Offerings:
Course GEDU 708 | Fall, spring, and summer semesters of each academic year.
Catalog Description:
General Education course descriptions in the USF General Catalog online.
Objectives or Outcomes:
- To introduce students to the processes of educational research, in particular, identifying and defining a research problem. At the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Identify the components of quantitative and qualitative methods, similarities and differences, and some of the arguments for the use of each form of research.
- Analyze research problems and derive a researchable and educationally relevant question for investigation.
- Apply research principles to develop an introduction to a research problem.
- Identify or select a theoretical basis or conceptual model for the basis of a research problem.
- Design a study to address a research problem.
- To introduce students to tools for critiquing research. At the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Identify the components of a research study, that is, the purpose, problem, research questions or hypotheses (when appropriate).
- Identify the variables in a scientific research study - identify the methodology and the type of design used in a research study.
- Identify the theoretical basis or conceptual model for a research study.
- Identify and analyze ethical issues present in a research study.
- Critique an interpretative (qualitative) research study.
- Critique a scientific (quantitative) research study.
Course Topics:
- Introduction to educational quantitative and qualitative research methods
- Overview of the research process and educational significance
- The research problem, the research question, theory, and literature review
- Sampling; conceptual analysis
- Measurement, testing, and observation
- Ethics in educational research
- Qualitative methods
- Quantitative research designs
- Comparison of quantitative and qualitative traditions and methods
- Causation, validity, and experimentation
- Other research designs
Criteria of Evaluation:
- Develop a research plan
- Evaluate a quantitative research study reported in a scholarly journal
- Evaluate a qualitative research study reported in a scholarly journal
- Review and analysis of a dissertation
- Take tests
- Attend and participate actively in class
Possible Course Textbooks:
Creswell, J. W. (1994). Research design: Qualitative & quantitative approaches. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Davitz, J. R., and Davitz, L. L. (1996). Evaluating research proposals: A guide for the behavioral sciences (Rev. ed.). New York: Teachers College Press.
Krathwohl, D.R. (1993). Methods of educational and social science research: An integrated approach. New York: Longman.
Leedy, P.D. (1997). Practical research: Planning and design (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill.
Stylistic Manuals:
American Psychological Association. (1994). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (4th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
Turabian, K.L. (1996). A manual for writers of term papers, theses, and dissertations (6th ed.). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
