produce warrantable knowledge

•It can inform theory, policy and practice•We aim not only to find out, but also to convince others•Frameworks guide and shape our inquiry•Research does not take place in a vacuum

A community of scholars who share similar conceptions of proper questions, methods, techniques and forms of explanations

Paradigm the word that describes the

community of scholars and the conception of problem and method they share (Schulman, 1986; Sparkes, 1998:11)

Paradigms provide particular sets of lenses for seeing the world and making sense of it in different ways (Sparkes, 1992:12)

Paradigms are basic belief systems that represent the most fundamental positions we are willing to take (Guba and Lincoln, 1998:24)

A set of assumptions which a group of scientists or other theorists share, and which form a basis for their investigations (Kuhn, 1962, 1970 in Swann and Pratt, 2003:207)

3 elements of a paradigm (Guba and Lincoln, 1998, p.201 - 220)

Ontology: What is the form and nature of reality/truth?

Epistemology: What is the nature of the relationship between the knower (you) and what can be known (knowledge)?

Methodology: How can the enquirer find out what s/he believes can be known?

Quantitative Research• Views social world as hard and objective

and similar to the natural world

• Assumes that clear cause and effect relationships can be established while scrutinising human behaviour

• Knowledge of the social world is discovered in the same way as scientists discover knowledge about the physical world

• Knowledge is gained only through our senses

• Facts are substantiated scientifically or by a large number of people

Qualitative Research• Based on the premise that the social world

is different from the natural world and what we see is not necessarily the truth

• Cause and effect statements cannot always be made to explain events

• Social reality is created by human experience rather than discovered

• Aims to describe views, perceptions and events scientifically to explain phenomena

Mixed Research approaches

•Recognises multiple influences

•Takes a pragmatic approach

•Collects different types of data simultaneously or sequentially to best understand research problems

Influences on the research process process

Adapted from Newby 2010 p 32

Philosophy ParadigmsEducational

theory

Research process

Methodology MethodsResearch question

‘Philosophy

Paradigm s

Educational theory

Research

process

Met hodology

Met hods

Research quest ion

In groups discuss

What type of researcher am I and how can I articulate this in the light of philosophy, values and paradigms?

What type of researcher am I and how might that affect my choice of methodology and hence the sort of research I might do?

Why?

Common research models in teacher research

What is:

• Action research?

• Case study?

• Evaluation?

What type of outcomes might you

expect in each case?

Action Research

Research and action together

• change to practices occurs within the research project;

• the research process has discrete cycles;

• literature reading is cyclical; • knowledge claimed from a

singularity, generalisability is fuzzy

Case Study and Evaluation

•change to practices emerge after the research project;

• research process is linear; • literature reading provides

context for analysis; •knowledge claimed from a

singularity, generalisability is fuzzy

Survey•change to practices emerge after the research project;

•practices drawn from the quantitative paradigm;

• research process is linear;

•literature reading is context for analysis;

•knowledge claimed is generalisable to a defined population.

Experimental research• Aims to show relationship between cause and

effect – eg effect of TA’s on reading ability• Groups need to be matched for age, gender,

social class, ethnicity etc• True experiment: a laboratory setting.

Variables isolated, controlled and manipulated

Quasi-experiment: a natural setting. Variables isolated, controlled and manipulated. – Difficult to match groups and achieve corresponding features between groups in a natural setting

Intended Research Outcomes

Some associated approaches

Some examples of questions

Changes in practice – How can…?How has…?

Action research

Evaluative case studies

How can we improve teachingHow effective was ….

Data gathered and analysed – Statements of what is the case

Surveys: Questionnaires and Interviews (descriptive analysis)Ethnographic studies (illustrative narrative)

What do teachers think about the role of ICT in the curriculum?

New explanations – explanatory theories of what is the case

Experimental/quasi- experimental research (Hypothesis testing)Ethnographic studiesSurveys – open ended and semi structured interviews

Why are teachers responding in this way to this particular initiative?

Data Collection tools

•Questionnaires• Interviews•Focus Groups•Observation•Documentary evidence

Documentary evidence

•Source – is it current? Reliable? Accurate?•Where did it come from and who is it for?•How might interpretations of different recipients (parents/pupils /teachers/ policy makers) vary?•What implicit values, ideologies or assumptions about the social/political/ educational context are present?•What alternative discourses exist?

The place of the researcher

• Detached observer: ‘One way mirror’ looking in from the

outside

• Observer who balances participation with detachment; closeness with distance; familiarity with strangeness

• Complete participant: Complete participation, lives with the respondents

5 important focussing questions

1 What is the nature of the phenomenon or process or social reality that I wish to investigate?

2 What will count as evidence?3 What broad area is the research

concerned with?4 What is the intellectual puzzle?5 What do I want to get out of it?6 What do I want to be able to say?

(after Mason, J. (1996) Qualitative Researching London: Sage Publications

An intellectual puzzle?

• Research is not a report, or a quick fix solution

• Research is grounded in and informed by theory

• Theory is concerned with the systematic construction of knowledge

• It can explain phenomena• Enlighten about what is already known

and how that knowledge has been constructed

• Research based in a theoretical framework can help us to formulate questions and tell us how to proceed

• Think about your Impact Initiative in the light of a masters level research study * How can the two activities complement each other?

*Where are the potential tensions?

* How might you plan to address this?

Discuss

Frames for research questions

Research questions

What

ContextCommunity of practiceYou and positionsConcerns for whom and why

Meanings/frameworks

Data?Ethics?

Feasible – time & resources

What/when/how?

Fit?Enquire

into what?

Researchable?

Concepts: What are the main concepts in your research thinking? How will you describe them?

Issues: Draw a map indicating the key ideas of debate and contestation that are relevant to your particular concerns.

Contexts: Draw up a genealogy of the key thinkers in your research area to indicate the development of theories, perspectives or methodsFrom: Blaxter et al (2001) How to Research Buckingham: Open University Press

Getting started – individually start to identify the following: