Complete a critique of the quantitative and qualitative article

Summary of Qualitative and Quantitative Research Studies

Introduction

Research articles use a standard format to provide information about a research study. Readers summarize research articles in order to take notes to remember about the article, or to include the article in their research papers. However, this paper presents a summary whose reason is to enable the reader provide a critique of two research articles.

Summary of the quantitative research article

The research article “Leaves Extract from Canarium odontophyllum Miq. (Dabai) Exhibits Cytotoxic Activity against Human Colorectal Cancer Cell HCT 116”, was written by Basri, Shabry, and Meng in their quest to determine the effectiveness of leaves extracts from Dabai plant in suppressing colorectal cancers.

Research question and objective statement

The aim of the research study was assess the cytotoxic effect of water, acetone and methanol extracts from the C. odontophyllum leaves against the HCT 116 colorectal carcinoma human cells using an assay of MTT.

Hypotheses tested

Leaves extracts from C. Odontophyllum belonging to the Burseraceae species family, have greater potential of acting as an anticancer agent to alleviate colorectal cancers.

Research methods used

The researcher used experimental method collect data on the cytotoxic effect of leaves extracts from C. odontophyllum on human HCT 116 colorectal carcinoma cells. Materials used were Leaves of C. odontophyllum, acetone, methanol, distilled water, Wagner’s reagent, 1M NaOH, 0.6M HCl, and H2SO4.

Procedure

Freshly imported C. odontophyllum leaves were cut into smaller pieces and dried in an oven at 45o for 24 hours. Dried leaves with constant masses were then grinded into powder using an electrical blender and then frozen at -24o to prevent contamination. Acetone, distilled water and methanol were used to extract the dried powder. 89.69 g of powdered extract were soaked in 450 ml of acetone and mixed using magnetic stirrer at room temperature for 24 hours. The mixture was filtered twice to obtain filtrates that were mixed and then filtered further using Whatman paper No. 43. The resulting crude extract was then dried in fume hood to obtain the acetone extract. Crude methanol was also obtained using the procedure. All the extracts obtained were then stored at 40 C for at later stages.

Screening C. odontophyllum leaves for phytochemicals compound

Three qualitative chemical tests were then used to identify active components in the extracts of concentrated acetone, aqueous and methanol solutions. The alkaloid identification test involved dissolving 5 mg of each extract in distilled water before adding 3 drops of Wagner’s reagent. The solution turns to a blue-black precipitate, which reveals a positive test. Tannin identification test involved addition of 2 mg of each extract in 5 mL of distilled water to a few drops of 15 % Fecl3. The solution formed both brownish green and blue-black precipitates that indicated the presence of condensed tannin and hydrolysable tannin respectively.

Flavonoid identification test involved dissolving 2 mg of each extract was in 1M NaOH followed by drops of 0.6M HCl. The screened extracts were then analyzed for their cytotoxic effect on human colorectal carcinoma cells HCT 116 using MTT assay. The Researcher analyzed his findings and data using three tables and four graphs.

Results and discussion

Distilled water produced the highest percentage yield of 7.61% while acetone had the lowest percentage yield of 3.48%. The results indicated that distilled water is the best solvent for extracting extracts from C. odontophyllum leaves. Besides, acetone extracts had the lowest IC50 of 0.08+/- 0.003 mg/mL. However, there was no significance difference in the cytotoxic activity of extracts from acetone and methanol. Results from Phytochemical screening of the extracts indicated the presence of flavonoid, tannin and terpenoid. The constituents relate for their cytotoxic activities and act as antioxidants. Furthermore, MTT assay results exhibited the capability of all the leaf extracts to inhibit the growth of HCT 116 cells.

Implications of the results

Results on the cytotoxic effect of C. odontophyllum leaves extracts against the growth of HCT116 cells provides a way for further studies to determine how they kill cancerous cells and how to utilize active compounds from the Dabai plant .

Summary of the qualitative research article

The qualitative research article “At-Risk Students and Technology Education: A Qualitative Study”, was written by Cardon following his enquiry into the reason why at-risk students in secondary education want to remain in school.

Research question

The study aimed at establishing how at-risk students respond to programs of technological education and why at-risk students in technological courses .

Objective statement

Main objective of the study was to describe, explore and examine how at-risk students interact and experience with the curriculum of technology education.

Hypotheses tested

Most At-risk students enroll and perform well in technological, math and hands on courses than other courses in an environment that helps them to be successful.

Research methods

The researcher used observations, interviews and triangulation of evidence that involved member checking, to collect data on at-risk students’ experience with technological courses.

Procedure

The researcher used purposeful sampling to select eight at-risk participant students and obtained the evidence through observations and interviews. Evidence from observations was collected daily for six months while interviews were conducted during times convenient to the respondents. The study validated the credibility of the obtained evidence through persistent observation, prolonged engagement, and triangulation methods. Analysis of the evidence was then done using NUD*IST(r) software which uses emerging themes to compile the evidence.

Findings and discussion

Knowledge construction is part of the learning program to enable at-risk student understand and how to work with the concepts of materials, planning, and processes. The study revealed that hands-on learning was effective in teaching the at-risk students than both lecture and book work methods. Besides, findings showed that, knowledge construction for learners in technological courses included the use of hands-on techniques to know how to work with industrial processes and materials. At-risk students opt for technology courses in order to obtain technological skills to help them in future.

Implications of findings

Curriculum factors of schools influence the staying of at-risk students in school. Curricula developers should include hands-on learning based on problem solving activities in school curricula in order to enable the at-risk students to learn the material and perform better. Besides, curricula developers should integrate mathematics and science with technology education to improve performance of at-risk students

Conclusion

Research articles follow standard format of writing: title, abstract, introduction, data collection and analysis methods, results, discussion and finally references. Subject, to this format, some papers may be lengthy, wordy and difficult for readers to read with comfort. Thus summarizing the research article will help the reader to read the article easily and quickly in future. Besides, writers and other researchers can use the summarized articles to write their research papers or write a critique of the research article.

References

Basri DF, Shabry ASM, Meng CK (2015). Leaves Extract from Canarium odontophyllum Miq. (Dabai) Exhibits Cytotoxic Activity against Human Colorectal Cancer Cell HCT 116. Nat Prod Chem Res 3: 166. doi:10.4172/2329- 6836.100016

Cardon P. (2001). At-Risk Students and Technology Education: A Qualitative Study. Cardon’s research centers. The Journal of Technology Studies, Vol 1 No 2

Psychology Writing Center, Summarizing a research article 1997-2006. University of Washington

�The focus of this assignment was just to summarize. You will begin your critique in the next assignment.

�The procedure you outlined above dealt specifically with the processes used to identify water as the best fluid to use in this process – yet your results deal with the extracts themselves. This is very confusing.

�Nothing in the previous sections tells me what the connection is between the leaf extracts and cancer – or what value this may be to nursing.

�Why they what? This is an incomplete thought