Instruction In Research Methods Research Articles

Research attitudes among pre-service teachers: unexpected outcomes emerging from a natural experiment

PurposeThe study assesses pre-service teachers' attitudes, confidence in research and intentions to use research by comparing the effectiveness of practical versus theoretical training in research methods courses.Design/methodology/approachThis natural experiment examines the impact of the adaptations made to a research methods course for 848 pre-service teachers, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The participants were naturally divided into two cohorts, each attending either the applied version, which required the completion of a whole research study, or the theoretical version, which did not require data collection and analyses. The data were collected through three questionnaires measuring attitudes, confidence and intentions toward research.FindingsInferential statistics revealed that pre-service teachers in the theoretical course (1) had more positive attitudes toward research and less anxiety, (2) had more intentions to integrate research in their daily practice and (3) had more confidence in engaging in educational research, compared to the pre-service teachers who completed the applied version of the course.Originality/valueThis study uniquely capitalizes on course adaptations, imposed due to the pandemic, to compare attitudes toward research. This is an ideal comparison because comparing attitudes of participants from different contexts involves many confounding variables. The study’s significance is amplified as, it not only elucidates the variances in attitudes, but also underscores the intricate relationship these attitudes share with the design of research courses. The insights yielded by this study offer substantial potential for reshaping pedagogical strategies in research methods instruction, thereby serving as a cornerstone for future educational innovations.

Assessment of the Institute for Research Design in Librarianship (IRDL): Impact on the Research Productivity and Careers of Academic Librarians

Objective – This article reports the survey findings from a mixed-methods assessment of the six-year Institute for Research Design in Librarianship (IRDL). The Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) provided funding for IRDL from 2014-2019; during this time, 124 academic and research librarians participated in a year-long continuing education program for novice researchers. This article assesses the effectiveness of IRDL in meeting short-term and long-term goals related to research productivity, job performance, and identity as a researcher. Beyond the assessment of IRDL itself, the study addresses the implications of IRDL for creating effective research continuing education programs and institutional support for librarian research. Methods – In the first part of a two-phase study, we surveyed all 124 librarians who completed the in-person summer research workshop and year-long online follow-up program. The lead researcher invited those who completed the survey to participate in the study's second phase, a focus group or an in-depth interview. Results – Eighty-nine participants responded to the survey, for a 72% response rate. The results show that IRDL was successful in helping a majority of participants complete their IRDL project and conduct new research. Participants reported work-related benefits of participating in the program, including tenure, rank promotion, merit-based salary increases, and new employment opportunities. IRDL contributed to developing personal learning networks, research collaborations, and a sense of identity as a researcher. IRDL increased the research confidence of the participants by providing them with research methods instruction, coupled with an opportunity to practice what they have learned during a year-long support program. Conclusion – This assessment study confirms that IRDL is an effective program for novice librarian-researchers who want to improve their research skills, develop new research relationships among their peers, and advance in their careers. It also provides insight into the conditions for a successful continuing education and research support program. Many librarians experience anxiety about conducting and disseminating their research; IRDL demonstrates the importance of placing novice researchers in a supportive environment, where research is viewed as a positive experience that is directly related to professional success. These experiences lead to increased confidence and identity as a researcher, which contributes to increased research productivity.

White-on-white research: a study of white qualitative researcher positionality among white participants

Researcher positionality is widely accepted as a phenomenon to be understood and used to strengthen the qualitative research process. However, consideration of white researchers’ positionality has largely centered on situations in which they are “outsider” researchers in spaces that do not reflect their own racial identities. To build knowledge about the effects of researcher whiteness upon research in white spaces with white participants, we analyze the first author’s experiences amid qualitative research with white parents and youth within Chicago K-12 schools. Literature about researcher positionality and whiteness guides our analysis. We argue that white researchers’ work with white participants reveals whiteness’ mixed powers. Whiteness, if unchecked, can distort what white researchers learn, but can be a valuable research tool if acknowledged and fully interrogated throughout the inquiry process. From our findings, we draw implications for qualitative researchers, qualitative research methods instruction, and future “white-on-white” research.

How Do Sociologists Know What They Know? An Examination of Sociology Textbooks for Evidence of Sociological and Scientific Thinking

The American Sociological Association recommends that instructors and departments infuse research methods instruction throughout the curriculum (i.e., beyond research methods courses). Sociology textbooks are widely used instructional components and are essential to examine how research instruction extends beyond chapters and courses on research methods. The author uses qualitative content analysis of 27 textbooks for introductory courses ( n = 19) and intermediate elective courses ( n = 8) to uncover how textbooks illuminate the process of how sociologists know what they know (i.e., do research). Overall, textbooks model asociological and unscientific thinking by using false equivalence practices, reinforcing commonsense explanations, and relying on shortcuts to scientific credibility, among other means. Textbooks describe society using basic descriptive statistical data but provide little explanation of how scholars gather or analyze data or draw conclusions about data. These results suggest that textbooks have gaps in their ability to support research methods instruction throughout the sociology curriculum.

Undergraduate Novice Researchers’ Experiences in Conducting Mini-Research in Education: Kolb Learning Cycle

This study investigated eight pre-service English teachers’ first experiences in conducting mini-research analyzed using four stages of Kolb Experiential Learning Cycle, consisting of Concrete Experience (CE), Reflective Observation (RO), Abstract Conceptualisation (AC), and Active Experimentation (AE) stages. It was conducted to fill the void in studies in the area of research methods instruction in the English as Second Language (ESL) context. The study used qualitative analysis on secondary data in the forms of student reflections. Through Thematic Analysis, this study found five themes. From three themes of experiences, it was found that the participants’ experiences were mainly in the first three stages of the cycle, CE, RO, and AC. Only two of the five themes suggested that the participants had achieved, to certain extent, AE stage, characterized with decision-making and problem solving, which may be attributed to the participants’ being beginner researchers who still needed more experiences in research.

Libraries Support First-Generation Students through Services and Spaces, but Can Do More

A Review of:
 Arch, X., & Gilman, I. (2019). First principles: Designing services for first-generation students. College & Research Libraries, 80(7), 996–1012. https://doi.org/10.5860/crl.80.7.996
 Abstract
 Objective – To provide recommendations for academic libraries in supporting first-generation college students, defined by the study’s authors “either as those whose parents have no college experience or did not graduate with a bachelor’s degree” (p. 996).
 Design – Multidisciplinary literature review and two qualitative survey questionnaires.
 Setting – United States secondary and post-secondary schools.
 Subjects – College Counsellor Survey: 300 private/parochial, private/secular, public, and charter secondary/high schools in rural, suburban, and urban areas randomly selected from across all 50 states. Academic Library Survey: Academic libraries at 100 four-year institutions.
 Methods – College Counsellor Survey: An online survey was sent to potential subjects via email. The survey included basic demographic questions and open-ended questions about counsellors’ perceptions of the challenges faced by first-generation college students, the types of institutional support they need, and how academic libraries could offer support. The answers were analyzed in NVivo using a combination of inductive and axial coding in order to develop a set of themes reflecting the most commonly-mentioned challenges and support needs.
 Academic Library Survey: A survey invitation was sent directly to library deans and directors at 100 four-year institutions and to two academic library electronic mailing lists. The survey included questions about services academic libraries offer for first-generation students. The data were analyzed to determine whether academic libraries were offering services that matched the thematic areas identified in the College Counsellor Survey.
 Main Results – College Counselor Survey: The response rate was 24% (n=78). There were six themes which were identified regarding challenges and support needs for first-generation students: Academic and Tutoring, Social and Cultural, Home and Family, Navigating College, Financial, and Mentoring and Advising. Recommendations for library support included library participation in first-generation student orientations, library instruction in research methods, and conveying that librarians are welcoming and friendly.
 Academic Library Survey: Out of the 59 responding libraries, 19 reported offering services designed for first-generation students, while 6 additional libraries reported offering services they believed would be useful for first-generation students, though they were not designed for them specifically. The library services addressed needs relating to the Academic and Tutoring, Navigating College, and Financial themes. The library services did not address the needs relating to the Social and Cultural, Home and Family, and Mentoring and Advising themes.
 Conclusion – Based on the surveys and literature review, the authors provide recommendations for academic library services for first-generation students that address each of the six thematic areas of need. The recommendations include, but are not limited to, assigning liaisons for first-generation programs, working to create an inclusive and affirming library environment, designing library spaces that support the multiple social roles and identities of first-generation students, helping family members of first-generation students become aware of the library as a resource, providing training on applying for financial aid, and having librarians either provide outreach to mentorship programs or become mentors themselves.

Postgraduate Research Methods Instruction in Africa: A MicroResearch Approach to the Postgraduate Thesis.

Postgraduate Research Methods Instruction in Africa: A MicroResearch Approach to the Postgraduate Thesis.

Difficult Decisions: A Qualitative Exploration of the Statistical Decision Making Process from the Perspectives of Psychology Students and Academics.

Quantitative research methods are essential to the development of professional competence in psychology. They are also an area of weakness for many students. In particular, students are known to struggle with the skill of selecting quantitative analytical strategies appropriate for common research questions, hypotheses and data types. To begin understanding this apparent deficit, we presented nine psychology undergraduates (who had all completed at least one quantitative methods course) with brief research vignettes, and asked them to explicate the process they would follow to identify an appropriate statistical technique for each. Thematic analysis revealed that all participants found this task challenging, and even those who had completed several research methods courses struggled to articulate how they would approach the vignettes on more than a very superficial and intuitive level. While some students recognized that there is a systematic decision making process that can be followed, none could describe it clearly or completely. We then presented the same vignettes to 10 psychology academics with particular expertise in conducting research and/or research methods instruction. Predictably, these “experts” were able to describe a far more systematic, comprehensive, flexible, and nuanced approach to statistical decision making, which begins early in the research process, and pays consideration to multiple contextual factors. They were sensitive to the challenges that students experience when making statistical decisions, which they attributed partially to how research methods and statistics are commonly taught. This sensitivity was reflected in their pedagogic practices. When asked to consider the format and features of an aid that could facilitate the statistical decision making process, both groups expressed a preference for an accessible, comprehensive and reputable resource that follows a basic decision tree logic. For the academics in particular, this aid should function as a teaching tool, which engages the user with each choice-point in the decision making process, rather than simply providing an “answer.” Based on these findings, we offer suggestions for tools and strategies that could be deployed in the research methods classroom to facilitate and strengthen students' statistical decision making abilities.

Investigating Graduate Level Research and Statistics Courses in Schools of Education

Instruction in research methods, particularly statistical training, is an essential requirement for most higher education advanced-degree students. However, results from the institutional survey reported here demonstrate that many faculty in schools of education still do not require or offer a variety of research and analysis courses to provide this training. This article will explore graduate-level requirements for research methods and data analysis courses in schools of education across the United States. Two surveys, one asking questions about research methods courses and one about statistics courses, were distributed through listservs to faculty at institutions of higher education. Twenty-eight responses, representing 28 institutions, were collected for the research course survey and 19 responses, representing 19 institutions, were collected for the statistics course survey. The number of courses offered and required and the number of credit hours for them are presented for Master’s, Ed.D., and Ph.D. students. From this study, it is evident that several universities do not offer or require many research methods or statistics courses for education graduate students. The authors intend that this information will assist faculty in rethinking what coursework is necessary to educate successful graduate students.

Let’s Stop Educating Closet Historians

Public administration is inherently an interdisciplinary field, prominently incorporating theory and methods from economics, political science, and sociology. Less obviously, however, MPA curricula include historical treatments of particular policy arenas, institutions, the administrative state, and the professions of policy analyst and public management. In addition, the case method that figures prominently in MPA pedagogy and the research MPA students perform depend on doing history. Yet, history as a scholarly endeavor is rarely included in basic courses, much less instruction in research methods. This essay explores the use of history in MPA curricula and how MPA students might acquire a deeper appreciation of history and how historians ply their craft.

On becoming educational researchers: the importance of cogenerative mentoring

The purpose of this reflexive action inquiry was to explore the perceived authenticity (or lack thereof) of doctoral‐level research methods instruction. The idea for a collaborative self‐study emerged organically as a byproduct of a voluntary, year‐long research apprenticeship in which two of the authors were engaged, following coursework in both quantitative and qualitative research methods. The apprenticeship was facilitated by the first author, a faculty member and methods course instructor. The importance of cogenerative dialog as an organizing process for methodological mentoring emerged as a central finding when the authors collaboratively examined cross‐case themes common to their autobiographical statements about and reflections upon learning to ‘do research’. The study's results show how and why cogenerative mentoring – as distinct from cogenerative work – goes beyond typical experiences in research methods courses, assistantships and even dissertation work. Using this form of mentoring may help doctoral students to experience methodological learning in more authentic and effective ways.

Communication Students' Mathematics Anxiety: Implications for Research Methods Instruction

This study examined indicators of math and speaking competence in three student major categories (N = 263). Communication (n = 178), business (n = 58), and liberal arts (n = 27) majors completed scales measuring math anxiety (Betz, 1978), math performance (Dowling, 1978), math self-efficacy, and public speaking apprehension (McCroskey, 1982). These variables explained 27.5% of the variance in reported major. Business majors had higher math performance and math self-efficacy scores and lower math anxiety scores than persons majoring in communication or liberal arts, whereas communication majors reported lower public speaking apprehension scores than business or liberal arts majors. Sex differences were found on all mathematics variables, with females scoring higher in math anxiety and lower in math self-efficacy and performance than males. Findings are examined for their implications concerning research methods instruction.

Self-Efficacy Theory: A Prescriptive Model for Teaching Research Methods

This case study examines self-efficacy theory as a prescriptive model for helping journalism and mass communication students acquire the skills and confidence they need to learn and apply research methods. Journalism students enrolled in a graduate research methods class widely reported high math anxiety. But students attending optional classes designed to nurture mathematics self-efficacy showed significant improvement in fundamental math skills, overcoming a performance gap with other students in the course. Strategies are proposed for applying self-efficacy theory to research methods instruction.

The Archivist as Educator: Integrating Critical Thinking Skills into Historical Research Methods Instruction

Archivists are increasingly developing workshops and courses in order to help students better understand and use archival materials. The incorporation of critical thinking skills into these instructional programs can significantly enhance them and improve the ability of students to analyze and interpret primary sources. This article first provides an introduction to critical thinking instruction and then describes how the university archivist successfully implemented critical thinking skills into a historical research methods course at Northern Michigan University.

The status of instruction in introductory undergraduate communication research methods

Because of the reflexive relationship between theory and research methods, students' understanding of communication is incomplete without some exposure to research methods. While graduate students traditionally receive instruction in research methods, the purpose of this study was to systematically assess whether such instruction has filtered down to the undergraduate level. A national survey found that the introductory undergraduate communication research methods course appears to be rapidly growing, and that there is general agreement about the purpose, content, problems, and plans for it. Future efforts, however, must be directed toward better integrating this course into the undergraduate communication curriculum.

Competency-Based Instruction In Research Methods

Competency-Based Instruction In Research Methods