3. What is educational research

Summary

This video introduces the core concepts of educational research, highlighting its importance in understanding, shaping, and improving education. It explains that educational research is a critical, reflexive, and professionally oriented activity. The video outlines three key purposes for conducting such research: exploring educational issues, shaping policy, and improving practice. It emphasizes the flexible nature of educational research, encouraging researchers to make informed decisions based on context. Additionally, it illustrates how research can inform policy decisions, improve teaching practices, and address real-world educational challenges.

Takeaways

• 🎓 Educational research involves the collection and analysis of information to better understand and explain the world of education.
• 🔍 It is a critical, reflexive, and professionally oriented activity, helping researchers make sense of education.
• ❤️ Newbie suggests that educational research has three purposes: supporting academics, practitioners, and policy makers.
• 🧩 Educational research can be messy and requires researchers to make decisions and judgments based on specific circumstances.
• 🛠 Researchers can follow traditional approaches or mix styles to answer their research questions.
• 🤔 Educational research is done to explore issues, shape policy, and improve practice in education.
• 📊 Research can identify specific problems or answer important questions, such as the relationship between coaching and educational attainment.
• 🏛️ Shaping policy through research involves gathering data to inform decisions or evaluate the impact of existing policies.
• 🎯 Improving practice is a common goal of educational research, aiming to enhance outcomes, reduce resources, or improve teaching effectiveness.
• 🧠 As an educational researcher, flexibility and a variety of skills—such as planning, organizing, analyzing, and evaluating—are essential to succeed.

Q & A

What is the purpose of the video?

The purpose of the video is to introduce the concepts and ideas associated with educational research, helping viewers understand the research process.

How does H. Cocken define educational research?

H. Cocken defines educational research as the collection and analysis of information on the world of education, aimed at better understanding and explaining it. It is seen as a critical, reflexive, and professionally-oriented activity.

What does Newbie suggest about the nature of educational research?

Newbie suggests that educational research has 'three hearts'—one for academics searching for truth, one for practitioners, and one for policymakers. This emphasizes its multidimensional nature.

Why is educational research considered 'messy'?

Educational research is considered 'messy' because it is not always clear-cut or well-structured. Researchers must make decisions and judgments, sometimes mixing research approaches to answer complex questions.

What are the three main reasons for conducting educational research?

The three main reasons are: to explore issues, to shape policy, and to improve practice. Each involves different focuses, from finding answers to specific questions to assessing the impact of policies or improving educational outcomes.

What is an example of research conducted to shape policy?

An example is the research conducted by Robin Simmons, Ron Thompson, and Lisa Russell at Huddersfield, which explores the policy construct of NEETs (Not in Education, Employment, or Training) and questions the articulation between education, work, and training.

How can educational research improve practice?

Educational research can improve practice by investigating ways to improve educational outcomes, reduce resources, or enhance teacher effectiveness. For instance, it can be used to evaluate the success of behavior management strategies in schools.

What factors might hinder the success of a new behavior management strategy in education?

A new behavior management strategy might fail due to teachers struggling to adjust to it or because the strategy itself is poorly implemented. Research can identify such issues and suggest ways to improve teacher and student performance.

What skills are essential for an educational researcher?

An educational researcher needs to be flexible, able to plan, organize, reason, analyze, synthesize, contrast, compare, evaluate, and examine information critically.

Why is it important to understand the consequences of actions in educational research?

Understanding the consequences of doing or not doing something is crucial in educational research because it helps researchers make informed decisions that fit their specific circumstances and lead to more effective outcomes.