Welcome To EDP 656 Methodology of Ed Research

Welcome To EDP 656: Methodology of Ed Research Dr. Kelly Bradley

Student Information • • Name Phone Number Email Address Fun Fact

Hello I am… • Name? • Major, Advisor? • Why are you here? • Fun fact?

Questions of the Day Syllabi Course Content • Goals for the course • What is research? • My expectations • Research methods are used for… • Questions? • Why study educational research?

Why study educational research? • To become research literate • Our society is driven by research • Improve critical thinking skills • To learn how to critique published research • To learn how to conduct research of your own

Research methods are used for… Research methods are most often used for 2 major purposes: 1. To establish facts a. Incidence of violence on high school campuses b. Number of American adults over 18 engaging in physical exercise 2. To test (and establish) ‘causal’ explanations for established facts a. Students who engage in explosive violence on high school campuses have been bullied at that school. b. Men more often engage in physical exercise than women.

What is research? The word ‘research’ is derived from the Latin word meaning “to know”

Research is about answering questions, such as: • What do I want to know? • How do I want to gain knowledge? • Why do I want to know it?

Research can be seen as: • A group of assumptions; a strategy for knowledge; a belief system about evidence • An established body of evidence • A collection of methods, tools, and techniques • A purposeful or functional activity • A process carried on by people

Components of research as a belief system 1. Nature is orderly and regular 2. We can know nature 3. Knowledge is better than ignorance 4. All natural phenomena have natural causes 5. Nothing is self evident, but must be verified or falsified 6. Knowledge is derived from observation of nature

An established body of knowledge, research is the accumulation of evidence by researchers over time. It provides a background against which claims for knowledge can be evaluated, and provides a way for researchers to communicate and compare their findings.

Research as a collection of methods, tools, and techniques forms the basis for most research texts and courses in research; its methods are what set it apart from other ways of acquiring knowledge.

As a purposeful or functional activity, research must justify the resources it consumes to accomplish its purposes.

When research is seen as a process carried on by people, questions can be asked: • • • Where do research topics come from? Where is research done? Who does research? Who uses research? How is it shared? How is it funded?

Five objectives: 1. Exploration • Generate ideas about something 2. Description • Describe the characteristics of something 3. Explanation • • Show and why a phenomenon operates as it does causality and explanation usually go hand in hand 4. Prediction • Making accurate predications 5. Influence • Application of research results to impact the world

Research might be classified into the following categories: • Exploratory research • Descriptive research • Explanatory research • Predictive research

Good Luck… Enjoy the exploration!