BIZZNA TUTOR Statistics and research

Objective: Following completion of this course, the student will understand the general classification schema for research.

There are several ways to categorize different kinds of research. Please view the schematic that you’ll find in the section on quantitative research. One of the most fundamental is basic versus applied. By far, the preponderance of educational research is applied. We generally think of basic research as it more frequently occurs in the sciences. Examining the theoretical foundations of the beginning of the universe, trying to validate Darwin’s Theory of Evolution,

Item#6 in your study

Your study!

and other such projects are certainly worthy endeavors, leading to simple expansion of knowledge rather than of some immediately applied benefit. However, in education, we’re more interested and involved in solving problems. Just how much does a certain math software package do in terms of facilitating mastery of multiplication and division? Is mainstreaming effective in countering self-image problems of special education students? Will mandatory retention of third-graders who cannot read affect eventual graduation rates? These are examples of applied research, answers to which allow us to immediately make improvements in some aspect of education.

Research can be classified as either quantitative or qualitative. You will use both in the research project to be completed in this class. The former, quantitative, requires the use of statistics for analysis of data. Look at the schematic on the preceding page and locate descriptive under the quantitative heading. You will design and carry out a descriptive pilot study this semester; it will require some basic statistical analysis skills which you master in a subsequent assignment. Look at the arrow on the schematic on page 50. That is what you’ll be doing, a combination quantitative and qualitative study..

Qualitative research does not require the use of statistics. It is sometimes termed ethnographic research, coming from long-time use by anthropologists and relies upon such as observation of behaviors in a natural setting, interpretation of documents or records, interviews, and open-ended questions used in surveys. Details on techniques of qualitative analysis and writing will be addressed later in this text.

Additional reading

Dominowski, R. L. (1980). Research methods. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall.

Firth, R. (1984). Ethnographic research: a guide to general conduct. Orlando: Academic Press.

Schmuck, R. (2006). Practical action research for change. Thousand Oaks,

Calif.: Corwin Press.

QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

Objective: Following completion of this course, the student will have the basic skills necessary for doing qualitative research and will understand the process.

You might recall reading about Margaret Mead, a famous anthropologist who lived among primitive societies and wrote of their lifestyles and habits. While her work has been criticized in later years, she was one of a group of pioneer ethnographers. This particular kind of qualitative research, ethnography, is particularly appropriate in education settings. The idea is to take a fly on the wall approach, to observe unobtrusively, taking notes about specific behaviors and then writing narratives after analyzing those notes for repeating themes, common threads, patterns, and specific critical events. This was originally designed as cultural exploration, but nobody should argue against the concept that the classroom represents a unique culture that merits examination.

In observation of the classroom culture, one might use modern technology and perhaps use video for later analysis. One might take notes, in which case it is important to transcribe and clarify those notes as soon as possible so that they’re fresh and nothing important is lost through not being able to interpret what later might seem to be sketchy or incomplete material.

Case studies represent another aspect of qualitative research where a single individual is observed over a long period of time with data gathered through video, observation and note taking, interviews, or other means. Analysis is as was noted above, looking for patterns and synthesizing information.

Student journals are a very good source of information for qualitative analysis. An isolated complaint or event might be meaningless, but if the same event is mentioned in a similar fashion by several students, it begins to take on meaning.

Counselors might interview a large group of students following some traumatic event and find common threads of thought occurring in many that bear consideration as leading to means of assisting those students through the period of recovery. Whatever the case in terms of the data, analysis is a tedious process that might involve reading and re-reading masses of notes or documents or viewing video several times as the analysis continues. In this review of data, one looks for repetitions in actions, thoughts, or information. Isolated events generally are not of any importance. It is when you find something that occurs or is reported multiple times that it is worth reporting and discussing. After these commonalities in data are identified and recorded it is time for writing. It is effective at times to mention the frequency that a concept is tallied in order to give an indication of relative weighting. The product will be a rich narrative that addresses in a logical fashion what was observed, what meaning was attached, and perhaps suggests action to take. There is no one size fits all approach to this sort of analysis or writing. You must be flexible, thoughtful, patient, and logical in your final organization of the paper. While this might seem tedious and somewhat nebulous, it is a very rewarding kind of research that lends itself well to education, one that you might enjoy.

Additional reading

Fischer, C. T. (2005). Qualitative research methods for psychologists: introduction to empirical studies. Boston, MA: Elsevier Academic Press.

McIlwain, C. D. (2006). Qualitative methods [videorecording]. New York:

Insight Media.