The Nature of Educational Research

Education 5400 Sections A & B July 05-23, 2010

Your Instructor
Dr. Robert Runté	E-mail: Runte@uleth.ca   Office 313 Turcotte Hall   Phone: 329-2454   Fax: 329-2252   Faculty of Education,   University of Lethbridge   4401 University Drive,   Lethbridge, Alberta,   T1K 3M4   Instructor's web pages: http://people.uleth.ca/~runte/
Course Secretary:	Margaret Beintema Phone: 403-329-2260 Room 321 Turcotte Hall

Course Goals

Calendar Description:	An introduction to the paradigms of educational inquiry, the framing of research questions and research processes and methods as it relates to a variety of educational settings.

The purpose of this introductory course is to help you develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to become competent consumers and/or producers of educational research. Specifically, by the end of this course, you will: develop an appreciation for research as a way of knowing recognize that there are a variety of legitimate approaches to the conduct of educational research be able to choose from a range of research strategies the most appropriate design for any particular research question develop a set of criteria against which to critically assess the quality of educational research recognize that any research necessarily raises ethical, political, and social issues acquire a basic repertoire of practical research techniques recognize that undertaking a research project requires particular organizational skills and writing strategies identify a question of personal relevance that can be answered through research design an action research study that could be undertaken in one's own classroom or work setting that would have immediate applicability to one's own situation OR develop a research proposal using a standard format suitable for thesis, project, grant, or leave proposals develop a deeper understanding of issues related to educational research Note that as an introductory survey course, Ed 5400 is intended to provide only a broad overview of the range of research traditions, strategies, and techniques currently represented in education. Students wishing to pursue their own research project or thesis will need to explore their chosen methodology in much greater depth than can be addressed in this course. Topic Outline Topic 1. Historical Overview of Science, Research, and Inquiry in Education Introductions Positivism Naturalism, Ethnography, and Post-Modern Approaches Action Research Design (covered in Ed 5410 Evaluating Research Readings: Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter 2 Theory and Method in Education Reseach Topic 2: Library Search Techniques Guest Lecture Wed July 7: Rumi Graham, Education Librarian Readings: On-line tutorials Topic 3. The Research Question Selecting and Defining a Research Problem (includes sidebar on hypothesis & variables) Research Ethics (Faculty procedures) (Guest Lecture: Chair,Human Subjects Research Committee) Readings: Chapter 3 The context and Ethics of Education Research Chapter 4: Research Questions Chapter 5: From Research Questions to Data Chapter 6: Literature Searching and Reviewing Chapter 10: 10.1-10.03 Quantitative Research Design Topic 4. Interview Strategy and Techniques Readings: Chapter 8, section 8.1 Topic 5. Survey Design and Sampling Readings: Chapter 11: Collecting Quantitative Data Chapter 12: Analyzing Quantitative Data Topic 6 Research Effects and Experimental Design Chapter 10: 10.4-10.9 Quantitative Research Design Topic 7 Qualitative Methodologies Participant and non-participant observation Informant interview Narrative research and autobiography Readings: Chapter 7: Qualitative Research Design Chapter 8: Qualitative Data Collection 8.2-8.6 Chapter 9: Qualitative Date Analysis Topic 8 Mixed Methods Designs Readings: Chapter 13: Mixed Methods Topic 9: Evaluation Research Readings Chapter 14: Evaluation Topic 10: Writing Research Readings: Chapter 15: Research Writing Texts The required text for this course is: Introduction to Research Methods in Education by Keith F. Punch. Sage, 2009. 398pp ISBN 9781847870186 It is available through the University of Lethbridge bookstore. The text is written in an accessible style, so you may wish to begin reading prior to July to reduce your on-campus workload. Supplementary Readings Course Blackboard site contains supplementary course readings and class handouts that should be accessed and read before each class. You should also consider purchasing The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th edition. Washington: American Psychological Association, 2009. 272 pp. NOTE: Make absolutely certain that you buy only the "second printing" (2010) as the initial printing of the 6th edition was riddled with errors and had to be recalled. Copies are also available in UofL Bookstore. All projects, theses and comprehensive examinations in the Faculty of Education must use APA format. See also http://www.apastyle.org/ for more on APA style. Please note that given the sweeping mandate of this introductory core course, it is not possible to cover topics in sufficient depth in the limited class time available to successfully master course material without significant supplementary reading. Expectations and Evaluation TBA -- I will be experimenting with a new assignment strategy for this course but have not yet decided on all the details. I wanted to get the course reader information posted as soon possible so people could begin reading ahead, so check back in a few weeks to see if I have updated the rest of the outline as well with things like assignments and scoring rubrics. For all assignments, the listed criteria indicate the minimum content requirements, but it is not necessary to organize the assignment by these headings. You are invited to develop an integrated, smoothly flowing report, so long as the required elements are included. Given the close connection between thought and expression, you will also be evaluated on the quality and clarity of your written expression, in addition to the content criteria listed above. You are advised to adopt a clear, concise style and to avoid "academese" - that is, to avoid inflated diction, unnecessarily complex sentence structure, or an obtuse style - in your submissions. Course Examination (not that I've actually decided to do one yet. Any preferences?) The course examination will consist of both multiple-choice and written response questions and will cover material presented in course lectures, the Punch text, assigned supplementary readings, and the APA manual.

Back to Top of page