RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Making a Preliminary Choice of Methodology
Distinguish between three related concepts:
i) Research Perspectives
ii) Research Types
iii) Research Methods
Research Perspectives
Quantitative and Qualitative Perspectives
A research perspective, as used here, is a general view and use of research approaches and methods. There are two major perspectives: quantitative and qualitative. The quantitative perspective derives from a positivist epistemology, which holds that there is an objective reality that can be expressed numerically. As a consequence the quantitative perspective emphasizes studies that are experimental in nature, emphasize measurement, and search for relationships. If a study uses language such as the following, it probably has used quantitative perspective i.e. variable, controls, validity, reliability, hypothesis, statically significant.
On the other hand, a qualitative perspective emphasizes a phenomenological view in which reality inheres in the perceptions of individuals. Studies deriving from this perspective focus on meaning, understanding, and take place in naturally occurring situations (McMillan, 1996). If a study uses language such as the following, it probably has used a qualitative perspective: naturalistic, field study, case study, context, situational, constructivism, meaning, multiple realities.
While some researchers seem chiefly concerned with the differences between the two approaches, Morgan (1997) explains how the two perspectives can be combined. He identifies four general ways of combining the two, based upon two factors: a) which one is primary and which secondary; b) which one is used first and which, second.
1. Quantitative primary, qualitative first. The researcher begins with a qualitative approach as the secondary method, using the qualitative data as a basis for collecting and interpreting the quantitative data (the primary method).
2. Quantitative primary, quantitative first. The researcher begins with a quantitative approach as the primary method, using qualitative follow-up to evaluate and interpret the quantitative results.
3. Qualitative primary, quantitative first. The researcher begins by collecting quantitative preliminary data as a basis for collecting and interpreting the primary qualitative data.
4. Qualitative primary, qualitative first. The researcher begins with the primary qualitative data, using quantitative follow up to interpret the qualitative data.
Research Types
The term research type is used here to identify the general research approach. While authorities in the field seem to differ as to how the types of research are classified, the following approaches, which are most often used in educational research, represent some of the options available to you as a researcher. To simplify the discussion, they are divided into whether they tend to use a quantitative or a qualitative perspective, although there is much overlapping in many of the types.
Studies Primarily Quantitative in Nature
The following types of research are primarily quantitative in nature.
Experimental Research
Experimental research uses methods originally applied in the physical and biological sciences. In most experiments the following procedures are used: a sample of subjects is selected; they are assigned randomly to experimental and control groups; a treatment is administrated to the experimental group only. The two groups are then evaluated on the basis of dependent variable and the consequence of the independent variable. The latter is the presumed cause of the dependent variable.
Quasi-Experimental Research
A quasi-experimental design is one that follows the general procedures of experimental research, without the use of control group or without random assignment, since random assignment or the use of control groups is often not feasible in educational settings.
Causal-Comparative Research
Causal comparative studies are designed to determine the possible causes of a phenomenon. Sometimes these studies are called ex post facto research.
Co relational Research
Correlation studies are designed to analyze the relationships between two or more variables, ordinarily through the use of correlation coefficients.
Descriptive Research
As the term implies, the purpose of descriptive research is to describe a phenomenon. Descriptive studies report frequencies, averages, and percentages. For example, you might study the attitudes.
Evaluation Research
Evaluation research makes judgments about the merit or wroth of educational programs, products, and organizations. It is typically undertaken in order to aid administrators in making professional decisions. Evaluation studies are usually described as either formative or summative. Formative studies are made while a new program or product is being developed; summative studies, when it has been completed. You might do an evaluation of a new standard-based curriculum performing both a formative and a summative assessment.
Studies Primarily Qualitative in Nature
The following types of research tend to take a qualitative perspective.
Case Study Research
A case study is an empirical inquiry that investigates a contemporary phenomenon within its real life context when the boundaries between phenomenon and context are not clearly evident; and in which multiple source of evidence are used.
Ethnographic research
Ethnographic research
Ethnographic research is special types of case study research. It is distinguished from other types of case studies because it uses the theories and methods of anthropology to study the culture of schools and classrooms.
Action Research
Most action research documents deal with how an educational problem was identified, understood, and solved by practitioners.
Research Methods
Research methods, as the term is used here, are the specific techniques used to collect data with respect to the research problem. In general, five methods are typically used in educational research.
1. Test and measurements. Tests are administered and measurements made to determine the extent of change.
2. Interviews. Interviews are conducted with individuals or groups to ascertain their perceptions.
3. Observations. Observations are made to determine what is occurring and what individuals are doing.
4. Surveys. Surveys are administered to assess opinions, perceptions, and attitudes.
5. Documents. Documents are analyzed to establish the record.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Understanding the concept of documentation
How to make documents
i) MLA Modern Language Association (name &page ref at each place where source is used, a parenthetical citation system
ii) APA American psychological association a parenthetical citation system source name and publication system and sometimes page reference
Your essay should be typed, double-spaced on standard-sized paper (8.5 X 11 inches) with margins of 1 inch on all sides. Your final essay should include, in the order indicated below, as many of the following sections as are applicable, each of which should begin on a separate page:
Title page: includes a running head for publication, title, and byline and affiliation.
General APA Guidelines
Image Caption: Sample APA title page; running head and page number in upper right-hand corner, definition of running head IN ALL CAPS, and vertically and horizontally centers the title of the paper, its author and her affiliation to the page.
Page numbers and running head:
In the upper right-hand corner of each page, include a 1-2 word version of your title. Follow with five spaces and then the page number.
Abstract:
If your instructor requires an abstract, write a 75-100 word overview of your essay which should include your main idea and your major points. You also may want to mention any implications of your research. Place the abstract on its own page immediately after the title page. Center the word Abstract and then follow with the paragraph.
Headings:
Although not absolutely necessary, headings can be helpful. For undergraduate papers, only one level of heading is necessary. Major headings should be centered. Capitalize every word in the heading except articles (a, the), short prepositions (in, by, for), and coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or).
Visuals:
Visuals such as tables and figures include graphs, charts, drawings, and photographs. Try to keep the visuals as simple as possible and clearly label each visual with an Arabic numeral (ex: Table 1, Table 2, etc.) and include the title of the visual. The label and the title should appear on separate lines above the table, flush left. Below the table, provide the source. A sample Figure treatment is shown below.
Reference List: Basic Rules
Your reference list should appear at the end of your paper. It provides the information necessary for a reader to locate and retrieve any source you cite in the body of the paper. Each source you cite in the paper must appear in your reference list; likewise, each entry in the reference list must be cited in your text.
Your references should begin on a new page separate from the text of the essay; label this page References (with no quotation marks, underlining, etc.), centered at the top of the page. It should be double-spaced just like the rest of your essay.
All lines after the first line of each entry in your reference list should be indented one-half inch from the left margin. This is called hanging indentation. Authors' names are inverted (last name first); give the last name and initials for all authors of a particular work unless the work has more than six authors. If the work has more than six authors, list the first six authors and then use et al. after the sixth author's name to indicate the rest of the authors. Reference list entries should be alphabetized by the last name of the first author of each work. If you have more than one article by the same author, single-author references or multiple-author references with the exact same authors in the exact same order are listed in order by the year of publication, starting with the earliest. When referring to any work that is NOT a journal, such as a book, article, or Web page, capitalize only the first letter of the first word of a title and subtitle, the first word after a colon or a dash in the title, and proper nouns. Do not capitalize the first letter of the second word in a hyphenated compound word. Capitalize all major words in journal titles. Italicize titles of longer works such as books and journals. Do not italicize, underline, or put quotes around the titles of shorter works such as journal articles or essays in edited collections.
List of References:
Create your list of references on its own page after the last page of your text. Center the title References one inch from the top of the page. Give double space. Alphabetize the list of references by the last name of the authors. If the work has no author or editor, alphabetize the work by the first word of the title (excluding A, An, or The).
In-Text Citations: The Basics
Reference citations in text are covered on pages 207-214 of the Publication Manual. What follows are some general guidelines for referring to the works of others in your essay.
Note: APA style requires authors to use the past tense or present perfect tense when using signal phrases to describe earlier research. E.g., Jones (1998) found or Jones (1998) has found...
APA Citation Basics
When using APA format, follow the author-date method of in-text citation. This means that the author's last name and the year of publication for the source should appear in the text, E.g., (Jones, 1998), and a complete reference should appear in the reference list at the end of the paper.
If you are referring to an idea from another work but NOT directly quoting the material, or making reference to an entire book, article or other work, you only have to make reference to the author and year of publication in your in-text reference.
In-Text Citation Capitalization, Quotes, and Italics/Underlining
Always capitalize proper nouns, including author names and initials: D. Jones.
If you refer to the title of a source within your paper, capitalize all words that are four letters long or greater within the title of a source: Permanence and Change. Exceptions apply to short words that are verbs, nouns, pronouns, adjectives, and adverbs: Writing New Media, There Is Nothing Left to Lose. (Note that in your References list, only the first word of a title will be capitalized: Writing new media.)
When capitalizing titles, capitalize both words in a hyphenated compound word: Natural-Born Cyborgs.
Capitalize the first word after a dash or colon: "Defining Film Rhetoric: The Case of Hitchcock's Vertigo."
Italicize or underline the titles of longer works such as books, edited collections, movies, television series, documentaries, or albums: The Closing of the American Mind; The Wizard of Oz; Friends.
Put quotation marks around the titles of shorter works such as journal articles, articles from edited collections, television series episodes, and song titles: "Multimedia Narration: Constructing Possible Worlds"; "The One Where Chandler Can't Cry."
Short Quotations
If you are directly quoting from a work, you will need to include the author, year of publication, and the page number for the reference (preceded by "p."). Introduce the quotation with a signal phrase that includes the author's last name followed by the date of publication in parentheses.
According to Jones (1998), "Students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time" (p. 199).Jones (1998) found "students often had difficulty using APA style" (p. 199); what implications does this have for teachers? If the author is not named in a signal phrase, place the author's last name, the year of publication, and the page number in parentheses after the quotation. She stated, "Students often had difficulty using APA style," (Jones, 1998, p. 199), but she did not offer an explanation as to why.
Long Quotations
Place direct quotations longer than 40 words in a free-standing block of typewritten lines, and omit quotation marks. Start the quotation on a new line, indented five spaces from the left margin. Type the entire quotation on the new margin and indent the first line of any subsequent paragraph within the quotation five spaces from the new margin. Maintain double-spacing throughout. The parenthetical citation should come after closing punctuation mark.
Jones's (1998) study found the following:
Students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time citing sources. This difficulty could be attributed to the fact that many students failed to purchase a style manual or to ask their teacher for help. (p. 199)
Summary or Paraphrase
If you are paraphrasing an idea from another work, you only have to make reference to the author and year of publication in your in-text reference, but APA guidelines encourage you to also provide the page number (although it is not required.)According to Jones (1998), APA style is a difficult citation format for first-time learners APA style is a difficult citation format for first-time learners (Jones, 1998, p. 199).
In-Text Citations: Author/Authors
APA style has a series of important rules on using author names as part of the author-date system. There are additional rules for citing indirect sources, electronic sources, and sources without page numbers.
Citing an Author or Authors
A Work by Two Authors: Name both authors in the signal phrase or in the parentheses each time you cite the work. Use the word "and" between the authors' names within the text and use "&" in the parentheses.
Research by Wegener and Petty (1994) showed...
(Wegener & Petty, 1994)
A Work by Three to Five Authors:
List all the authors in the signal phrase or in parentheses the first time you cite the source.
(Kernis, Cornell, Sun, Berry, & Harlow, 1993)
In subsequent citations, only use the first author's last name followed by "et al." in the signal phrase or in parentheses.
(Kernis et al., 1993)
In et al., et should not be followed by a period.
Six or More Authors:
Use the first author's name followed by et al. in the signal phrase or in parentheses.
Harris et al. (2001) argued...
(Harris et al., 2001)
Unknown Author:
If the work does not have an author, cite the source by its title in the signal phrase or use the first word or two in the parentheses. Titles of books and reports are italicized or underlined; titles of articles and chapters are in quotation marks. A similar study was done of students learning to format research papers ("Using APA," 2001).
Note: In the rare case the "Anonymous" is used for the author, treat it as the author's name (Anonymous, 2001). In the reference list, use the name Anonymous as the author.
Organization as an Author:
If the author is an organization or a government agency, mention the organization in the signal phrase or in the parenthetical citation the first time you cite the source. According to the American Psychological Association (2000),...If the organization has a well-known abbreviation, include the abbreviation in brackets the first time the source is cited and then use only the abbreviation in later citations. First citation: (Mothers Against Drunk Driving [MADD], 2000)
Second citation: (MADD, 2000)
Two or More Works in the Same Parentheses:
When your parenthetical citation includes two or more works, order them the same way they appear in the reference list, separated by a semi-colon.
(Berndt, 2002; Harlow, 1983)
