I have just completed the giant task that is Assessment 2 in ETL567. This assessment involved comparing two research articles in regard to their overall research design and the strengths and weaknesses of the two studies. I won’t dive into the nitty-gritty of the analysis of the two articles, but I my big take away from this assignment has been that there is research, and then there is research.
Before undertaking any research, first there must be a strong understanding of the problem and then framing questions around this problem. It then needs to be decided how the questions are going to be answered. Are the questions framed around people’s experiences or can they be objectively measured and generalised around the sample population? Or, perhaps, it’s a bit of column A and a bit of column B. The answer to these questions will decide the paradigm of the study. Answers that can be measured and generalised will fit within a positivist paradigm. The answers around people’s experiences will fit within a interpretivist paradigm, and the combination of the two fits with a post-positivist or mixed-methods approach.
The methodology needs to match the paradigm. Typically, positivist research uses quantitative methodology, interpretivist research uses qualitative methodology and mixed methods is a combination of the two. There are a wide range of methods that can be used within these paradigms and methodologies, but must be selected appropriately to answer the research question/s. The same applies to the data collection techniques that are available under each method.
When the paradigm, methodology, method or data collection technique are selected inappropriately, then it affects the strength of the study.
This week has been a world of new vocabulary relating to research. To wrap me head around some relevant vocabulary, I decided to create my own definitions.
Research
To begin the discussion around research it is important to first define what the word research means. There are so many definitions out there, but my understanding is that research is the systematic study of a phenomenon. It relies on the collection and analysis of data and using this information to create or discover new knowledge. It can also be the analysis of existing knowledge that creates new understandings. Once this process has been completed, the dissemination of this research is also an important step.
Paradigm
The paradigm is the framework for how the researcher views the world. This view will in turn influence how the research is conducted. The three main paradigms are positivist, post-positivist and interpretivist, each with their own distinct views.
| Positivist |
The positivist paradigm is very black and white in its views. It relies on solving problems mathematically and that truth is out there, but just needs to be discovered. This truth can be discovered in its whole through quantitative methods such as experiments. |
| Post-positivist |
The post-positivist paradigm leads on from the positivist approach, however there are limits to what can be discovered. This paradigm often focuses on the null-hypothesis and falsifying findings. Eg: One black swan disproves the theory that all swans are white. Post-positivists often use mixed-methods and triangulate the findings. |
| Interpretivist |
Interpretivists focus on reality being constructed through human experience. Truth can be discovered through understanding the complexity of relationships and this is achieved through qualitative methods such as interviews and focus groups. |
Methodology
Research methodology is the framework for how a researcher intends to complete their research. It usually falls into the categories of qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods. The methods then come below this. A qualitative method could be ethnography where data is gathered through interviews. A quantitative method could be an experiment where data is gathered through statistical modelling.
There is still a long way to go in my understanding of research theory, but I am enjoying the journey.
For this activity we were asked to select a topic of interest and choose two relevant papers. I decided to focus on makerspaces in preparation for assignment 3 in ETL567. First, the two articles are compared, then evaluated through set questions.
Paper 1: Fourie, I & Meyer, A. (2015). What to make of makerspaces. Library Hi Tech, 33(4), 519-525. https://doi.org/10.1108/LHT-09-2015-0092
Paper 2: Mersand, S. (2021). The state of makerspace research: a review of the literature. TechTrends, 65(2), 174-186. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-020-00566-5
What to make of makerspaces (Fourie & Meyer, 2015)
The purpose, methodology, findings and research limitations are all clearly stated at the beginning of the article. The article itself is well-organised under clear headings and cites a wide range of supporting research. Research questions are posed and follow-up research ideas are suggested. This paper does not contain any research or data collection from the author, it is a literature review of other research in the area of makerspaces in libraries.
The state of makerspace research: a review of the literature (Mersand, 2021)
Mersand (2021) gives clear definitions of the different types of makerspaces with reference to the literature. The article is also well-organised using clear headings. The method of selection of other research papers is explained clearly. There are also tables included to clearly support the categorisation of the documents to be reviewed, the methodology of each document and the year of publication. There is a clear discussion about the findings of the documents with reference to the literature. The article concludes with final findings and suggestions for further research. The fundings and compliance of ethical standards is also clearly stated.
Which paper was more coherent, consistent and comprehensive in describing the research procedure and finding?
Mersand (2021) was more comprehensive, using tables and describing the findings using supporting literature.
Which paper has a more constructive conclusion?
Again, Mersand (2021) was more constructive as it discusses the strengths and weaknesses of the literature analysed.
Overall, Mersand (2021) gave more insight into makerspaces in libraries by discussing the different types of makerspaces and their application.
Once again, I am at the beginning of another subject. Over the summer I will be completing the unit ETL567, Research in Practice. To tell the truth, at first, I was not thrilled about having the study this unit. My initial reactions were ‘how is this relevant?’ and ‘this is going to be so boring’. I have decided to change my attitude towards this subject and throw myself in because, hey, I might actually learn something.
So, what does research in practice look like? Having looked over the subject outline my thoughts are that it’s applying analytical research to make improvements or changes in the school library. I would even go so far as to say that these research skills could also assist my students in their research practices. Research in this context is more than fact-finding on the internet. It’s about going deeper into a problem to find possible solutions based on my own findings and the findings of others.
Module 1 asked us to think about a possible research project in our own context. It got me thinking about the Wide Reading Programme and the DEAR programme that are both currently run at school. Through readings and presentations at seminars, I am aware that there is a decline in readings for pleasure in the teenage years. The question I am thinking about is ‘What can we do to reverse this decline?’ Having learned about the ‘Just Read’ programme at Queenwood I am most interested to see if a similar model could work in my school context.
The issues that we are currently facing with the programmes are two-fold. The Wide Reading programme is run from Year 7 to 10 through the English department, with one wide reading session a cycle per class being timetabled. This means the teacher librarians only see their classes once every ten days (on average, sometimes even longer). This is not enough for students to focus on their reading on a regular basis. The DEAR programme is run from Years 7-9 each day for 20 minutes at the beginning of period 5. While this sounds great in theory, I really wonder how often this is actually happening. I would imagine that any practical class (PE, VA, Music, Drama, Science) would not participate in DEAR as it would impact too much on their own class time.
The Queenwood model involves having a dedicated daily 20-minute period for reading. This means it doesn’t impact on any other classes and is regular.
This would be a huge change, but I feel an improvement, to the school. It would require structured research about the students’ current reading habits, as well as review of current literature on the reading habits on teenage boys. Thinking about this process is overwhelming, but I’m hoping that ETL567 can provide me with some practical tools in order to tackle this project.