EDR8000 Foundations of Contemporary Educational Research Methods

Contents

• Staffing
• Rationale
• Synopsis
• Objectives
• Topics
• Texts
• Reference materials
• Student workload
• Assessment details
• Important assessment information
• Other requirements
• Production date
• PDF version

STAFFING

RATIONALE

The expectation that educators should be able to apply the findings of current and recent rigorous and systematic research studies to the formation of educational policy and practice requires that such professionals should have a sound understanding of the principles and practices of research design and methodology. Further, those who are to be involved in any of the various approaches to research in education must be cognisant of appropriate procedures for effective, efficient and equitable research. This course is intended to provide those involved in education with the foundations needed to generate, analyse, and evaluate research data through the development of an understanding of the characteristics and components of contemporary educational research.

SYNOPSIS

This course introduces students to the theoretical and methodological foundations of contemporary educational research. It is intended as an introductory course in research methods in education, with particular attention given to developing an understanding of the current philosophical debates about and the major approaches to research in education, as well as of basic research design and procedures in such research.

OBJECTIVES

The course objectives define the student learning outcomes for a course. The assessment item(s) that may be used to assess student achievement of an objective are shown in parenthesis. On completion of this course students will be able to:

1.

demonstrate understanding of the theoretically framed principles underlying educational research (Essay)

2.

articulate selected elements of the conduct of educational research (Essay)

3.

develop a conceptually based viewpoint about links between educational research and researcher identity and/or context (Essay)

4.

trace the historical development and contemporary applications of at least one research method (Essay)

5.

choose and/or develop a research method appropriate to a particular problem or question/s (Proposal)

6.

explicate appropriate techniques for data collection (Proposal)

7.

identify appropriate procedures for the analysis of data (Proposal)

8.

design ethically appropriate research activities (Proposal)

9.

demonstrate competence in the use of scholarly language and literacy appropriate to the doctoral level (Essay and Proposal).

TOPICS

TEXT and MATERIALS required to be PURCHASED or accessed

ALL textbooks and materials are available for purchase from USQ BOOKSHOP (unless otherwise stated). Orders may be placed via secure internet, free fax 1800642453, phone 07 46312742 (within Australia), or mail. Overseas students should fax +61 7 46311743, or phone +61 7 46312742. For costs, further details, and internet ordering, use the 'Textbook Search' facility at http://bookshop.usq.edu.au click 'Semester', then enter your 'Course Code' (no spaces).

Somekh, B & Lewin, C (Eds) 2005, Research methods in the social sciences, Sage Publications, London.

REFERENCE MATERIALS

Reference materials are materials that, if accessed by students, may improve their knowledge and understanding of the material in the course and enrich their learning experience.

Whether you are on, or off campus, the USQ Library is an excellent source of information http://www.usq.edu.au/library/. The gateway to education resources is here http://www.usq.edu.au/library/faculties/education/default.htm

Ary, D, Chester Jacobs, L & Razawieh, A 2006, Introduction to research in education, 7th edn, Thomson/Wadsworth, Belmont, CA.

Cohen, L, Manion, L & Morrison, K 2007, Research methods in education, 6th edn, Routledge, London and New York.

Johnson, B & Christensen, L 2008, Educational research: quantitative, qualitative and mixed approaches, 3rd edn, Sage Publications, Los Angeles, CA.

Mertler, CA & Charles, CM 2005, Introduction to educational research, 5th edn, Pearson/Allyn & Bacon, Boston, MA.

Wiersma, W & Jurs, SR 2005, Research methods in education: an introduction, 8th edn, Allyn & Bacon, Boston, MA.

Yates, L 2004, What does good education research look like?: situating a field and its practices, Open University Press, Maidenhead, UK.

STUDENT WORKLOAD REQUIREMENTS

ASSESSMENT DETAILS

NOTES

1.

APA style is the referencing system required in this course. Students should use APA style in their assignments to format details of the information sources they have cited in their work. The USQ library provides advice on how to format information sources using this system. http://www.usq.edu.au/library/help/ehelp/ref_guides/apastyle/default.htm Letter grades will be used in this course and displayed in the notes section.

IMPORTANT ASSESSMENT INFORMATION

1. Attendance requirements:
   There are no attendance requirements for this course. However, it is the students' responsibility to participate appropriately in all activities including discussion fora scheduled for them, and to study all material provided to them or required to be accessed by them to maximise their chance of meeting the objectives of the course and to be informed of course-related activities and administration.
2. Requirements for students to complete each assessment item satisfactorily:
   To complete an individual assessment item satisfactorily, a student must achieve a grade of at least C-.
3. Penalties for late submission of required work:
   If students submit assignments after the due date without (prior) approval then a penalty of 2 Equivalence Points gained by the student for the assignment may apply for each working day late.
4. Requirements for student to be awarded a passing grade in the course:
   To be assured of receiving a passing grade a student must achieve at least 50% of the total weighted marks available for the course.
5. Method used to combine assessment results to attain final grade:
   The final grade for students will be assigned on the basis of the aggregate of the weighted marks obtained for each of the summative assessment items in the course.
6. Examination information:
   There is no examination in this course.
7. Examination period when Deferred/Supplementary examinations will be held:
   As there are no examinations in this course, there will be no deferred or supplementary examinations.
8. University Regulations:
   Students should read USQ Regulations 5.1 Definitions, 5.6. Assessment, and 5.10 Academic Misconduct for further information and to avoid actions which might contravene University Regulations. These regulations can be found at the URL http://www.usq.edu.au/corporateservices/calendar/part5.htm

OTHER REQUIREMENTS

1. Students will require access to e-mail and have Internet access to USQConnect for this course.
2. The philosophical essay and the research proposal necessitate a literature review that will require students to be able to access libraries or online articles/books.
3. Students are required to use a recognised referencing system, preferably the American Psychological Association (5th edition) referencing system.

This version produced 28 Aug 2009.