Research Methodology

Bachelor of Education in
Educational Management
Research Methods
Module BEDM305
Authors: Vitalis Chikoko
PhD in Education (KwaZulu Natal)
Master of Education (UZ)
Bachelor of Education (UZ)
Godwell Mhloyi
Master of Education in Administration (UZ)
Bachelor of Education (UZ)
Content Reviewer: Nelson Chibvonga Madziyire

Master of Education (Administration) (UZ)
Bachelor of Education Teacher Education and Curriculum
Studies (UZ)
Diploma in Teacher Education (UZ)
Primary Teachers Higher Certificate (St Augustines)
Editor: Chesterfield K.T. Vengesayi

Master of Education (Psychology) (UZ)
B.A. General (London)
Graduate Certificate in Education (University of Rhodesia)
Certificate in Examinations Administration (Cambridge)
Certificate for Distance Education Practitioners (UNISA)
Certificate for Distance Educators (Jilin, China)
Published by: The Zimbabwe Open University
P.O. Box MP1119
Mount Pleasant
Harare, ZIMBABWE
The Zimbabwe Open University is a distance teaching and open

learning institution.
Year: 2014
Cover Design: T. Ndhlovu
Layout and Design: D. Satumba Nyandowe
-Printed by: ZOU Press
ISBN: 978-0-7974-6400-1
Typeset in Times New Roman, 12 point on auto leading
© Zimbabwe Open University. All rights reserved. No part of this

publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of
the Zimbabwe Open University.
To the student
The demand for skills and knowledge academics, technologists and
and the requirement to adjust and administrators of varied backgrounds,
change with changing technolog y, training, skills, experiences and personal
places on us a need to learn continually interests. The combination of all these
throughout life. As all people need an qualities inevitably facilitates the
education of one form or another, it has production of learning materials that
been found that conventional education teach successfully any student,
institutions cannot cope with the anywhere and far removed from the
demand for education of this tutor in space and time. We emphasize
magnitude. It has, however, been that our learning materials should enable
discovered that distance education and you to solve both work-related problems
open learning, now also exploiting e- and other life challenges.
learning technology, itself an offshoot
of e-commerce, has become the most To avoid stereotyping and professional
effective way of transmitting these narrowness, our teams of learning
appropriate skills and knowledge materials producers come from different
required for national and international universities in and outside Zimbabwe,
development. and from Commerce and Industry. This
openness enables ZOU to produce
Since attainment of independence in materials that have a long shelf life and
1980, the Zimbabwe Government has are sufficiently comprehensive to cater
spearheaded the development of for the needs of all of you, our learners
distance education and open learning in different walks of life. You, the
at tertiary level, resulting in the learner, have a large number of optional
establishment of the Zimbabwe Open courses to choose from so that the
University (ZOU) on 1 March, 1999. knowledge and skills developed suit the
career path that you choose. Thus, we
ZOU is the first, leading, and currently strive to tailor-make the learning
materials so that they can suit your
the only university in Zimbabwe
personal and professional needs. In
entirely dedicated to teaching by
developing the ZOU learning materials,
distance education and open learning.
we are guided by the desire to provide
We are determined to maintain our
you, the learner, with all the knowledge
leading position by both satisfying our
and skill that will make you a better
clients and maintaining high academic performer all round, be this at certificate,
standards. To achieve the leading diploma, undergraduate or postgraduate
position, we have adopted the course level. We aim for products that will
team approach to producing the varied settle comfortably in the global village
learning materials that will holistically and competing successfully with anyone.
shape you, the learner to be an all-round Our target is, therefore, to satisfy your
performer in the field of your own quest for knowledge and skills through
choice. Our course teams comprise distance education and open learning.
Any course or programme launched by ZOU is you may never meet in life. It is our intention
conceived from the cross-pollination of ideas to bring the computer, email, internet chat-
from consumers of the product, chief among rooms, whiteboards and other modern methods
whom are you, the students and your employers. of delivering learning to all the doorsteps of
We consult you and listen to your critical our learners, wherever they may be. For all these
analysis of the concepts and how they are developments and for the latest information on
presented. We also consult other academics what is taking place at ZOU, visit the ZOU
from universities the world over and other website at www.zou.ac.zw
international bodies whose reputation in
distance education and open learning is of a Having worked as best we can to prepare your
very high calibre. We carry out pilot studies of learning path, hopefully like John the Baptist
the course outlines, the content and the prepared for the coming of Jesus Christ, it is
programme component. We are only too glad my hope as your Vice Chancellor that all of you,
to subject our learning materials to academic will experience unimpeded success in your
and professional criticism with the hope of educational endeavours. We, on our part, shall
improving them all the time. We are determined continually strive to improve the learning
to continue improving by changing the learning materials through evaluation, transformation of
materials to suit the idiosyncratic needs of our delivery methodologies, adjustments and
learners, their employers, research, economic sometimes complete overhauls of both the
circumstances, technological development, materials and organisational structures and
changing times and geographic location, in order culture that are central to providing you with
to maintain our leading position. We aim at the high quality education that you deserve.
giving you an education that will work for you Note that your needs, the learner ‘s needs,
at any time anywhere and in varying occupy a central position within ZOU’s core
circumstances and that your performance activities.
should be second to none.
Best wishes and success in your studies.
As a progressive university that is forward
looking and determined to be a successful part
of the twenty-first century, ZOU has started to
introduce e-learning materials that will enable
you, our students, to access any source of _____________________
information, anywhere in the world through
internet and to communicate, converse, discuss
and collaborate synchronously and Prof. Primrose Kurasha
asynchronously, with peers and tutors whom Vice Chancellor
The Six Hour Tutorial Session At
The Zimbabwe Open University
A s you embark on your studies with the
Zimbabwe Open University (ZOU) by open
and distance learning, we need to advise you so
This is where the six hour tutorial comes in. For
it to work, you need to know that:
· There is insufficient time for the tutor
that you can make the best use of the learning
to lecture you
materials, your time and the tutors who are based
· Any ideas that you discuss in the
at your regional office.
tutorial, originate from your experience
as you work on the materials. All the
The most important point that you need to note is
issues raised above are a good source
that in distance education and open learning, there
of topics (as they pertain to your
are no lectures like those found in conventional
learning) for discussion during the
universities. Instead, you have learning packages
tutorial
that may comprise written modules, tapes, CDs,
· The answers come from you while the
DVDs and other referral materials for extra reading.
tutor’s task is to confirm, spur further
All these including radio, television, telephone, fax
discussion, clarify, explain, give
and email can be used to deliver learning to you.
additional information, guide the
As such, at the ZOU, we do not expect the tutor
discussion and help you put together
to lecture you when you meet him/her. We believe
full answers for each question that you
that that task is accomplished by the learning
bring
package that you receive at registration. What
· You must prepare for the tutorial by
then is the purpose of the six hour tutorial for each
bringing all the questions and answers
course on offer?
that you have found out on the topics
to the discussion
At the ZOU, as at any other distance and open
· For the tutor to help you effectively, give
learning university, you the student are at the centre
him/her the topics beforehand so that
of learning. After you receive the learning package,
in cases where information has to be
you study the tutorial letter and other guiding
gathered, there is sufficient time to do
documents before using the learning materials.
so. If the questions can get to the tutor
During the study, it is obvious that you will come
at least two weeks before the tutorial,
across concepts/ideas that may not be that easy
that will create enough time for
to understand or that are not so clearly explained.
thorough preparation.
You may also come across issues that you do not
agree with, that actually conflict with the practice
In the tutorial, you are expected and required to
that you are familiar with. In your discussion
take part all the time through contributing in
groups, your friends can bring ideas that are totally
every way possible. You can give your views,
different from yours and arguments may begin. You
even if they are wrong, (many students may hold
may also find that an idea is not clearly explained
the same wrong views and the discussion will
and you remain with more questions than answers.
help correct the errors), they still help you learn
You need someone to help you in such matters.
the correct thing as much as the correct ideas.
The Six Hour Tutorial Session At The Zimbabwe Open University
You also need to be open-minded, frank, inquisitive learning package together with the sources to
and should leave no stone unturned as you analyze which you are referred. Fully-fledged lectures
ideas and seek clarification on any issues. It has can, therefore, be misleading as the tutor may
been found that those who take part in tutorials dwell on matters irrelevant to the ZOU course.
actively, do better in assignments and examinations
because their ideas are streamlined. Taking part Distance education, by its nature, keeps the tutor
properly means that you prepare for the tutorial and student separate. By introducing the six hour
beforehand by putting together relevant questions tutorial, ZOU hopes to help you come in touch
and their possible answers and those areas that with the physical being, who marks your
cause you confusion. assignments, assesses them, guides you on
preparing for writing examinations and
Only in cases where the infor mation being assignments and who runs your general academic
discussed is not found in the learning package can affairs. This helps you to settle down in your
the tutor provide extra learning materials, but this course having been advised on how to go about
should not be the dominant feature of the six hour your learning. Personal human contact is,
tutorial. As stated, it should be rare because the therefore, upheld by the ZOU.
information needed for the course is found in the
The six hour tutorials should be so structured that the

tasks for each session are very clear. Work for each
session, as much as possible, follows the structure given
below.
Session I (Two Hours)

Session I should be held at the beginning of the semester. The
main aim of this session is to guide you, the student, on how
you are going to approach the course. During the session, you
will be given the overview of the course, how to tackle the
assignments, how to organize the logistics of the course and
formation of study groups that you will belong to. It is also during
this session that you will be advised on how to use your learning
materials effectively.
The Six Hour Tutorial Session At The Zimbabwe Open University
Session II (Two Hours)

This session comes in the middle of the semester to respond
to the challenges, queries, experiences, uncertainties, and
ideas that you are facing as you go through the course. In this
session, difficult areas in the module are explained through the
combined effort of the students and the tutor. It should also give
direction and feedback where you have not done well in the
first assignment as well as reinforce those areas where
performance in the first assignment is good.
Session III (Two Hours)

The final session, Session III, comes towards the end of the
semester. In this session, you polish up any areas that you still
need clarification on. Your tutor gives you feedback on the
assignments so that you can use the experience for preparation
for the end of semester examination.
Note that in all the three sessions, you identify the areas
that your tutor should give help. You also take a very
important part in finding answers to the problems posed.
You are the most important part of the solutions to your
learning challenges.
Conclusion for this course, but also to prepare yourself to

contribute in the best way possible so that you
can maximally benefit from it. We also urge
In conclusion, we should be very clear that six you to avoid forcing the tutor to lecture you.
hours is too little for lectures and it is not
necessary, in view of the provision of fully self- BEST WISHES IN YOUR STUDIES.
contained learning materials in the package, to
turn the little time into lectures. We, therefore, ZOU
urge you not only to attend the six hour tutorials
Contents
Module Overview ______________________________________________ 1
Unit One: What is Research?

1.0 ________ Introduction ______________________________________________________ 3
1.1 ________ Objectives _______________________________________________________ 4
1.2 ________ Defining Research ________________________________________________ 4
1.3 ________ Characteristics of Research _________________________________________ 4
1.4 ________ Educational Research ______________________________________________ 7
1.5 ________ Some Ethical Considerations ________________________________________ 8
__________ Activity 1.1 ______________________________________________________ 10
1.6 ________ Summary _______________________________________________________ 10
__________ References ______________________________________________________ 11
Unit Two: Basic Tools of Research

2.0 ________ Introduction _____________________________________________________ 13
2.1 ________ Objectives ______________________________________________________ 15
2.2 ________ Research Tools __________________________________________________ 15
__________ 2.2.1 The library _________________________________________________ 15
__________ 2.2.2 Measurement as a research tool ________________________________ 17
__________ 2.2.3 The nominal level of measurement _______________________________ 17
__________ 2.2.4 The ordinal level of measurement _______________________________ 17
__________ 2.2.5 The interval level of measurement _______________________________ 18
__________ 2.2.6 The ratio level of measurement _________________________________ 18
__________ 2.2.7 Validity ____________________________________________________ 19
__________ 2.2.8 Reliability __________________________________________________ 21
__________ 2.2.9 Statistics as a tool of research __________________________________ 21
__________ Activity 2.1 ______________________________________________________ 23
__________ 2.2.10 The computer as a research tool _______________________________ 24
__________ 2.2.11 Language as a tool of research _________________________________ 24
__________ Activity 2.2 ______________________________________________________ 25
2.3 ________ Summary _______________________________________________________ 25
__________ References ______________________________________________________ 26
Unit Three: The Problem: The Centre of the Research Project

3.0 ________ Introduction _____________________________________________________ 27
3.1 ________ Objectives ______________________________________________________ 28
3.2 ________ Sources of Research Problems ______________________________________ 28
3.3 ________ Characteristics of Researchable Problems ____________________________ 28
3.4 ________ Some Ways of Narrowing the Range of Possible Problems ________________ 29
__________ Activity 3.1 ______________________________________________________ 31
3.5 ________ Some Specific Considerations in Choosing a Problem ____________________ 32
3.6 ________ Stating the Problem _______________________________________________ 32
3.7 ________ The Sub-problems ________________________________________________ 35
__________ 3.7.1 What are the characteristics of sub-problems? _____________________ 35
3.8 ________ The Hypotheses __________________________________________________ 37
3.9 ________ Assumptions ____________________________________________________ 38
3.10 ______ The Delimitation of the Problem _____________________________________ 39
3.11 _______ Definition of Terms _______________________________________________ 39
3.12 ______ The Importance of the Study ________________________________________ 39
__________ Activity 3.2 ______________________________________________________ 40
3.13 ______ Summary _______________________________________________________ 40
__________ References ______________________________________________________ 41
Unit Four: Review of Related Literature

4.0 ________ Introduction _____________________________________________________ 43
4.1 ________ Objectives ______________________________________________________ 44
4.2 ________ The Purpose of Literature Review ____________________________________ 44
4.3 ________ How to Begin a Search for Related Literature __________________________ 45
__________ Activity 4.1 ______________________________________________________ 46
__________ Activity 4.2 ______________________________________________________ 47
4.4 ________ Showing the Relatedness of the Literature to the Research ________________ 47
__________ Activity 4.3 ______________________________________________________ 48
4.5 ________ Summary _______________________________________________________ 48
__________ References ______________________________________________________ 49
Unit Five: Research Design and Methodologies

5.0 ________ Introduction _____________________________________________________ 51
5.1 ________ Objectives ______________________________________________________ 52
5.2 ________ Types of Research ________________________________________________ 52
5.3 ________ The Scientific Method _____________________________________________ 52
5.4 ________ The Scientific Method and Its Origin _________________________________ 53
__________ Activity 5.1 ______________________________________________________ 53
5.5 ________ Criteria for a Research Project _____________________________________ 54
5.6 ________ Historical Method ________________________________________________ 55
__________ 5.6.1 Historical research __________________________________________ 55
__________ Activity 5.2 ______________________________________________________ 55
5.7 ________ Descriptive Survey _______________________________________________ 56
5.8 ________ Observation _____________________________________________________ 57
__________ 5.8.1 Advantages and disadvantages of observations ______________________ 57
__________ 5.8.2 What we should observe _______________________________________ 58
__________ 5.8.3 Relationship with participants __________________________________ 59
__________ 5.8.4 Recording the observations ____________________________________ 60
__________ Activity 5.3 ______________________________________________________ 60
5.9 ________ The Questionnaire _______________________________________________ 61
__________ 5.9.1 Questionnaire formats for respondents ___________________________ 61
__________ 5.9.2 Matrix questions _____________________________________________ 62
__________ Activity 5.4 ______________________________________________________ 63
5.10 ______ The Interview Technique ___________________________________________ 64
5.11 _______ Types of Interviews _______________________________________________ 65
__________ 5.11.1 Open ended and closed questions in interviews ____________________ 66
__________ 5.11.2 Advantages and disadvantaged of open and closed type questions _______ 66
__________ Activity 5.6 ______________________________________________________ 67
__________ 5.11.3 General rules for interviewing _________________________________ 67
5.12 ______ Sampling Procedures _____________________________________________ 68
__________ 5.12.1 Construction of samples ______________________________________ 68
__________ 5.12.2 Defining the population ______________________________________ 69
__________ 5.12.3 Listing the population ________________________________________ 69
__________ 5.12.4 Selecting a representative sample ______________________________ 69
__________ 5.12.5 Obtaining an adequate sample _________________________________ 69
__________ Activity 5.7 ______________________________________________________ 70
5.13 ______ Sampling Designs ________________________________________________ 70
__________ 5.13.1 Random sampling ___________________________________________ 70
__________ 5.13.2 Stratified sampling __________________________________________ 71
__________ Activity 5.8 ______________________________________________________ 72
5.14 ______ The Experimental Method __________________________________________ 72
__________ 5.14.1 Introduction _______________________________________________ 72
__________ 5.14.2 Characteristics of experimental design __________________________ 72
__________ 5.14.3 Comment __________________________________________________ 73
__________ 5.14.4 Comment __________________________________________________ 74
__________ Activity 5.9 ______________________________________________________ 76
5.15 ______ Summary _______________________________________________________ 77
__________ References ______________________________________________________ 78
Unit Six: Writing the Research Proposal

6.0 ________ Introduction _____________________________________________________ 79
6.1 ________ Objectives ______________________________________________________ 80
6.2 ________ The Role of the Research Proposal ___________________________________ 80
6.3 ________ What are the Main Characteristics of a Research Proposal? ______________ 81
__________ Activity 6.1 ______________________________________________________ 81
6.4 ________ The Components of a Research Proposal ______________________________ 81
__________ 6.4.1 The introduction section _______________________________________ 82
__________ 6.4.2 The method section ___________________________________________ 83
__________ Activity 6.3 ______________________________________________________ 85
6.5 ________ Summary _______________________________________________________ 85
__________ References ______________________________________________________ 86
Unit Seven: Writing the Research Report

7.0 ________ Introduction _____________________________________________________ 87
7.1 ________ Objectives ______________________________________________________ 88
7.2 ________ Specific Purposes Served by the Research Report _______________________ 88
7.3 ________ Specific Sections of the Research Report ______________________________ 88
__________ 7.3.1 The title page _______________________________________________ 88
__________ 7.3.2 The abstract ________________________________________________ 88
__________ 7.3.3 The introduction _____________________________________________ 89
__________ 7.3.4 The method _________________________________________________ 89
__________ 7.3.5 Presentation of results ________________________________________ 90
__________ 7.3.6 The interpretation of data (Discussion) ___________________________ 90
__________ 7.3.7 References _________________________________________________ 91
__________ Activity 7.1 ______________________________________________________ 92
__________ Recommended Reading ____________________________________________ 93
__________ References ______________________________________________________ 93
7.4 ________ Summary _______________________________________________________ 93
__________ Appendix 1 ______________________________________________________ 94
__________ Appendix II ______________________________________________________ 97
__________ Appendix III ____________________________________________________ 104
Module Overview
W
e would like to start by welcoming you to this module Research
Methods. We hope you are going to enjoy reading through it.
Great effort has been made to simplify the material given yet still
maintaining its substances.
Research is a science. If you care to ask what science is, you are likely to be
told that science is mathematics or wearing white coats or laboratories. Sci-
ence is none of these things yet it is very difficult to say what it actually is.
Seasoned scientists themselves would disagree on the proper definition. For
the purposes of this module, we shall look at science as a method of inquiry,
a way of knowing things about the world's characteristics which we are going
to examine.
As you read through this module and before you have read far you will see
that you know very much about the practice of scientific research. You will
realise that you have been conducting research all your life. Our purpose in
this module is that of sharpening skills which you already have. We will also
help you to know some tricks that may not have occurred to you.
Research Methods BEDM305
The sequencing of information in this module follows the research process.

We have added sufficient detail on each aspect to enable you to think, formu-
late and create your own research project for this and other courses. This is,
therefore, a necessary skill in the field of Educational Management and Ad-
ministration. If you apply these research skills in identifying and solving prob-
lems in your institution, then you should become and an effective teacher,
supervisor, manager, administrator, planner, policymaker, leader or evaluator.
On the basis of the above information, Unit 1 helps you to understand the
basic concept of research. It gives you the definition of research in terms of its
characteristics. You are also exposed to some ethial considerations in
reasearch.
In Unit 2, we introduce you to some of the basic tools of research. Chief

among such basic tools are the library, measurement, validity, reliability, sta-
tistics, computer and language.
Unit 3 assists you to understand the problem which is the centre of the re-
search project. We give you examples of sources of research problems, defi-
nition of terms and the importance of the study.
In Unit 4, we draw your attention to how to write review of related literature.

We cover the purpose of literature review and how to begin a search for
related literature. We end the unit by showing the relatedness of the literature
to the research.
Unit 5 gives you research design and methodologies. It covers types of re-
search such as the scientific methods, historical methods, descriptive survey
and the experimental method.
In Unit 6, we guide you on how to write the research proposal. You will learn
about the specific purposes served by the research proposal. It discusses the
components of a research proposal.
We wind up the module with Unit 7 which deals with the writing of the re-
search report. We begin by giving you specific purposes served by the re-
search report. You will also learn about specific sections of the research re-
port.
2 Zimbabwe Open University

Unit One
What is Research?
1.0 Introduction
W
e, as educators, conduct educational research in order to achieve
two main goals. These goals are to understand educational proc
esses better and to make professional decisions on pupils, teach-
ers, parents, communities and the nation. But what do we mean by research?
In this unit, we clarify what research is. We shall therefore:
 discuss the main characteristics of research
 identify research steps
 discuss ethical considerations in research
 provide a revision exercise.
1.1 Objectives
By the end of this unit, you should be able to:
 define the concept research
 identify characteristics of the research process
 describe characteristics of educational research
 describe research steps
 identify and analyse ethical considerations in research
1.2 Defining Research

Research is a systematic process of collecting and logically analysing infor-
mation in order to provide answers to questions. It is an attempt to solve
problems in a systematic way. Research takes two main forms, namely basic
and applied or action research. Basic research serves the purpose of finding
out information and interpreting it to form meaning. It examines basic as-
sumptions or theories, for example, of teaching method or educational prac-
tice to build knowledge. Applied or action aims at addressing specific prob-
lems encountered (in our case educational problems), and possibly imple-
menting the recommendations made as well as monitoring and evaluating the
effectiveness of the recommendations.
1.3 Characteristics of Research

There are seven outstanding characteristics of research. These help us to
understand research more clearly.
 Research begins with a problem. This problem is in the form of a ques-
tion in the researcher's mind. We (human beings) are curious animals.
We are continuously asking questions about issues in our environment.
 Teachers may ask questions about how to improve teaching and learn-
ing. Administrators may raise questions about how to improve commu-
nication in their organisation. When you have questions, you are at the
beginning of research. Look around you. Consider what you think are
unresolved situations which call for these questions. What? Where?
When? and How? can be fertile ground for research.
 Research demands that we should clearly state the problems that we
identify. Successful research begins with a clear statement of the prob-
lem or research question. This clarity helps us to see from the begin-

Unit 1 What is Research?
ning, what we are attempting to research. We shall say more about the
research problem in the next unit.
 Research deals with the main question (the problem) through sub-prob-
lems. Most research problems subsume other problems of smaller
breadth and significance. These are the sub-problems which collec-
tively form the main problem. As researchers we must be able to rec-
ognise the components of the main problem we want to investigate.
For example a photographer may want to take a photograph of a par-
ticular scene. Let us take this task as the photographer's research prob-
lem. To achieve the task he/she must ask: Is there enough light? What
are the main features of the scene? What is the capacity of the camera?
Which is the most appropriate angle from which to shoot? Think about
more questions the photographer may raise in the same task. These
questions are the sub-questions which, when answered, you would
have answered the main problems.
 Research secures direction through appropriate hypotheses. Each sub-
problem is viewed through a hypothesis. A hypothesis is a reasonable
guess which helps to give direction to our thinking about the problem.
For example, when something happens, we usually attempt to account
for it by a series of guesses. Think about AIDS and the number of
guesses about its origin and how it can be cured. When we are faced
with a research problem, we make 'educated' guesses to assist us in
discovering solution to give direction in looking for information.
 Research has to do with facts and their meaning. After we isolate the
problem and find a hypothesis the next step is to collect information
appropriate to answering the problem.
 This information must be organised so that we can interpret it. As a
researcher, you must read meanings from the information you have
collected and interpret it in respect to the problem. We shall say more
about data collection and interpretation in Unit 3.
 The research process is a circle. This is illustrated in the diagram be-
low.
Zimbabwe Open University 5

(I)
A PROBLEM
An unanswered question in your
mind as a researcher
(VI) (II)
INTERPRETATION STATEMENT OF THE
You interpret information collected PROBLEM
in order to resolve the problem, to You make a clear statement of the
confirm or reject the hypotheses problem
RESEARCH IS A
CYCLIC PROCESS
(V)
INFORMATION (III)
You engage in collecting and SUB-PROBLEMS
organising information as
You formulate appropriate
directed by the problem and
sub-problems
hypotheses
(IV)
HYPOTHESES
You posit tentative solutions to the
problem(s) through hypotheses
Figure 1.1 The Research Process (Adapted from Leedy and Omrod
(2012) 10th Edition)
The findings in step VI usually raise other questions that need research, so the
cycle can begin again. From the characteristics of research we have discussed,
we need to proceed and come up with specific research steps. These steps
are discussed in greater detail in subsequent units.
Steps in the Research Process are:

 Identifying a problem
 Constructing a hypothesis
 Reviewing and labelling variables. Selecting variables and construct-
ing hypotheses rely heavily on work already written by others. In Unit
3, procedures in reviewing literature are discussed.
 Identifying and labelling variables: In Unit 5, independent, dependent
and control intervening variables are outlined.
 Formulating Operational Definitions: Research involves a series of
processes and operations. Consequently it is necessary to state vari-
ables in observable, measurable terms.

 Manipulating and Controlling Variables: To allow us to find rela-

tionships between variables, we must manipulate and evaluate them.
The concepts of internal and external validity, which are discussed in
detail in Unit 7, are important to this task.
 Constructing a Research Design: In a research, we need to formu-
late specific conditions under which we should operate.
 Constructing Methods of Data Collection: Within the specific con-
ditions, we also need to construct tools or instruments with which to
collect data. Examples of these are questionnaires and interview sched-
ules.
 Carrying out Statistical Analysis: Once we have collected informa-
tion, we must reduce it by statistical analysis so that we can make con-
clusions/generalisations. (Refer to the Module on Statistics for more
detail).
 Writing a Research Report: A research report has a number of sec-
tions, that is, the research proposal, the method section, the results
section, the discussion section, the references, and the abstract. These
are again discussed in detail in the last unit.
1.4 Educational Research

Educational research therefore, is the study of educational systems and proc-
esses in order to order provide answers to educational questions. Primary
education in Zimbabwe is an example of a system. The teaching - learning
methods used are an example of the process. To achieve these goals in edu-
cational research, our research must be better and to make decisions. To
achieve these goals, our research must be:
 Objective: Our data collection and analysis procedures must be unbi-
ased. We need to make ourselves clear so that there are no various
meanings and interpretations to our work.
 Precise: The language we use should describe our research accu-
rately. This helps us to use results correctly. It also allows the research
to be replicated and extended.
 Verifiable: We have learnt earlier that our researches usually lead to
other researches. This demands that research must be thorough so that
it can be confirmed or revised in subsequent research. Another re-
searcher in another setting should see sense in your research. They
should make use of this research to pursue their educational interests.
 Explanatory: the ultimate aim of your specific research is to reduce
complex issues to simple explanations.

 Empirical: Empirical work is work guided by the evidence we obtain

from systematic research. Consequently, in research we must provide
evidence, not just our opinions.
 Logical: The evidence we provide should then undergo logical rea-
soning on our part. This thinking process helps us to interpret findings.
 Probabilistic: Research is a method of reducing uncertainty. This does
not mean that our findings become so certain that no doubt remains.
Let us take an example of a researcher who is investigating the conse-
quences of frustration among teachers. He/she may find that most frus-
trated teachers become aggressive. As a researcher, he/she should say
'the findings tend to indicate or suggest that frustration leads to aggres-
sion' instead of frustration leads to aggression'.
1.5 Some Ethical Considerations

Ethics is an important matter for educational researchers. Educational re-
searchers have human beings, often children, as their subjects of study. Eth-
ics has to do with respect for human rights. It involves considerations such as
fairness, honesty, respect for the integrity of the individual and confidentiality
of certain information.
Take an example of research in which you want to know how people behave
under extreme physical discomfort. Would you be justified to subject these
people thus? What specific ethical considerations should researchers take
into account in order not to violate human rights? Tuckman and Harper (2012),
Metler (2012) and Creswell (2009) give the following:
 The Right to Privacy or Non Participation: A subject (the one who
responds to our research questions) has the right to refuse to partici-
pate in our study. Further the subject has the right to have some of the
information they provide being kept private. Examples of such infor-
mation include religious convictions and political feelings.
As a researcher, you are advised to avoid unnecessary questions if you
are to keep your subjects. It is also important that you obtain consent
for children's participation from adults such as parents and teachers.
 The Right to Remain Anonymous: Subjects have the right that their
individual identities are not highlighted in a research. You should, there-
fore, focus on group data rather than individual data. Subjects should
be identified by numbers, not by names. It is also important to explain
that you have included them as part of random sample to represent the
group in question.

 The Right to Confidentiality: Participants (subjects) have the right

that their answers be confidential. This is why we have already pointed
out the need to identify subjects by data numbers and not by name.
Further, you should confidentially collect information. As soon as your
study is complete, you should destroy the individual responses.
 The Right to Prove that the Researcher is Responsible: Partici-
pants have the right to know the intentions of the researcher in con-
ducting the research. You need to assure them that their dignity shall be
respected and that you need their information purely for professional
purposes.
Ethical practices are, therefore, concerned with your personal behaviour as a
researcher. Included in research ethics is the expectation that you write your
research report in correct spellings, grammar, using effective sentence and
unified paragraphs. Asking someone to do these for you is unethical and aca-
demically dishonest. You should also fully acknowledge all information bor-
rowed from others.

Activity 1.1
1. Define in your own words (in one sentence), what research is.
? 2. Describe each of the following characteristics of educational research:
 objective
 precise
 verifiable
 explanatory
 empirical
 logical
 probabilistic
3. From the following list of statements some of which represent steps in
the research process, order the steps according to their sequence,
leaving out those that are not relevant.
 reviewing literature
 teaching teachers how to teach well
 writing the research report
 constructing experimental designs
 constructing a hypotheses
 identifying a problem
 analysis of data
 constructing operational definitions
 identifying and labelling variables
 considering individual difference
 manipulating and controlling variables
 constructing a research design
 resolving problems of discipline
4. Describe all the ethical considerations discussed in this unit. Discuss
any other that need to be considered.
1.6 Summary
In this unit, we have found that research is a systematic process involving a
series of steps. Educational research must be objective, precise, verifiable,
explanatory, empirical, logical and probabilistic. Research has the potential to
help improve people's lives so it must be done. However, as researchers we
must be concerned about protecting the rights, health and the well being of
the participants.

References
Creswell, J.W. (2009). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative and
Mixed Methods Approaches. 3rd Edition. London: Sage.
Leedy, P.D and Ormrod, V.E (2012). Practical Research: Planning and
Design. New York: Macmillan.
Metler, C.A. (2012). Action research: Improving Schools and Empower-
ing Educators. (3rd Edition). London: Sage.
Tuckman, B.W. and Harper, B.E (1978). Conducting Educational Research
(2nd edition). New Jersey, Harcourt: Brace Jovanovich.


Unit Two
Basic Tools of Research
2.0 Introduction
I
n Unit 1, we have defined research as a systematic quest for undiscov-
ered truths. As researchers, we need to have knowledge of available
resources to facilitate and expedite the research process. These re-
sources, skills and competencies the researcher has to use are what we call
research tools. In this unit, the tools of research are grouped into five catego-
ries. These are:
 The library
 Measurement as a research tool
 Statistical tools
 The computer
 Language as a research tool
As a researcher, you need facts. Some of these facts are already in published
documents, for example, in the library. Do you have the necessary knowl-
edge and skills to use the library efficiently? Do you have adequate command
of statistics in order to apply appropriate statistical methods to analyse data,
to interpret the meanings? Researchers also need measurement techniques.
These are necessary to convert data from its normal state in which we receive
it to a quantified concept so that it may be statistically interpreted. In such
fields as social science, education and humanities, measurement is very nec-
essary, but sometimes difficult. For example, imagine how you can measure
the anxiety level of Form IV pupils towards their final examinations in No-
vember. How would you measure subordinates' feelings towards you as their
new headmaster? Remember we have said these and similar concerns are
difficult, but necessary.
We are now in the computer world. As researchers, we need to know what

computers can and cannot do for us. We need knowledge of the means of
handling and processing data. This is a world of information explosion.
The truth that we discover through research must be communicated to others.

This is why we need to be proficient in language so that we say exactly what
we intend to say.
These tools of research are intimately interrelated. To find answers to your

research problem, you may depend on more than one or all of these tools. In
this unit we give you broad guidelines to essential aspects of the tools of
research.

Unit 2 Basic Tools of Research
2.1 Objectives
 define the concepts, 'tools of research', 'validity' and 'reliability'
 explain the importance of each research tool discussed
2.2 Research Tools

2.2.1 The library
The library is one of the most important research tools. Researchers need to
be self-sufficient in the library. You need to know the principal resources in
the library. You also need to understand the classification systems in opera-
tion. As rightly stated by Leedy and Ormrod (2012), you learn to use the
library by using it. Every library is different from another in one way or an-
other, but there are some practical suggestions to help you to function in any
library. These include that you should know:
 The Layout: Since you have used libraries before, and since you are
using a library for your current studies, have you already found the
location of special collection, the Reference Section, Audio Visual ma-
terials, Periodicals and Stacks where books in your area of interest
may be found? Or do these sections just 'bump into you' as you roam
about in the library?
 The Card Catalogue: The card catalogue is the heart of the library. It
is the major means of locating the contents of the library. This catalogue
is a series of drawers that contain index cards on which are found the
location and brief descriptions of all items contained in the library. Such
items include books, films, tapes, maps, slides and pictures. In almost
all libraries cards are arranged alphabetically by author, subject and
title. In some libraries, the card catalogue has been replaced by com-
puterised catalogue.
One important feature of the catalogue card is the classification symbol. This
symbol is usually found in the upper left hand corner of the card. This is
identified as the call number. It indicates where you find the book in question,
the library section and the type of material it contains.
The call number belongs to one of the two systems used in classifying library
resources namely, the Dewey Decimal Classification System and the Library
of Congress Classification.

The Dewey System:
Originated by Melvil Dewey in 1873, the Dewey system has divided all hu-
man knowledge into ten major categories that is:
000 General Works
100 Philosophy
200 Religion
300 Social Sciences
400 Language
500 Pure Science
600 Technology, Applied Science, useful Arts
700 The Arts
800 Literature
900 History, Biography
This system progresses from the given ten categories to more and more spe-
cific sub-classifications.
The Library of Congress Classification System

Instead of classifying areas numerically, this system uses letters as follows:
A General Knowledge: Polygraph
B Philosophy: Religion
C History: Auxiliary Science
D History: General World, Topography
E-F History: America
G Geography: Anthropology, Folklore
H Social Sciences
J Political Science
K Law
L Education
M Music
N Fine Arts
P Philosophy and Literature
Q Science
R Medicine
S Agriculture
T Technology
U Military Science
V Naval Science
Z Bibliography and Library Science
(Extracted from Leedy and Ormrod. 2012:15 and 17)

Using these classification systems, and depending on the library system, you
should, therefore, find your way around.
2.2.2 Measurement as a research tool

If our problem is to be researchable, then it must be measurable. By meas-
urement here, we mean the quantifying of phenomena. We have seen in Unit
1 that research has to do with asking questions. Researchers ask: How much?
To what degree? In fact, research thrives on asking questions. Measurement,
therefore, involves comparing phenomena against a given standard. In testing
reading ability, we may use a reading test. It involves measuring substantial
and unsubstantial things, for example, numbers of people, their achievement
in certain tasks and their opinions.
Measurement occurs at different levels, from the very simple to the most
involving. Let us examine such levels briefly.
2.2.3 The nominal level of measurement

This is a simple mode of measurement where data are assigned names. For
example, a group of children can be categorised into boys and girls. Class-
rooms may be labelled rooms 1, 2, 3, and 4. These numbers have no other
meanings except that as labels they enable us to distinguish between one class-
room and another. Nominal data may be represented by bar graphs, by per-
centages, and so on. You can see that this measurement is elementary. It does
not provide more details about the children grouped according to sex. It does
not give us more details about the classrooms labelled 1, 2, 3, and 4. This,
therefore, means that as a researcher, you need to know more levels of meas-
urement. However, this first level, the nominal, is a good starting point, but a
great deal more has to be added to it.
2.2.4 The ordinal level of measurement

This measurement implies measuring whether something is higher or lower,
greater or lesser, more or less than another, older than, younger than, more
desirable than, more effective than, and so on, are examples of measurement
that researcher want to achieve. Using ordinal measurement, we may find the
mode, median, the chi square and the correlation statistics. You can see, there-
fore, that with our group of children in the nominal level of measurement, it is
possible to characterise the children more, and not only according to sex. We
can say girls are better than boys in language, boys are faster than girls or non
are poorer leaders than women, for example.

2.2.5 The interval level of measurement

At the interval level of measurement, we measure data by means of a basic,
standard interval. A metre, kilogram, a year - these are all basic standard
measures of distance, weight and time respectively. Because these are stand-
ard measures, we can use them for comparative purposes. How many times
in term should a headmaster assess the performance of his/her untrained teach-
ers, his/her trained teachers, his/her deputy?
To you the researcher, this level of measurement means that in order to meas-
ure something, you must have a scale. If you do not have a scale, construct
one. Your scale does not have to be the same as another researchers. The
only requirement is that throughout the entire scale, you keep a basic stand-
ard interval by which you measure your data. Here is an example.
Place an X on the scale provided below at the point where you would rate the
availability of your field tutor at place of work when you need his/her assist-
ance.
.........................................................................................................................
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Never Seldom Available only Generally Always
available available by appointment available available
The scale given above has ten equidistant intervals. This equidistance creates
a standard scale which we can compare with the centimetre marks on a ruler
or to the second, minute or hour intervals of time.
2.2.6 The ratio level of measurement

Two metres is twice one metre. Six kilogram is half of twelve kilograms. The
two ratios described here can be summarised as 2:1 and 1:2 respectively. We
can, therefore, measure data in terms of how many times as big, tall, heavy,
wide.
Saunders, in Leedy and Ormrod (2012:23) aptly summarises the various types
of data measurements as follows:
If you can say that:

 one object is different from another, you have a nominal scale;
 one object is bigger or better or more of anything than another, you
have an ordinal scale;

 one object is so many units (degrees, inches) more than another, you
have an interval scale;
 one object is so many times as big, or bright, or tall, or heavy as an-
other, you have a ratio scale.
We shall appreciate more the importance of these scales of measuring data
later in this module because the choice of statistical analysis depends on the
type of data available or the way in which those data have been measured.
Our ability to measure data is thus a significant tool of research. Let us exam-
ine the tools of measurement further in terms of validity and reliability.
2.2.7 Validity
Validity refers to how sound or effective the measuring instrument is. If you
construct a test for grade 7 pupils, you need to ask yourself what does the
test measure? How well does it measure this? The chief question answered
by validity is: are we really measuring what we think we are measuring? Let us
look at the tutor availability scale above with regard to validity of its measure-
ment. We may ask, what does "always available" mean? Twenty-four hours a
day? Does 'always' describe accurately the true state of affairs? Do you see
how fuzzy some of the categories on this scale can be?
There are several types of validity. Leedy and Ormrod (2012:25) and Coolican
(2009:97-100) give a very clear summary of the more common types as
follows:
A summary of the more common types of validity

(a) Face validity
This type of validity relies basically upon the subjective judgement of the re-
searcher. It asks two questions which the researcher must finally answer in
accordance with best judgement; these are:
 Is the instrument measuring what is it is supposed to measure?
 Is the sample being measured adequate to be representative of the
behaviour or trait being measured?
(b) Criterion validity
Criterion validity usually employs two measures of validity; the second, as a
criterion, checks against the accuracy of the first measure. The essential com-
ponent in criterion validity is that it is a reliable valid - a criterion standard
against which to measure the results of the instrument which is doing the meas-
uring.

The data of the measuring instrument should correlate highly with equivalent
data of the criterion.
(c) Content validity
This type of validity is sometimes equated with face validity. Content validity
is the accuracy with which an instrument measures the factors or situations
under study; that is, the "content" being studied. If, for example, we are inter-
ested in the content validity of questions being asked to elicit familiarity with a
certain area of knowledge, it would be concerned with how accurately the
questions asked tend to elicit the information sought. Thus, we want to know,
for example, whether the questions set for History 2166 at Ordinary Level,
are based on the content of the syllabus 2166 if these questions are to have
content validity. If the questions are based on information not included in this
syllabus, we say that they have no content validity.
(d) Construct validity
A construct is any concept, such as honesty, which cannot be directly ob-

served or isolated. Construct validation is interested in the degree to which
the construct itself is actually measured. To this end a significant procedure
has been developed by Campbell and Fiske known as the Multitrait-
multimethod Matrix Method. It makes use of the traits of convergence and
discriminability. Convergence looks to the focal effect of various methods of
measuring a construct. Different methods of measurement of the same con-
struct should "converge" or "focus" in their results. Discriminability means that
the measuring instrument should discriminate, or differentiate, the construct
being studied from other similar constructs.
(e) Internal validity
This term, and the one following, should not be confused with internal and
external criticism, which are tests of validity in historical research and dis-
cussed later in this text. Internal validity is the freedom from bias in forming
conclusions in view of the data. It seeks to ascertain that the changes in thee
dependent variable are the result of the influence of the independent variable
rather than the manner in which research was designed. Thus in an experi-
ment on reading, if the performance of a sample of pupils changes after train-
ing in phonic reading, then the change is due to training in phonic reading,
Reading ability is the dependent variable.
(f) External validity

This type of validity is concerned with the generalisability of the conclusions

reached through observation of a sample to the universe; or, more simply
stated: Can the conclusions drawn from a sample to be generalised to other
cases?
It would, therefore, be naïve for us as researchers to assume that because a

test is designed to measure a certain attribute, then it does exactly that. An
instrument that measures something else other than what it is intended to meas-
ure is not valid.
2.2.8 Reliability
The preceding paragraph brings us very close to reliability.
Reliability is concerned with accuracy. For example, with what accuracy does
the instrument (test, experiment, questionnaire and so on), measure time in
some activity? But the same instrument may not be reliable in measuring time
in a 100 metre athletics sprint race.
Your research can hardly proceed without data. However, mere collection of
raw, undisciplined data would not serve your purpose as a researcher. You
need to subject this data to some process of measurement. This assists you to
see facts in some order. Measurement is thus the process of arranging data
along some scale, as a way of creating order, of giving the data specific,
manageable units. But before the data can be really useful to the researcher,
more remains to be done.
2.2.9 Statistics as a tool of research

Note that because there is a module on statistics, the emphasis here shall be
on how statistics help the researcher, and not on detailed statistics. Statistics
represent a way of visualising facts. Did you know that many aspects of our
lives are statistical? For example, the number of people in a group (and there
are so many groups to which we belong, the degrees of temperature and the
numerical grades a pupil earns in a given period of time. You can go on and
on. We can, therefore, construe statistics as the language into which facts of
life are constantly translated in order to see their nature and interrelationships.
The question asked by statistics is the same as the one asked by the re-
searcher, namely; what do the facts collected mean? What message do they
communicate?

Let us take an example out of facts from everyday life. Tom is a third year
student in a Teachers' College. During the month of September, he got the
following grades:
Week Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
1 90 64 899 70 89
2 89 89 70 87 71
3 84 83 73 82 70
4 81 80 76 81 68
These are the raw facts, the data. Do they tell anything about Tom's perform-
ance? We hope you have not yet concluded that Tom was performing well,
because there is no scale of measurement. As they are, these scores do not
tell us much other than that Tom fluctuated in his performance. Let us treat
this data statistically, first by tabulating the grades according to the days and
weeks on which they were obtained.
What meaning can you make out of these facts? This table contains very
elementary or simple statistics. The scores are now put within a time se-
quence. We can read the marks vertically and horizontally with meaning.
For example, Tom's marks were deterioration each successive week on

Monday and Friday. To you and me as researchers, there must be a cause or
more for such performance. Discovering this cause is a function of research.
Let us go further and represent Tom's grades in a bar graph
100
80
Week 1
60
Week 2
40 Week 3
20 Week 4
0
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

Activity 2.1
Using the data provided below showing Tom's performance on another
? occasion and following the example above, draw bar graphs and
histograms for these data. To complete the graph, plot what grade
Tom obtained on each of the days Monday to Friday for all the five
weeks then join the points to form a line. If you have done it well, you
should be having a zigzag line that begins to straighten in the fourth
week. Some aspects that were apparent in the two previous
arrangements of the same scores now appear. For example, you should
notice wide differences in performance between the first and second
weeks. The performance stabilizes in the third and fourth weeks. The
researchers would obviously want to seek causes of such erratic
behaviour.
In Mathematics examinations during the first term in Form 1, Tom obtained

the marks tabled below:
Test January February March April

1 30 90 80 60
2 70 70 75 78
3 90 92 85 80
4 45 50 88 90
100%
80%
Test 4
60% Test 3
40% Test 2
Test 1
20%
0%
January February March April
From the variety of treatment we have done to Tom's grades (and there are
many treatments possible), we learn that looking at facts or data in only one
way would be a fractional view of those data. Being a fractional view, the
process would give just a segment of the total meaning possible. The reason
why we have many statistical techniques is to achieve tools of research which
help us to see what otherwise we may not even have known. We learned very
little by initially listing Tom's grade, but a great deal more by analysing the
data.

2.2.10 The computer as a research tool

Like in the case of statistics, computers are covered in separate modules,
such as BEDY108 and BEDM207 Introduction to Computers. Conse-
quently, we shall briefly discuss the importance of the computer to the re-
searcher.
IBM (International Business Machines) makers of computers, Leedy and

Ormrod (2012) define a computer as a machine that can, by following a
collected sequence of instructions, perform both logical and arithmetic op-
erations with data. A computer can also record information for either immedi-
ate or future reference.
The computer has become an essential research tool in this world of informa-
tion explosion. It can do, in a short time, what may otherwise take weeks or
months to complete through the use of other means. For example, in literature
search, a computer makes it possible to search for information in several
subject areas during the same search. If you were researching from books,
this would not be possible because you can only read one book at a time.
Every unit of information stored in the computer is potentially searchable and
this can be done very fast. The computer helps to refer to variety sources of
knowledge such as E-journals, E-brary and J-STOR.
For commonly used research procedures such as finding means, standard

deviation, correlations etc. most computers have standard programmes used
to find these so that you may not have to spend days doing calculations only
for your research.
While the computer can give tremendous assistance to you as a researcher, it

does not and cannot think for you. It must be told precisely what to do hence
the need for other tools of research. If used well, the computer can become
the researcher's best friend.
2.2.11 Language as a tool of research

At first glance, you may think that language is not a critical tool of research.
Imagine how many times your pupils or colleagues have misinterpreted your
message to mean what you did not intend. Imagine the number of occasions
when learners have written answers to you and they are completely off course,
this time not because of you, but because of their misunderstanding of the
printed word. Imagine also how many times you have concluded one thing on
a pupil's paper when the pupil really meant something else.

You, as researcher, therefore, have a dual role to play as regards language

use. You must make an effort to understand what others have written and you
must also communicate your own ideas explicitly to those who shall read your
work. As we shall see in the next unit, researchers cannot simply assume that
readers will always construe what they (researchers) have written in the same
way as was intended. There is, therefore, need for clarity on the point of the
researcher, in communicating ideas.
Activity 2.2
?
1. Briefly define a research tool.
2. Briefly explain the importance in research, of each of the research tools
discussed in this unit.
3. Giving examples explain the concepts validity and reliability.
2.3 Summary
In this unit we provided introductory information on some of the key tools of
research. A great deal of the information you need to carry out your research
can be found in the library. You therefore, need to be efficient in using this
tool. The data you collect must be put into some form of order to facilitate
their interpretation, hence the need for measurement as a research tool. To
interpret data, the data has to undergo various statistical treatments. This makes
statistics an essential tool of research. The computer can store, retrieve and
work out mathematical problems, thus making it another useful tool. Finally,
research has to do with communicating ideas, hence the need for clear lan-
guage to communicate exactly what is intended.

References
Coolican, H (2009). Research Methods and Statistics in Psychology (5th
Edition). London: Hodder Education.
Leedy, P.D. and Ormrod, V.E (2012). Practical Research: Planning and
Design (10th Edition). New York: Macmillan.
Travers, R.M.W. and Harper, J.E (2012). Second Handbook of Research
on Teaching. Chicago: McNally.

Unit Three
The Problem: The Centre of the

Research Project
3.0 Introduction
A
t the heart of your research is the problem. If there is no problem,
there is no research. The first requirement in the research process is
for you to see a clear problem and to be able to state it in precise
terms. In this unit, we examine sources of research problems, characteristics
of a researchable problem, statement of the problem, assumptions and the
significance of the study. In short, this unit is concerned with the problem and
its setting.
3.1 Objectives
 define a researchable problem and explain how it is reached
 formulate problems, sub-problems, hypotheses and assumptions
 critique research problems
3.2 Sources of Research Problems

Research problems are everywhere. What arouses your interest, triggers your
curiosity and raises questions for which there are no indisputable answers, is
fertile ground for a research problem.
Let us however, distinguish between our personal problems and researchable

problems. For example, if I have problems getting on well with my wife, this
is indeed a real problem, but it is not researchable in the sense of this course.
Coming back to researchable problems, we would like to pause and make a
mental inspection of any part or more of your work. You are likely to have
found that there are innumerable problems to warrant your attention as a
teacher.
In the field of education, your interests are a major source of researchable

problems. In the university and other libraries, you find a section entitled "Dis-
sertation Abstracts". Under the general heading of your own interest, if you
read these abstracts, you may find that the problem you had in mind becomes
clearer. This does not mean that you cannot come up with a researchable
problem without reading these abstracts. The important thing is that research
begins with a clear statement of the problem. In an educational setting, exam-
ples of researchable problems include the effectiveness of new teaching meth-
ods and materials and the effect of teacher transfers on pupil performance.
3.3 Characteristics of Researchable Problems

The following are some of the characteristics of researchable problems:
 Research requires an inquiring mind. This kind of mind seeks to find
facts and synthesise the meaning of such facts in order to arrive at
logical conclusions. If you do not mentally struggle to have facts reveal
their meaning, then you are not dealing with a researchable problem.
For example, a correlation coefficient of 0.91 may mean that two sets

Unit 3 The Problem: The Centre of the Research Project
of data are somehow closely related. However, you as a researcher

would not end there. You would proceed to investigate the nature of
the relationship, how these data are related, and why they are related.
 A researchable problem usually seeks to establish a relationship be-
tween two or more variables. For example, are boys more likely than
girls to perform better in mathematics? If so, why? In this case we can
take boys and girls as one variable and their performance as another.
We can however take boys as a variable, girls as another, and per-
formance becomes yet another variable. We can then take possible
reasons of differences as our last variable.
 A researchable problem goes beyond the surface questions. For ex-
ample, we may ask 'Is homework beneficial to pupils or not? The re-
searchable issue is not simply whether or not homework. The impor-
tant issue is where the benefit is if it is beneficial and is it is not, why it is
so. Thus research is not only interested in what we can observe but
also the reasons for, the causes of and the differences that may exist
between one situation and another.
 We need to state our research problem clearly and unambiguously.
This helps to show our purpose. One way of achieving this clarity is to
state the problem in question form. For example, do students learn
more from directive than from non-directive teaching?
For some problems to be researchable they must be testable by empirical
methods. It should be possible to collect and interpret data to answer the
question. Interpretation would thus involve explaining the meaning of the data
that has been gathered, arranged and processed. The critical and unavoid-
able question of the researcher is therefore, 'What is the meaning of all facts
gathered?' You should also be aware that qualitative research as that carried
out by historians does not usually need to be subjected to empirical methods
of research, yet it is still considered to be valid.
3.4 Some Ways of Narrowing the Range of Possible

Problems
There is an infinite number of problems 'out there'. As a researcher, you,
therefore, need ways of narrowing the range of problems in terms of your
own interests and skills. Tuckman and Harper (2012) offer two useful schemes
of narrowing the range of possible problems as set out below:

Scheme 1: A One-Dimensional Model for Problem Consideration

Societal Needs and Opportunities
Curriculum Development
Educational Programmes
Instructional Materials and Devices
Learning Processes and Teaching Methods
Student Personnel Services
Facilities and Equipment
Teacher Education
Administration and Supervision
Evaluation and Research Methodology
Figure 3.1 A One-Dimensional Model for Problem Consideration
To use scheme 1, you look at the given categories and ask yourself: In which
category am I most interested and most competent? Suppose your answer is
Teacher Education, you can then proceed and subdivide this category into
subcategories; for example, teaching practice, methods of teaching, teacher
educators, student entry qualifications and the curriculum. You might then ask
yourself; What is it about teachers educators that particularly interests me?
The second scheme is equally exciting and useful.

Scheme 2: A Three-Dimensional Model for Problem Consideration

Available Inputs Instructional Activities Anticipated Outcomes
and Organisation
Prospective Students Selection Meeting Social

Needs
Prospective Programme Meeting Individual

Teachers’ Needs Needs
Curriculum
Attitudes Teacher-Learner Attitude Change

Relationship
Job Markets Organisational Social Change

Policy
Institutional Relations Services Competency

Acquisition
Figure 3.2 A Three-Dimensional Model for Problem Consideration
In order to use scheme 2, you attempt to discover an area of interest in col-

umn 1 and link it to an interest in column 2 and 3. You do not have to begin in
column 1, nor to use all the three columns. Let us, for a start, begin in column
1 and use all columns. Suppose that your area of interest is prospective teach-
ers. You may link this with the programme (column 2). In column 3, you may
link with meeting societal needs. Thus you might ask; Is the programme fol-
lowed by prospective teachers effective enough to meet societal needs?
Activity 3.1
On your own, start from column 3 going back to column 1 and come
? up with a research problem. Start from column 2 and in any order,
include the other two columns and come up with a problem. Exclude
one of the columns and see if you can still generate a researchable
problem.
Are you happy with the problems you have formulated? Are they
researchable? These and similar models are useful in helping you to
narrow the range of problems for research.

3.5 Some Specific Considerations in Choosing a

Problem
In choosing a problem, you should answer the questions below in order to
identify that suitable problem.
 Is it workable?: If resources at your disposal such as money and time
are adequate, then the problem in question is largely workable. There
are however, other considerations under workability. Do you have ac-
cessibility to an adequate sample? Can you manage and understand
the methods required? Comment to writer not incorporated.
 What is the magnitude of the problem?: A problem of little magni-
tude and scope may not convince many people. For example, if you
want to study the impact of a new teaching approach already intro-
duced in primary schools, it may not be enough to study only one school.
The results may not be easily generalisable and there may not be enough
to write about.
 Are you addressing your interests?: If you are not very interested in
the area, your efforts may be minimal. In addition, the chosen problem
should relate to your educational and professional background, so that
interest is easy to come and grow. Does the problem enhance your
career if researched on? Are there any useful skills involved?
 Does the chosen problem have any theoretical value?: You must
have heard before that research must contribute new knowledge, at
the same time opening new areas of study. Does your chosen area,
therefore, intend to fill a gap in literature? Other people should recog-
nise the importance of your results if your problem choice was good.
The findings may even be published.
 Does it have any practical value?: In teaching, something of practi-
cal value may be that which interests teachers and forces them to change
their current teaching methods. It may improve educational practice,
such as, the way teachers handle special needs children.
3.6 Stating the Problem

The statement of the problem serves to clarify what exactly you intend to do.
Each word of the statement should be clear, sharp and indispensable. The
problem should be stated in a complete grammatical sentence. However, the
problem can also be stated in clear, question form. The most important issue

is that your research problem must be stated so well that anyone anywhere
(as long as they understand the language you are using), can read and under-
stand in the same way without your presence. A vague research problem is
subject to different interpretations.
 Are the following examples clear or unclear as research questions?
Why?
(a) Supervision of student teachers.
(b) Job-satisfaction among teachers.
(c) Administering school funds.
You are correct if you said that these statements are uncommunicative as
research statements. This is because they are not specific. Let us take these
same statements and develop them into complete statements that express
fully researchable problems.
 Supervision of student teachers becomes:
This study will analyse supervision strategies used by three primary
teachers' colleges in supervising second year students on teaching prac-
tice and the impact of these strategies on the students' performance in
teaching.
 Job satisfaction among teachers becomes:
This study examines ways of increasing job satisfaction among teach-
ers in 50 selected rural secondary schools in Masvingo region.
 Administering school funds becomes:
What effect does parental involvement in the financial affairs of 10 se-
lected primary schools have on the relations between parents and teach-
ers?
Note that in wording a problem, groups to be studied are limited so that there
is a manageable population to study. You should, therefore, carefully consider
the parameters of the population. For example, to say "This study proposes
to study the teaching of English in Zimbabwean primary schools," is an im-
possible task. There are thousands of primary schools in Zimbabwe. How
can one cover all these with cost, time and other constraints involved? But
some researcher may come back and say, "I did not intend to cover all Zim-
babwean primary schools but just some of them". This then shows lack of
precision in the statement of the problem. Say precisely what you intend to do
from the outset.
Remember, you do not just give a clear statement of the problem for the sake
of it. What you say in the problem you mean to fulfil in the actual research
effort. Your statement of the problem is thus commitment on your part. The
statement should, therefore, be phrased neither lightly nor irresponsibly be-

cause once stated, it becomes an obligation. If you cannot completely ac-

count for your statement of the problem, it would be highly questionable
whether you will do justice in collecting and interpreting the required data.
Leedy (1980:58) gives the following example of what one student wrote as
his statement of the problem:
The upsurge of interest in reading and learning disabilities found among both
children and adults has focused the attention of educators, psychologists, and
linguists on the language syndrome. In order to understand how language is
learned, it is necessary to understand what language is. Language acquisition is
a normal development aspect of every individual, but it has not been studied in
sufficient depth. To provide me with the necessary background information to
understand the anomaly of language deficiency implies a knowledge of the
development processes of language as these relate to the individual from in-
fancy to maturity. Grammar also an aspect of language learning, is acquired
through pragmatic language usage. Phonology, syntax, and semantics are all
intimately involved in the study of any language disability.
There we are. Is there a statement of the problem in this example? If so, what
is it? We should write to express a specific problem, and not to impress
anybody. The reader of your problem statement should come into direct con-
tact with the problem from the very beginning, for example, "The purpose of
this study is to ..."
 Express your thoughts with the least number of words possible
 Prefer shorter words than longer ones
 Keep the sentence short
 Ensure that the words you used say exactly what you wish them to say.
Throw out unnecessary words
 Each word should be correctly placed
Here is an example of misplacing words:
For sale: A piano that has arthritis and cannot play anymore, by a
woman with beautifully carved mahogany legs.
Here is the correct placement of the words of the same advertisement:
For sale: A piano with beautifully carved mahogany legs by a woman
that has arthritis and cannot play anymore (Leedy and Ormrod, 2012).
Do you see how the same words can portray completely different meanings
without the intention of the composer of those words? Let this not happen
when you put across your own statement of the problem.

3.7 The Sub-problems

As a researcher, you will discover that within your main problem, there are
logical sub-aspects or sub-components. These are sub-problems of your main
problem. After you have solved each of these sub-problems, then you will
have solved your main problem. We get a global view of a problem by look-
ing at the problem through its components. We dissect the problem. Instead
of attacking the entire problem at one go, it is easier to divide and defeat it in
smaller segments.
3.7.1 What are the characteristics of sub-problems?

The following are some of the characteristics of sub-problems:
 Each sub-problem should be a completely researchable unit. A sub-
problem should comprise of a meaningful and logical sub-area of the
larger research area, the problem. This sub-area might be researched
as a separate sub-project within the main goal. It is necessary, there-
fore, that you state your sub-problems clearly. Usually sub-problems
are stated in question form. A question tends to focus your attention
more directly on the research area than does a mere statement. After
all research is about asking questions and seeking answers to those
questions, so the interrogative attitude is the normal route for the re-
searcher.
 As researchers, we must distinguish between pseudo sub-problems
and researchable sub-problems. Here are examples of questions:
o How should I choose my sample?
o What method should I use to collect data?
o What is the size of a representative sample?
o When should I start to collect data?
 In your opinion, are these researchable questions or pseudo sub-prob-
lems?
Note that you can use sub-problems and sub-questions interchangeably.
The questions you have just read are quite important to a researcher who is
seeking direction. They arise quite logically from one's research. They are
however pseudo-sub-problems because all they require is that you decide on
a course of action to take. They are more to do with the procedure to follow
than the main research problem. If, for example, you are deciding when to
start your research, this is only a procedural step; it is not the research itself.
So the questions we have given are not researchable the manner in which we
have defined research.

Let us take yet another example of a question. Suppose that the following
was a sub-problem of a broader research question:
To what extent are teachers involved in making decisions in:

 curriculum issues;
 the school budget, and
 the selection of pupils?
Is this a pseudo sub-problem or a researchable sub-problem? Yes, the exam-
ple is a researchable sub-problem, never mind what the main problem is. We
say this is a researchable sub-problem because:
 Within the sub-problems it must be clear that data will be collected and
interpreted. In the example, we have given the researcher must gather
information about teacher involvement in the named areas. To establish
the extent of involvement, he/she must interpret that information. Such
an endeavour is different from merely deciding who you are going to
involve in your study and whether the numbers involved would be rep-
resentative enough.
 The sub-problems should add up to the totality of the problem. After
stating all your sub-problems, you need to compare them with your
main problem. This would assist you to see that nothing outside the
main problem has been included and that all significant parts of the
main problem have been taken care of.
 Too many sub-problems are usually counterproductive. If you have
stated your main problem carefully and you have carefully limited it to a
manageable scope, your sub-problems will be in the region of two to
six in number. If you find you are coming up with ten or more, you need
to carefully review the problem and sub-problems. Here are guidelines
to help you carry out this review:
 Check if you have not included as sub-problems, procedural issues
which you need to decide upon before proceeding with the research.
 Have you not fragmented your true sub-problems? There may be need
to combine some sub-problems into larger but still researchable units.
Such combinations must, however, still ensure agreement with the main
problem.
 Check if your problem is not a mixture of the two preceding problems.
If so, you need to carefully study each of the sub-problems in order to
separate pseudo sub-problems from true sub-problems. Remember
we pointed out earlier that as a researcher you must be very cautious to
avoid committing yourself beyond what is possible to achieve. If how-

ever, you have been careful in wording the main problem, there should
be little difficulty with sub-problems.
 After you have jumped the hurdle of the problem and sub-problems,
certain unresolved areas still remain for us to understand fully: this is the
meaning of your research problem. Your research problem needs fur-
ther delineation in order for us to understand exactly what you intend to
do and what you do not intend to do.
3.8 The Hypotheses

A hypothesis is a suggested answer to the problem. It is a logical supposition,
a reasonable guess with respect to your research problem. It is an educated
conjecture to give you direction in your search for the solution to your prob-
lem. Hypotheses are part of everyday life. For example, if your car suddenly
stops, you immediately attempt to account for it through a series of guesses.
Is it fuel? Is it electrical? Is it a knock? This is all hypothesising. When you
open the bonnet and check, you may find one electric wire disconnected and
on reconnecting it, your car starts, you then discard the other hypotheses you
had formulated. Similarly, when faced with a research problem, you make
reasonable guesses to assist you in discovering the solution, to give yourself
direction in looking for facts. Here is a simple problem:
Are X and Y groups of marks related?
Examples of hypotheses could be:

- Yes, X group increases as Y increases
- Yes, as X increases, Y decreases
- No, the two are unrelated.
So as more variables are considered, more hypotheses arise. Note the two
main characteristics of hypotheses are that they are:
- clear and in the form of a declarative sentence;
- testable, that is you can only prove then wrong or
- correct on the basis of collected data.
Hypotheses are categorised either as Null Hypotheses or Alternative Hy-
potheses.
A null hypothesis is expressed in the negative form. It states that there is no
significant difference between the two measures of the same variable. If the
difference is found, it is due to sampling error. A null hypothesis would be
expressed thus:

There is no difference between boys and girls in their ability solve math-
ematical problems.
The alternative hypothesis is expressed in the positive form. It states that

there is a significant difference between the two measures of the same vari-
able and that this difference is not due to sampling error. It contends that the
null hypothesis is incorrect. Thus, using the same example cited above, the
alternative hypothesis would state that, "Boys perform better than girls in solving
mathematical problems."
Briefly, hypotheses are statements about the relationship or lack of it, be-
tween variables, and they carry a clear implication for testing the stated solu-
tions. There are four main reasons for the importance of hypotheses to re-
search. These are that hypotheses:
 Organise the efforts of the researcher so that he follows a particular
direction. They provide a framework for collecting, analysing and in-
terpreting data;
 Can be deduced from your theoretical knowledge as a researcher. They
can also be deduced from other hypotheses;
 Can be tested, thus resulting in confirmation or rejection;
 Are powerful tools for advancing knowledge because they enable you
to get outside yourself and gather data to confirm or reject a given
position?
3.9 Assumptions
Hypotheses are different from assumptions. We have to say this because
these two are often confused to mean the same thing. While a hypothesis, as
we have seen, is a supposition that is either supported or rejected by facts, an
assumption is a condition which is taken for granted without which the re-
search effort would be impossible. For example, in an educational situation; a
group of students is beginning to learn to use computers. The question (prob-
lem) is: If students are given regular practice with computers, do they become
more competent in the use of computers than those who are not exposed to
this regular practice? We would measure this competence through preened
post-test evaluation. We may hypothesise that such regular practice brings
about greater competence. We assume that the tutor who is training the com-
puter students is capable of and is going to expose some students to comput-
ers regularly and deprive other students of his exposure. If the tutor is not
going to do this then the whole experiment flops.

3.10 The Delimitation of the Problem

The delimitation of your problem is the precise limit of the issues you are to
cover. You cannot investigate all aspects of any problem. Thus, where exactly
your problem ends is your delimitation. Your borders or boundaries beyond
which you are not answerable are the delimitations. Do you notice that with-
out delimitations you can be accused of not having included this and that or
why you included them? In addition, the research might never come to an
end.
3.11 Definition of Terms

What precisely do the terms used in phrasing your problems and sub-prob-
lems mean? For example in the experiment where some students are exposed
to computers while others are not, what does "competence" mean? Without
knowing explicitly what the key terms mean, we cannot evaluate a research
or determine the achievement of intentions. Such definitions should be coined
to interpret the terms as they are employed in the research project. This auto-
matically means that it is not advisable to rely on dictionary definitions. You
might ask yourself: "But how do I know this is a key term and the other one is
not? The answer is, if you have understood your problem well, if you have
constructed relevant sub-problems and hypotheses, then you know your fo-
cus and in that focus, you have key terms to define.
3.12 The Importance of the Study

The question of the importance of the study has already been touched when
we discussed some considerations in choosing a problem. Your study is ex-
pected to relate to the practical world so that it can be used to solve prob-
lems. Of what use is your research? What practical value does it have? The
importance of the study is, therefore, a serious attempt to convince others
that your study is worth the effort.

Activity 3.2
1. Formulate three potential problems and at least three sub-problems
? for each of the problems. Critique each problem in terms of its:
i) practicality as a researchable problem and
ii) value.
2. Construct three hypotheses from the following problem: To find out
whether students who use this module will learn more about research
methods than students who use X textbook.
3. Here are two hypotheses:
i) Team teaching is more effective than individual teaching.
ii) Team teaching is not more effective than individual teaching.
4. Which of the two hypotheses would be more appropriate given the
following information?
We cannot expect all students to like all teachers. Research findings
have shown that both male and female models are important in
socialisation.
Give reasons for your choice.
5. Re-write the following hypotheses in null form:
i) Firstborn children are more intelligent than those born later.
ii) Children from high socio-economic back-grounds perform better at
school than those from poor socio-economic back-grounds.
3.13 Summary
In this unit we have discussed the heart of the research project, - the problem
and its setting. We have stressed the need, on your part as researcher, to
clearly understand the problem and its components as well as the need to put
the problem across in clear, unambiguous terms. A researchable problem is
rooted in the sub-problems, hypotheses, assumptions, delimitations, defini-
tions of terms and the significance of the study. These components constitute
the setting of the problem.

References
Forcese, P.D. and Richer, S. (1973). Social Research Methods. New Jer-
sey: Prentice Hall.
Smith, J.A. (2008). Qualitative Psychology: A Practical Guide to Re-
search Methods. London: Sage.
Tuckman, B.W and Harper, B.E (2012). Conducting Educational Research
(2nd Ed.). New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.


Unit Four
Review of Related Literature
4.0 Introduction
I
n Unit 3 we learned about the "Problem" in a research project. We found
that it is the heart of the whole project. What we are to learn in this
section is not very different from our day to day experiences. Suppose
you are faced with a problem, you are most likely going to consult people
who have experienced a problem almost, if not, similar to yours. You find out
how they solved their problem. This is exactly what we are going to do in this
section. We want to find out ways of relating our problem to those of others,
hence we call it "Review of Related Literature".
It is imperative, therefore, that every research report be placed in the context

of the general body of 'Scientific Knowledge'. You should always indicate
where your report fits in as regards this general body of knowledge. You
should realise that the more you know about this literature which is related to
your study the more you become knowledgeable about your study.
4.1 Objectives
 describe purposes and approaches to literature search
 identify sources of literature search and their characteristics
 describe procedures for locating relevant literature
 demonstrate ability to review and abstract information
4.2 The Purpose of Literature Review

We have stated above the fact that the problem is the heart of the research
project. It is the reason why you engage yourself in this research. The pur-
pose of this review is then to assist you in attacking your problem. Thus,
whatever you write in this section, do not lose sight of the problem since it is
the central feature. All we do is guided by the fact that we want to have a
better understanding of the problem. It is general knowledge that once you
know what others have done, you can attack your problem better with more
confidence. Leedy and Ormrod (2012) suggest seven benefits we can derive
from reviewing literature. These are that it can:
 reveal investigations similar to your own, and it can show how the col-
lateral researcher handled these situations
 suggest a method or a technique of dealing with a problematic situation
which may also suggest avenues of approach to the solution of similar
difficulties you may be facing
 reveal to you sources of data which you may not have known existed
 introduce you to significant research personalities whose research ef-
forts and collateral writings you may have no knowledge
 help you to see your own study in historical and associational perspec-
tive and in relation to earlier and more primitive attacks on the same
problem
 provide you with new ideas and approaches which may not have oc-
curred to you
 assist you in evaluating your own research efforts by comparing them
with related efforts done by others
You can see from the facts above how important it is for you to know what
others have done before you embark on your research.

Unit 4 Review of Related Literature
4.3 How to Begin a Search for Related Literature

Remember first that the review of related literature in connection with a re-
search project has two phases, that is:
 finding a relevant starting point and
 extending the research in "snowball" fashion
The most logical thing to do in order to find a relevant beginning is to go to the
reference desk librarian for assistance. You describe what you are interested
in and the Librarian should refer you to several of useful indexes in the library.
There are many indexes most appropriate to your interests.
As soon as you have found several books and articles that are relevant to
your interests, read them. As you get into your reading you can expand your
reading in two ways. First, each of the books and articles you read should
have bibliographic references. Look at these to see what additional publica-
tions are likely to be relevant to your research. Pay special attention to books
and articles that are cited in several of the sources you read. They are prob-
ably important.
Second when you get to the library shelves to get a particular book or jour-
nal, take a minute to see other nearby volumes. Since the library holdings are
shelved by subject matter, you may stumble across relevant books and arti-
cles that have escaped your search through the various indexes. These two
techniques make up what Babbie (2012) calls "snowball" expansion of your
literature search.
We can then say that as a general rule, it may be well for you to begin with the
indexes and abstracts of the periodicals in your academic area: biological
abstracts, chemical abstracts, child development abstracts, Dissertation ab-
stracts, Index Medicus, Index of Science and Technology, Science citation
Index. You can also make use of archives, bookshops and the inter-library
loan. This is not to say these are the only indexes and abstracts. Depending
on your library, you may find these and others not mentioned here. The point
is, you should know what to look for. You can also make use of the microfilm
if it is available. We talked about this aspect earlier, so there is no need to
repeat.
There is need to remind you here that when you go to the library you should
be armed with data gathering tools. For example, you need bibliographic
cards and a container to place them. Once you have established your biblio-
graphic information on cards it should be easier to locate it again when you

need it. You should always relate your bibliography to your problem and how
the item of literature relates to your problem. Some students are under the
impression that the more sources they cite the more impressive they are to the
project supervisor. Remember that quality overrides quantity. Avoid irrel-
evant sources.
Activity 4.1
1. What personal knowledge would you need before getting into the library
? to gather data or review literature?
2. Bibliography has been stressed a lot in our discussion, why do you
think it is so important?
Writing the Section on the Review of Related Literature
You are now at a point where you have amassed your bibliography. Your
question is most likely to be: "What do I do next? First, you need to be clear
on what you are going to do. This section is set aside for you to discuss the
studies done by others, which have relevance to your study. You should, there-
fore, look at what others have written in relation to what you are planning to
do.
For anything to be systematic it, needs a plan. This section needs to be planned
so that you do not get into a situation where you utter whatever comes first to
your mind. You need to outline the discussion that is to follow; your research
problem will guide you. The problem is your guiding torch for it will dictate to
you what is relevant and what is irrelevant.
In your discussion, always show how your literature is related to the problem.
That relationship needs to be pointed out clearly since you are writing about
the review of "Related" Literature. Like we pointed out earlier on, you need
to demonstrate the relatedness of the literature to the problem being researched.
Each study you cite should be related to the problem. Demonstrate how it fits
or relates to the problem. If you cannot do this, leave that study out. You may
be tempted in this section to reproduce studies you cite. The point is that
there is a difference between reviewing and reproducing. You need not copy/
quote those long passages. What we are interested in here is what you say
about the study (relatedness to the problem) than what the author says in
study. Stuart, in Leedy and Ormrod (2012) advise that you should:

 present your own discussion;

 paraphrase (precise, resume, give a synopsis, an epitome);
 use short direct quotations if necessary;
 avoid long quotations. Use them only for a good reason.
This is good advice which you now can adopt. You should contribute as much
as possible by showing the reader, the relatedness of the cited studies to the
problem. For more information, you can use E-books, E-journals and elec-
tronic institutional repositories to equip yourself with the latest techniques to
write the review of the related literature.
Activity 4.2
1. Write down a research problem.
? Cite at least 3 studies related to the problem.
Demonstrate the relatedness of these studies to the problem.
2. What problems did you meet in completing this task?
3. How did you overcome the problem?
4. How useful is this approach to acquisition of relevant research
information?
4.4 Showing the Relatedness of the Literature to the

Research
In order that you should not get lost as you write this section of the research
projects, Leedy, (Ibid) suggests that you should:
Write your problem at the top of the page where you cannot lose sight of it. In
this location, you should be constantly reminded of the central axis around
which everything else revolves.
Dissect the problem by numbering its various parts.

 Divide the page into two columns by drawing a vertical line down the
middle of the page, starting below the statement of the problem.
 Cite each specific study in the left hand column.
 Note in the right hand column, opposite each study the particular sub-
division of the problem to which the study relates and not also the
rationale for including it in the review of literature.

 Gather together all the citations that refer to the particular aspect of the
problem, so that you have as many groups as you have subdivisions of
your main problem.
 Study these groups in relation to each other, with the view of planning
and organising the discussion of the related literature.
 Write the review. Each section should have headings whose wording
should be identical to the words found in the statement of the problem.
By following these procedures, we hope that you can become more system-
atic in your presentation rather than reviewing literature for the sake of doing
it. At the end of your review, you need to gather up all that has been said
setting forth its significance to the problem under discussion. You need to get
to a focal point rather than end in a section with a heading "summary" where
you reflect on the discussion showing its direct relationship with the problem
under study.
For more guidance regarding identification of a body of knowledge, writing-

up a review of related literature section and citing of references, we refer you
to the Bachelor of Education in Educational Administration, Planning and Policy
Studies research projects guidelines.
Activity 4.3
?
1. Summarise, in your own words, why you think the section on the review
of literature is an essential part of the project.
2. Show what dangers would arise if this section were removed from the
project.
4.5 Summary
In this unit you have learned that:
 Literature search should be done in a very systematic way. It should
include only the relevant materials.
 Effort should always be made to include all materials that might be of
importance to the review.
 Review process begins with small traces of past work such as titles,
then expands to more detailed abstracts and then to complete articles
and documents.
 All the information gathered is reduced to relevant review abstracts
that you include in your review of literature.

References
Babbie, E.R. (2012). The Practice of Social Research. (13th Edition).
Belmont: Wadsworth Publishing Company Inc.
Coolican, H (2009). Research Methods and Statistics in Psychology (5th
Edition). London: Hodder Education.
Leedy, P.D and Ormrod, V.E (2012). Practical Research Planning and
Design (Third Edition). New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
Metler, C.A. (2012). Action research: Improving Schools and Empower-
ing Educators. (3rd Edition). London: Sage.
Tuckman, W.B and Harper, B.E (2012). Conducting Educational Research.
New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Inc.


Unit Five
Research Design and

Methodologies
5.0 Introduction
S
o far you must be comforting yourself that most of the things we have
looked at presented no special problems to you because they are not
divorced from your personal experiences. In this unit we shall be looking
at methods that are used in collecting information. This information, so col-
lected, is called 'data'. You will find out that information on Research Meth-
ods is easy to grasp because it is part and parcel of your experiences. Let me,
however, advise you to use these methods very often in future. They are our
closest research allies.
5.1 Objectives
By the end of this unit you should be able to:
 identify methods of research
 describe characteristics of each method
 discuss similarities and differences between methods
 examine techniques of collecting data
 demonstrate strengths and weaknesses of data collection techniques
5.2 Types of Research

In this unit you are going to notice that science is an enterprise dedicated to
finding out, no matter what you may want to find out, though there are likely
to be a great many ways of doing so. That is true in life generally. Suppose
you wanted to find out if a particular text book is suitable for a certain grade
level, you could, of course, buy one and then read it. You could also talk to
other teachers whose pupils are using a similar text book. You can find out in
many other ways. The same goes for research work. We have a number of
methods we can employ to find out what we want. In other words, just as the
above example illustrates, there are a great number of research techniques
will be guided by a number of factors, some of which are personal prefer-
ences, cost and ease of use.
5.3 The Scientific Method

Research needs planning before work on any project can begin. Planning
begins with an understanding of how knowledge is discovered and the main
aim of any research is to discover knowledge.
We have at our disposal two ways of discovering the unknown. These are
deductive methods and inductive (scientific) method. The deductive method
or logic is best identified with Aristotle. It starts with a major PREMISE. A
premise is a statement which seems to be self-evident and universally true.
'For example, during the Renaissance people believed that the earth was round.
They, therefore, hypothesised around this premise. This rejected theories which
portrayed the view that if one sailed beyond the edge of the earth's surface,
one would fall off'.

Unit 5 Research Design and Methodologies
We have instances of this nature in our day to day lives. A premise may be set.
The community may believe that all headmasters steal public funds. You are
appointed Head of a school in this community. After a few months of your
appointment, you buy a car or do something where a lot of money is used.
The community is likely to conclude that since you are a headmaster, and
since headmasters steal, then you should have stolen money from the school.
This is a valid conclusion. What is wrong is the premise from which this con-
clusion is drawn.
You should begin to appreciate that we can not employ such a method in our
research. We are going to concern ourselves with the scientific method.
5.4 The Scientific Method and its Origin

The discovery approach replaced the deductive approach. This approach is
revolutionary in that it represents a new way of thinking, a new way of solving
problems. The main focus is on this world and its phenomena. Discovery
approach gives rise to the thinking called the scientific method which bases
itself on inductive reasoning. Inductive logic is a model in which general prin-
ciples are derived from specific observations. Let us suppose you have disci-
plinary problems at your school. You may begin by observing the nature of
interaction patterns at your school. You are most likely to observe some facts
emerging. The next thing you are likely to do is to give meaning to these facts.
That is the whole essence of scientific method. Leedy and Ormrod (2012)
describe the scientific method as a way whereby insight into an undiscovered
truth is sought by:
 Identifying the problems that define the goal of the quest.
 Gathering data with the hope of resolving the problem.
 Positing a tentative hypothesis, both a logical means of locating the
data and as an aid to resolving the problem.
 Then empirically testing the hypothesis by processing and interpreting
the data to see if the interpretation of such data resolves the primary
question which initiated the research in the first place.
Activity 5.1
? Think of a problem you once encountered.
a) List down the facts that you observed related to that problem.
b) Show how you got to a conclusion using those separate facts.

5.5 Criteria for a Research Project

When planning for your research, remember that there are certain features
which are common to all research. All research is ultimately tested by criteria
which must be built into your research design. Leedy and Ormrod (2012) cite
these criteria as:
 Universality: The project should be such that it can be carried out by
any competent person including the researcher. This means that once
data is available, any one competent should be able to move on from
there the project to a conclusion with the same results.
 Replication: This means that the research must be repeatable. Any other
competent researcher, using the same problem, collecting data within
the same circumstances and identical parameters should get results
comparable to the ones the original researcher obtained.
 Control: This refers to the isolation of those factors which are critical to
the research. For a research or experiment to be replicable, there must
be control. An experiment should thus be repeated under the same
conditions and in the same way in which it was first carried out. As we
go on with our discussion, you should, we hope, appreciate the fact
that control is more easily achieved in certain areas than in others. For
the moment, remember that control is easily achieved in the Physical/
natural sciences rather than in circumstances where research is con-
cerned with human data.
 Measurement: Data should be measurable. As in the case of control,
this is also easily achieved in physical sciences. In social sciences, it is
more difficult to quantify, measure or evaluate critical factors in the
research design. Later we try to achieve measurability by using scales
or scoring and many other forms of measuring.
Next we are going to turn to specific methods. It is important to remember
that the type of data dictates the type of method that is going to be employed.
It is very essential to clarify what is being said here. Suppose we have our
data in the form of written records and accounts of past events (commonly
called historical data) the most suitable method here is the historical method.
If on the other hand, the data comprises of observations, for whose transmis-
sion description is the best means of communication, descriptive survey method
is the most appropriate for collecting data.

5.6 Historical Method

This is a research method which seeks to bring out events the way they hap-
pened in history. You must have once been in a situation where you asked
yourself questions such as, Did it really happen? When did it happen? How
did it happen? When you asked such questions which aimed at finding out
more about what happened some time earlier, you were involved in finding
information by the "HISTORICAL RESEARCH METHOD".
5.6.1 Historical research

The historical research method covers recent events as well as those which
took place even hundreds of years back. We can get to know about such
information by making use of documentary sources. Suppose you want to
find out about the history of your school, where would you first of all look for
this information? If we were in your position, we would check for this infor-
mation first and foremost from your administration files. That information you
get from that source about your school is what we call documentary evi-
dence. In the study of ancient history we also find out about certain historical
events by studying artefacts, such as, pottery, beads, bows and arrows left
behind by people who lived long back. These can tell us about their life styles.
They can tell us if, for example, these people were hunters, painters or warri-
ors.
Documentary evidence and artefacts used in the historical method are re-
ferred to as primary data. Primary data is that data which is closest to the
source of information. Not all data is primary. Secondary data is not original.
It is affected by distortions such as communication. It is far removed from the
original source. It has the truth. The only difference from the primary source is
that secondary source includes interpretation of data which other people may
not accept.
Activity 5.2
Go around your work place.
? a) Observe and list down things that tell you about the past.
b) Using these listed items write a short history about the place.
c) Ask a friend to read it and comment on it.

5.7 Descriptive Survey

We have just found that we can reconstruct the truth studying past records.
You should realise that by its nature, historical data is static. In our example
about looking for information concerning your school, we have suggested
you can check for information from the administration files at the school. The
same information remains there in that form forever, it does not change thus, it
is static.
This section of the unit addresses itself to what is perhaps the most frequently
used method of research, the survey method. As we write this unit, I assume
that you have once been a respondent in a survey more than once and it is
also quite possible you have done a survey of your own though at times una-
ware that you were doing it.
We learn through observation. The method of research which describes what

we see is called descriptive survey. The word "survey" means to see over and
beyond. You are reminded that this seeing is not something which is restricted
to the physical eye. In research, we have many ways of seeing which have
nothing to do with physical vision. Let us ask you one question. What do you
do if after teaching a lesson you want to find out if your pupils have under-
stood or not? Most teachers would ask a few questions. If a few chosen
pupils answer correctly, the teacher may conclude that the lesson was under-
stood by all. You thus, have SEEN that all have understood.
When we are using a descriptive survey method, we select a small group or

sample of people called RESPONDENTS. In the example above where a
teacher wanted to find out if pupils have grasped the lesson or not, the teacher
asks a few questions. A few pupils are picked out of the whole class. They
constitute a sample of that class. In research we refer to the group from which
a sample is chosen as a POPULATION. The few pupils who respond to
questions are the ones we call respondents. Thus, a respondent is a person
who provides data for analysis by responding to survey questions. A group of
respondents form a sample.
Suppose in the same example, the sample consisted of bright pupils only, it
would be incorrect, at the end, to generalise that all pupils had understood the
lesson. Teachers generally include in their samples, representatives from the
strong, average and weak pupils so that all sections are represented in the
sample. To bring about valid results in a descriptive survey, therefore, the
sample must be REPRESENTATIVE. According to Babbie (1979) repre-

sentativeness is, therefore, that quality of a sample of having the same distri-
bution of characteristics as the population from which it is selected.
Survey research is probably the best method which is available to us in col-

lecting original data for purposes of describing a population large enough to
observe directly. Surveys are also excellent vehicles for the measurement of
attitudes and orientations prevalent in a large population. Observation, stand-
ardised questionnaires and interviews provide the means of discovering pre-
vailing attitudes among a large population. We shall look at each of them one
by one.
5.8 Observation
When we introduced you to the Survey method, we mentioned that this
method is not new to us. Observation as a tool used in the survey method is
not new. It is part and parcel of our normal behaviour. At any one time, we
are engaged in observing someone or something. Everyday of our lives, we
try as much as possible to get information about the world around us. You can
see that observation is an activity of daily life. This same method is also a
primary tool of scientific enquiry. What is new is that our observation is going
to be planned. Selltiz et al. (1959) in Marshall and Rossman (2011) describe
observation as a scientific tool which:
 serves a formulated research purpose
 is planned systematically
 is recorded systematically and is related to general propositions rather
than being a report of a set of interesting issues,
 is subject to checks and controls of validity and reliability
5.8.1 Advantages and disadvantages of observations

The advantage of observation is that the behaviour is recorded as it occurs.
This is unlike relying on prospective reports of what a person thinks hap-
pened during the occasion. You have, for example, watched pupils play soc-
cer or netball. You have listened to stories told about the games a day later.
There are varied versions. The researcher here records the events as they
take place. Thus, the story remains the same.
Another advantage is that the observer being an outsider can see phenomena
about a situation which those people involved in it may take for granted. If
you were asked to report on developments in your school you would be

surprised to see how many aspects you leave out. It is all because you are
already part and parcel of that system. Have you ever written an assignment,
revised it and failed to pick on a mistake which was picked by a friend at a
glance?
Some people are not able to give verbal reports, for example young children.
This forces you to observe them. Some people may prefer to be observed
doing whatever they are doing rather than being interviewed.
Selltiz et al. (1959) in Marshall and Rossman (2011) cite a number of prob-
lems related to observations:
 We may not be there at the time of a spontaneous occurrence which
may be of interest.
 Observations are limited to the duration of the event and, therefore, life
history cannot be obtained by observation.
 There are situations upon which there is a taboo for observation, for
example human sexual practices and some religious ceremonies.
What this means is that you need to weigh advantages as opposed to the
disadvantages before you can employ this method.
5.8.2 What we should observe

The major problem lies in selecting what should be observed. Suppose you
were asked to observe children, a hundred of them, playing in the playground,
what would you observe in particular? The guiding factor focuses the atten-
tion on who and what is to be observed. You need to know precisely how
girls interact with boys and the like. When you have focused on what to
observe, we call this 'structured observation' that is, what is to be observed
has been identified.
You need to know that researchers (this includes you) are always affected by
their own theories of human behaviour. What we mean here is that, suppose
you think that girls are more aggressive than boys, you are likely to have
biased observation.
If two people observe the same event they are most likely to report differ-
ently. But we have instances when observers are in total agreement, such as,
when they are asked to observe the number of pupils in a classroom. As soon
as the event becomes more complex, such as, observing pupils in a class-
room, we need to interpret and analyse what goes on. This calls for struc-
tured observation on a small range of events. This means isolating the few

variables from the possible many. In unstructured observation, the variables

to be observed are not isolated. The observer decides what he/she wants to
observe.
Unstructured and structured observation can work hand in hand, that is one
after another. In an unstructured observation, one can get into the classroom
to just observe what is going on in there. From the observations, one devel-
ops or structures a checklist of behaviours obtaining in that classroom. The
checklist behaviours may include the following items:
 How often the teacher encourages pupils even when it is clear they are
not doing things correctly.
 How often children correct each others errors
 How often the teacher gives orders to pupils and expecting them to
comply
When the observer gets into the classroom to observe particular aspects of
the interactions taking place, such observation is said to be structured. Struc-
tured observation limits the items to be observed in different teaching sys-
tems. Here Flanders says the observer is interested in gathering information
as to the proportion of time pupils and teachers spend in various forms of
activity such as listening, answering, talking and asking questions.
5.8.3 Relationship with participants

After having decided on this method as a means of collecting data, you move
on to your possible relationship with the participants. You may take one of the
following roles as an observer, the complete participant, the participant as
observer, the complete observer.
 The complete participant, as the name implies, participates and ob-
serves secretly. This is a method used in anthropology. Ethical consid-
erations bar some of the researchers from going secret, so they opt for
the role of participant observer.
 The participant as observer is the one who is part and parcel of the
group. The group members know they are being observed. This as-
pect has undermined data collected using it because people who know
that they are being observed change their behaviours.
 The complete observer is detached from the group being observed.
The observer may observe behaviour through a mirror or screen. The
investigator will be sitting in a separate room and behaviours are re-
layed via the screen. Here again comes the ethical question of observ-
ing people who are unaware.

Lastly, the data we collect by observation is called qualitative data. This type
of data is non-numerical and is mainly used to discover underlying meanings
and patterns of relationships. We will come back to it later in the unit.
5.8.4 Recording the observations

Finally, the basic tools you need when observing are the note book and a
pencil. The greatest advantage of this technique is your presence as an ob-
serving, thinking researcher on the scene of the action. If possible, you should
take notes on your observations on the spot. When that is not possible, you
should write down your notes as soon as possible afterwards.
Your notes should include both your empirical observations and your inter-
pretations of them. You need to record what you know has happened and
what you think has happened. You might for example be observing political
rules. You might note that Politician A spoke in opposition to what Politician B
suggested and you think you heard B commenting. Just as you cannot record
everything that you observe, you should record every most important obser-
vation that is within your structured schedule.
You should be familiar with the process of taking notes. However, we need to
point out that note-taking requires more careful and deliberate attention, and
there are some specific skills that can be learned in that regard. Babbie (2012)
suggests that:
 Do not trust your memory any more than you have to: It is untrustwor-
thy. Even if you pride yourself on having a photographic memory it is a
good idea to take notes either during the observation or as soon, after-
wards, as possible.
 Take notes in stages. During the first stage you may need to take sketchy
notes to keep abreast of what is happening. You then rewrite in detail
later.
 Write all the details you can.
Activity 5.3
1. If you were to use the tool of observation which role of observer would
? you use?
2. Visit a class of your colleague and record observations you make.
Discuss what you record with what your friend says happened.
Compare your records.

5.9 The Questionnaire

We have come to a technique which we use when we want to solicit for
information. It is called the questionnaire. This is not a new technique to you.
We use it daily. For example, you may have written a school child asking a
few questions about the school. This set of questions is what we call a ques-
tionnaire. Questionnaires are used a great deal in survey research. A ques-
tionnaire is a document containing questions designed to solicit information
appropriate for analysis.
Questionnaires and interviews are used by researchers to convert into data

the information directly given by respondents. By this technique, we can find
out what respondents know about the subject, like and dislike, and think.
Rather than observing people, questionnaires are a way of getting data about
persons by asking them. Let me say on the onset that questionnaires present
a number of problems. Tuckman and Harper (2012) summarised some of the
problems thus:
 respondents need to cooperate when completing a questionnaire;
 they must tell what is, rather than what they think to be unduly helpful
by attempting to anticipate what researchers want to hear or find out;
 to what extent might a question be asking for information about re-
spondents that they are not certain, and perhaps not likely to know
about themselves?
5.9.1 Questionnaire formats for respondents

You can use a variety of methods for presenting a series of response catego-
ries for the respondent to choose from when answering a given question. The
response categories should be adequately spaced apart as shown below:
Three answer formats

( ) Yes.
( ) No.
( ) Do not know.
You can also consider entering code numbers beside responses and asking
the respondent to circle the appropriate number as exemplified below:

Circling the answer

1 yes
2 no
3 do not know
While the two methods above are easy to complete, they do not give a clear
picture of some of the attitudes. Suppose what the question asked was, "Do
you like swimming?", if the respondent likes it a bit, there is not provision for
this in the responses above. We need to give more flexibility to the respond-
ent. The following section attempts to do so.
Contingency questions
Quite often, in questionnaires, certain questions are clearly relevant only to

some of the respondents and irrelevant to others. Think of the study on birth
control methods. You would not ask males if they take birth control pills. A
contingency question is asked only of some respondents, and this is deter-
mined by their responses to some questions. An example can be given to
simplify this. Suppose all respondents are asked whether they are members
of the Zimbabwe Teachers Association (ZIMTA). In this exercise - only those
who respond positively are asked how often they go to ZIMTA meetings.
The latter would be a contingency question. The example below illustrates
this point.
Contingency question format
Are you a member of Zimbabwe Teachers Association (ZIMTA)?

( ) Yes
( ) No
If yes: How many times have you attended ZIMTA meetings?
( ) Once
( ) 2 to 5 times
( ) 6 to 10 times
( ) 11 to 20 times
( ) More than 20 times
5.9.2 Matrix questions

We use matrix questions when we ask several questions that have the same
set of response categories. Babbie (Ibid) cites a number of advantages that
come out of this method. These are that:

 it is efficient in its use of space

 the method s easy for respondents to fill
 the format increases the comparability of the respondent as well as the
researcher
 respondents choose between a number of options such as; Strongly
Agree (SA) Agree (A) or Rarely Occurs (RO) Sometimes Occurs
(S)( Often Occurs (00) Very Frequently Occurs (VFO)
Below are examples of matrix questions.
Two matrix question formats

 What this school needs is more SA A D SD U
pupil involvement in decision making.
 Those closet to the headmaster RO SO OO VFO
are the ones who are promoted.
Activity 5.4
1. Think of a problem at your school and write it down - construct a
? questionnaire for your colleagues to complete. What problems have
you encountered? List them down.
2. Why is it necessary to spread out the questionnaire? What problems
have you faced? List them down.
The unstructured response
The unstructured response is also referred to as open - ended question. This

is opposed to the examples given so far which are structured. Refer to our
discussion on structured and unstructured observation. We look at this again
when we come to interviews, which is our next tool of collecting data.
In some open-ended questions the respondent is free to give his/her own

opinion without falling into the structure already in place. It has the problem of
categorising the data given. Thus many researchers avoid it. Below is an illus-
tration of an unstructured question.
Unstructured question
1. Why do you think you were scolded by the headmaster?
2. Describe your attitude towards this course.

Instructions
Every questionnaire should contain clear instructions. You need to tell your
respondent exactly what you want them to do, for example, that they should
indicate answers to certain questions by placing a check mark or an X in the
box beside the appropriate answer.
Mail distribution
After the sample has been identified, questionnaires are ready to be mailed
for distribution. The questionnaire should be accompanied by a letter of ex-
planation and return envelope. The respondent would be expected to com-
plete the questionnaire and return it. If in your case you received a question-
naire and failed to return it, just recall the reasons for not returning it.
One reason for not returning a questionnaire may be that it just seems a bother
attending to it. You must, therefore, do everything possible to make the com-
pletion of the questionnaire easier. Imagine you were the respondent and you
were supposed to do the following after receiving a questionnaire:
 Find an envelope;
 Write the address on it;
 Figure out how much postage is required and
 Put the stamp on it.
How likely is it that you will return the questionnaire?
5.10 The Interview Technique

So far we have seen that observation can give researchers a view of the
typical behaviour which occurs in the classroom. The questionnaire is used to
collect data from people for off, but for those nearer us (the researchers) we
are likely to augment information by using the interview method to gain access
to what is "inside a person's head." Let me categorically inform you that the
questionnaire and the interview technique are closely knit. The same ques-
tions on a questionnaire sent to respondents can be used for the interview.
The difference is that this one is a face to face situation. Consequently we can
also call the interview technique a face-to-face questionnaire. Selltiz et al.
(1959) in Marshall and Rossman (2011) has identified advantages of using
the interview as opposed to the questionnaire as that:
 The questionnaire would be inappropriate to a highly illiterate popula-
tion.

 The number of questions and the length of response allowed is limited

on many questionnaires and thus some people won't respond to them
due to boredom. A frequent problem with the interview is that answers
given tend to be verbose.
 The response rate especially from mailed questionnaires tends to be
very low whereas face-to-face interviewing ensures a high response
rate and a better cross section sample.
 During an interview the interviewer can exhibit some flexibility and can
repeat or rephrase questions so that the respondent should understand
what is meant by particular questions.
 The interview situation allows some appraisal of the validity of response,
that is, the interviewer has access not only to what people say, but how
they say it. The non-verbal behaviour within an interview is an impor-
tant aspect to be noted.
 Since people cannot always simply and fluently write responses to ques-
tions about complex and emotionally charged topics, the interview may
be a more appropriate technique for probing into such topics.
When you conduct an interview and when you ask friends to help you con-
duct interviews, you should notice that no matter how hard you try to be
systematic and objective, both you, the interviewer and the interviewee, bring
the research problems in the form of your own biases. There arise problems
of human interaction. Cohen and Manion (2012) identify these problems as
that:
 There are many factors which inevitably differ from one interviewer to
another, such as mutual trust, social distance and the interview control.
 The respondents may feel uneasy and adopt avoidance tactics if the
questioning is too deep.
 Both interviewer and respondent are bound to hold back part of what
is in their power to state.
 Many of the meanings that are clear to one would be relatively opaque
to the other, even when the intention is genuine communication.
 It is impossible, just as in everyday life, to bring every aspect of the
encounter within rational control.
5.11 Types of Interviews

In the discussions above, we have pointed out that that observations and
questionnaires can either be structured or unstructured. The same goes for
interviews. Some interviews, depending on the interviewee, can be so struc-

tured that we refer to them as face-to-face administration of questionnaires.

Others may be semi structured in that the interview schedule allows the inter-
viewees to express themselves at some length, but has sufficient structure to
prevent aimless mumbling. In the semi-structured interview, there is no clear
and exact wording of the questions.
Parlete (1978) says, there is no degree of structure which is correct. He

discusses the social circumstances of the interview and the expectations of
the interviewers being important aspects of the social contract which is estab-
lished during the interview.
Let me remind you that it is important to put into practice some interviewing
techniques for yourself. You need to practise on this as often as possible.
5.11.1 Open ended and closed questions in interviews

An open ended question is one which permits a free response for an indi-
vidual. In it a topic is raised but the interviewer does not provide or suggest
any structure for the reply to the question. Open ended questions are often
used when an interviewer is interested in people's perceptions, beliefs, opin-
ions and motivation. A question like, "What would you give as reasons for
joining the B.Ed degree course by distance education"? is open-ended. Closed
questions are also referred to as fixed alternatives or multiple choice ques-
tions. Here the interviewee responds in a particular way. The response re-
quired may be a simple Yes or No, for what would you give as the reason or
reason for joining this course.
The question below is an example of a closed or fixed alternative question?
Which of the following are reasons for joining this course?

I wanted more money
To gain more prestige
To remain secure on my job
5.11.2 Advantages and disadvantaged of open and closed

type questions
The following are some of the advantages and disadvantages of open and
closed type questions:
 Closed questions provide standardised interviews and are easy to ad-
minister. Results are easy to analyse.

 Open ended questions pose analysis problems. This is so because re-

sponses are to be interpreted and categories for their interpretation are
to be developed.
 In opened ended, questions the interviewer can probe further giving
interviewee chance to qualify the responses they make. This may result
in discovering information which the researcher was not aware of at the
beginning.
Activity 5.6
1. Construct at least ten interview questions around a topic of your own
? choice.
2. Ask at least five colleagues and conduct interview with them.
3. Think of how to jot down the date. We will come back to it later.
5.11.3 General rules for interviewing

The manner in which the interviews ought to be conducted varies according
to survey population and is affected by the nature of the survey content as
well. Though this is the case, it is possible to provide you with some general
guidelines that apply to most, if not all interview situations. Some of the gen-
eral rules guiding interviews include:
 Appearance - as a general rule, the interviewer should dress in a fash-
ion similar to that of people being interviewed. Richly dressed inter-
viewer will probably have difficulty getting good cooperation and re-
sponses from poor respondents. A poorly dressed interviewer will have
similar difficulties with richer respondents.
 Familiarity with the questionnaire - if the interviewer is unfamiliar with
the questionnaire the study suffers and an unfair burden is placed on the
respondent. In this case the interview is likely to take more time than
necessary and be generally unpleasant.
 Read questions as they are worded in the questionnaire, since changing
the wording of questions may result in biased answers.
 Use correct intonation and emphasis in order to help respondent to
understand the question.
 Record exactly what the respondents say so that there are no distor-
tions of the answer by leaving out or rephrasing the information.
 Show an interest in the answers given by the respondent in order to
encourage the respondent's full participation in the interview.

 Ascertain that you have understood each answer which should be re-
corded as given by the respondent.
 Do not show approval or disapproval of any answer. This may lead to
biased answers. The respondent may think that certain answers are
more acceptable than others.
 Thank the respondent from time to tome for cooperating.
 When the respondent asks the interviewer to repeat an action, the in-
terviewer must repeat.
 When the respondent firmly refuses to answer a question, the inter-
viewer must accept the refusal.
Now we turn to sampling. We need to look at this because the validity of our
research results depend on the sample we choose.
5.12 Sampling Procedures

Just as the author was thinking of writing this section, a friend of his came into
his office, in the course of the conversation that followed the author began
talking about Chipinge. This friend stopped him before completing his sen-
tence, remarking that he did not like people from Chipinge because he did not
like the one he had met before. This example shows that we often make
inferences about people basing these inferences limited on experiences. Have
you ever been so judgemental basing on just one encounter? Many people
usually take a sample (one member) of a larger population and analyse the
characteristics of one member which then are generalised to the whole popu-
lation. In Chipinge the characteristics of one person were bad. Why is it wrong
to generalise the characteristics of one person to the whole population?
Earlier on we made mention of the concept or representativeness which we

defined as that quality of a sample of having the same distribution of charac-
teristics as the population from which it is selected. Once the sample is repre-
sentative of the populations from which it is drawn, we can then make valid
findings.
5.12.1 Construction of samples

In order to obtain a representative sample one systematically selects each
UNIT in a specified way under controlled conditions. The word "limit" refers
to that which is being studied. Van Dalen (1979:128) in Marshall and Rossman
(2011) suggests steps to be taken in the sampling process. These are:

 defining the population

 procuring an accurate and complete list of the units in the population
 drawing representative units from the list
 obtaining a sufficiently large sample to represent the characteristics of
the population
5.12.2 Defining the population

A population is a well defined group of human beings or other entities.
Suppose you want to find out data about all schools in Zimbabwe, you know
how many schools we have - hundreds upon hundreds. This means, time and
a lot of resources will be needed.. You may then decide to research on schools
in one district. The results you obtain from the randomly selected sample of
schools in that district cannot be generalised to all schools in that in that dis-
trict cannot be generalised to all schools in Zimbabwe. Why is it that you can't
use the information from these few schools to generalise on all schools in
Zimbabwe? It is because the characteristics the sample may display may not
be characteristic of the whole school population in Zimbabwe. You need a
representative sample on which to base your generalisations.
5.12.3 Listing the population

Once we have identified the population what is left is for us to construct a
complete, accurate and up-to-date information on these schools. For exam-
ple we need to know the sizes of those schools before we select which schools
to investigate.
5.12.4 Selecting a representative sample

So far we have a population which we can also call a set. We also now have
our units for analysis. It is from these units that we drawn a sample which can
be called a subset.
5.12.5 Obtaining an adequate sample

In the conversation about my friend and I, we found that the sample was not
representative enough to draw valid conclusions. Years back, one of the au-
thors met a boy who was attending night school. It was at the end of the term.
The author asked how the boy had done in class. He said his class position
was one. Later on the author asked how many they were in that class. His
answer was 2. Do you see how the size of the population and the size of the

sample can render the results invalid? Some samples are too small to be
representatives of the characteristics in the population. The question which
should be in your mind is, how large should the sample be? We can't give any
specific rules except to outline what has been suggested by Van Dalen (Ibid).
Van Dalen says if the phenomenon under study is homogeneous, a small sam-
ple is sufficient, for example, a few cubic centimetres from a 1 000 litre tank
of a particular chemical may be adequate. If units under study are variable,
for example, height, intelligence etc, we need a larger sample. In descriptive
research, a sample of 10-20 percent is often used. In experimental research,
which we are going to look at later, a sample of 30 subjects permits the use of
large sample statistics. Three factors determine the size of an adequate sam-
ple. These are:
 the nature of the population and
 the type of investigation
 the degree of precision desired
Activity 5.7
1. Explain with examples what you understand by:
? a) the nature of the population and the type of investigation.
b) the degree of precision desired.
5.13 Sampling Designs

Once we have a population carefully defined a representative sample can be
drawn from that population. Several methods have been used to select sam-
ples which are representative. We are now going to look at some of these
sampling designs.
5.13.1 Random sampling

The idea in random sampling is to ensure that each unit in the population has
a equal chances to be included in the sample. Suppose in our earlier example
of schools in a district, we wanted to select a sample of 30 schools out of 100
schools, we number all the 100 units in the population and place correspond-
ing numbers on slips of paper. These slips are put in a container where they
are mixed thoroughly. Then we draw a slip and record the number of the
sheet. We return this slip and mix thoroughly again. We draw again. If a slip

we had picked earlier is drawn again, we ignore it, return it and repeat the
process till we get to the required number in the sample.
Suppose we wanted to conduct an interview with this sample and when we

are ready, some of the units decline to come. Here we are going to have a
sampling bias if these units differ from the remaining participants in character-
istics that are known to be related to phenomenon under study. Thus, when
we are reporting on our study we should not forget to include in our report the
original size of the sample, the number of dropouts and if possible the charac-
teristics of the dropouts.
5.13.2 Stratified sampling

Stratified sampling is devised to ensure that a sample should not have, by any
chance, undue proportion of one type of unit in it. Stratified sampling is a
design used in research whereby a researcher divides the population into
layers or strata. The population can, for example, be divided on the basis of
age, income, intelligence or religion. Having done this, a simple random sam-
ple is drawn from each stratum.
The number of subjects drawn from each stratum depends on whether the
sampling is done proportionately or disproportionately. Proportionate strati-
fied sampling requires that the proportions of subjects in the sample should
reflect the proportion of subjects in the population. Below we illustrate pro-
portionate stratified sampling.
10 000 voting age adults in
Districts
Classification
Stratum 1 Stratum 2 Stratum 3

Proportional
Stratified Illiterates 20% School 60% Secondary School
Population = 2 000 adults = 6 000 adults Graduates 20%
= 2 000 adults
Random selection
600 adults 200 adults

200 adults
Figure 5.1 Subject Selection Using proportionate Stratified Random

Sampling Technique (Adapted from Van Dalen (1979:133) in Marshall
and Rossman (2011) Understanding Research)

Activity 5.8
Identify a population
? a) Select samples using the sampling techniques we have studied.
b) Report your findings pertaining to the units selected.
5.14 The Experimental Method

5.14.1 Introduction
For this unit, the experimental method is the last methodological approach in
research that we are going to look at. This methodology goes by various
names such as the cause and effect method, the pre-test-post-test control
group design and the laboratory method. Suppose we want to assess the
attitudes and values of headmasters, this may easily be thought of as descrip-
tive research. The aim of the investigator is simply being to describe some
characteristics of a selected population, in the case in point, the headmaster.
Let us suppose that the investigator wants to go a step further to look at the
degree to which variations in headmaster attitudes correspond with variations
in some other factor or factors, for example the performance of pupils in
grade 7 examinations. The degree of variation is usually measured by some
form of correlation coefficient and such research is referred to as correla-
tional. What correlational research is able to demonstrate is what goes with
what but it does not identify a cause and affect relationship. To have this
relationship, researchers employ the experimental method.
5.14.2 Characteristics of experimental design

According to Gardner et al. (2014), "the experimental method provides an
elegant and powerful means of answering questions and is more definite and
vigorous than other methods" Gardner et al. (Ibid) give among others as the
advantages of the method as:
 The investigators' ability to control just when and where the observa-
tions are to be made. This makes it possible for the investigator to
make objective and accurate observations.
 The method permits the investigator to repeat his/her studies or to have
others repeat them, thus lessening the role of personal bias or chance
factors.
In the experimental method, there are two essential ingredients which are
manipulation and control. What this means is that an investigator must ma-

nipulate a condition or variable whose effect he/she wishes to understand.

This variable is known as the independent variable. The experiment wants to
discover its effects upon some consequent variable, usually referred to as
dependent variable.
Cohen and Manion (2012) says that the experimental research design is con-
cerned to identify possible cause and-effect relationships by exposing one or
more experimental groups to one or more treatment conditions and compar-
ing the results to one or more control groups not receiving the treatment. In
Figures 5.2 - 5.5 Cohen (Ibid) clarifies on the experimental design
Treatment Post test

Z T2
Figure 5.2 The Experimental Design
Figure 5.2 is a diagrammatic representation of a one-case-study in which (for

example) a teacher may attempt to determine whether a new method of teaching
reading results in better average scores on a reading test of accuracy and
speed taken at a later date. The Typical procedures are as follows:
a) Pupils are exposed to Z, the new reading method for N periods on the
school time table.
b) T2 (a post-test) is used to measure the average scores on speed and
accuracy reading tests after exposure to Z
5.14.3 Comment
This is not an experimental design. There is no control in the design nor any
check on internal validity. Internal validity you remember, is concerned with
the possible effects of extraneous variables which might be the real cause or
causes of the demonstrated effect and not Z, the actual treatment. Such ex-
traneous or clouding variables might include maturational processes he ef-
fects of the pre-test measures, changes resulting from the test materials or the
conditions under which they were given or the individuals administering them,
the effects of initial differences in the experimental and control groups -
Pre-test Treatment Post-test

T1 Z T2
Figure 5.3 Advanced Experimental Design

Figure 5.3 above represents some advance on the design shown in Figure
5.2. The teacher has tested the reading ability of his pupils before (T1) em-
barking upon the new method (Z). After the completion o the treatment
condition, the post test (T2) enables the teacher to determine what changes,
if any, have taken place in reading skills.
5.14.4 Comment
The teacher is able to compute gain or loss scores with respect to T1 but T2
but there is no certainty that the treatment Z is the cause of any differences
between T1 and T2 without a control group the design is not experimental.
The questions raised concerning internal validity still hold. What if some pu-
pils are less well, less attentive, less motivated at T2 than at T1. What are the
effects to T1 itself in terms of stimulating some pupils and dissuading others to
make greater effort?
We hope you still remember that external validity is concerned with the de-
gree to which the findings can be generalised; in other words how representa-
tive are the experimental findings can we generate findings in Figure 5.3 above.
The answer lies in the comment above.
Groups Pre-test Treatment Post test

Experimental T Z T2
Control T1 T2
Figure 5.4 A Simple Experimental Design
Figure 5.4 shows a simple experimental design an experimental and a control

group are measured on pre and post tests but only the experimental group
receives the treatment Z. Pursuing our example of example of the teacher
testing a new method, the typical procedures he/she would follow are:
a) Pupils in the class divided into two groups, one the experimental group
(E) the control group.
b) Both groups are tested (T1) and their pre-test mean scores are com-
pared.
c) Except for the treatment Z employed with the E group, both groups
dare kept alike with respect to all other conditions during the n time-
table periods.
d) At the end of time-table periods, both groups are retested (T2) and the
mean post-test scores are computed for both groups.
e) The difference between T1 and T2 are computed separately for E group
and C group.

f) The differences are compared to determine whether or not the treat-

ment Z is associated with changes in mean score which favour E group
as compared with C group.
g) The size of the difference is tested for statistical significant to deter-
mine whether or not the null hypothesis can be rejected. We are going
to look at the more in the module on statistics. Meantime let us leave it
at this point.
Groups Pre-test Treatment Post test
1. Pre-test T1 2 T2
2. Pre-tested T1 2 T2
3. Not pre-tested T2
4. Not pre-tested T2
Figure 5.5 Intruding Extraneous Variables
The are many ways in which extraneous variables intrude so as to affect ex-
perimental results. Some of these are discussed below.
a) Contemporary history (H)
In the example of the teacher and his/her reading method, suppose that during
the time when the experiment was in progress, the pupils taking part just
happened to see a television series which presented exciting stimulating mate-
rial by means of the very same techniques that underpinned the new reading
method. The simultaneous occurrence of the Television programmes, as well
as the experimental treatment Z, could well account for any changes shown in
T2 scores. At the very least, the television series confound the experimental
treatment.
b) Maturational processes (M)
Physiological and physiological changes are occurring in the pupils during the
course of the experiment and to an unknown degree affect their responses to
the test measures, confounding the teacher's attempts to judge the effect of
the treatment Z.
c) Pre-testing procedures (T1)
There is the possibility that the pre-test may affect the subsequent responses
of the pupils to T2 by making reading skills more salient to them irrespective
of the experiment treatment Z.

In the four group design shown in Figure 5.5 above, each of the extraneous
variables discussed and be measured and thus accounted for. In respect of
group 1, the difference (D) between the T1 and the T2 scores is accounted
for by the treatment Z, and the extraneous variables such as pre-testing (T1)
maturational process (M) and contemporary history (H).
That is to say D (1) = T1, Z, M, H.

In respect of group 2
D (2) = T2 M, H
for group 3
D (3) = 2, M, H
and for group 4

D (4) = M, H
It is now possible to account for the effects of the variables, in particular, the
effect of the experimental treatment Z, the new reading method.
The effect of treatment Z only = D (3) - D (4)
The effect of pre-testing T1 only = D (2) - D (4)
The effect of interaction between pre-testing (T1) and the experimental treat-
ment (Z) = (D) (2) + (3) - D (1).
Activity 5.9
1. What is your understanding of cause and effect in experimental
? research?
2. Why would you say "control" is the cornerstone of experimental
research?
3. Suggest an experimental research topic and outline the steps you would
take.

5.15 Summary
In this unit we discussed that Science is an enterprise which is dedicated at
finding out more about the world in which we live. Two ways of finding knowl-
edge are the deductive method and the inductive (scientific) method. It is the
type of data one has that dictates the type of method to be used. The histori-
cal method seeks to bring out events the way they happened. Documentary
evidence and artefacts used in the historical method are referred to as pri-
mary data. Primary data is that which lies closest to the source of information.
Secondary data is data which can be affected by distortions such as commu-
nication problems and interpretation. Descriptive Survey is a research method
which describes what we see. Observation, sampling, standardised question-
naires and interviews provide the means of discovering prevailing attitudes
among a large population. The questionnaire technique is used when we want
to solicit for information. Questionnaires and interviews are used to convert
into data the information directly given by respondents. The response catego-
ries in a questionnaire should be adequately spaced. The interview technique
can also be referred to a face to face questionnaire. We have open-ended
and closed questions. Random sampling is meant to ensure that each unit in
the population has a equal chance to be included in the sample. Random
sampling is designed to ensure that a sample does not have undue proportion
of one type of unit in it. Tests chosen to measure suitability must fulfil that
purpose. Experimental method deals with the phenomenon of cause and ef-
fect. The dependent variable is that which appears, disappears or changes as
you apply, remove or vary the independent variable. Control is one of the
most important aspects of the experimental method.

References
Babbie, E.R. (2012). The Practice of Social Research (2nd Edition).
Belmont: Wadworth.
Campbell, D.T. and Fiske, D.W. (1959). Convergent and Discriminant Va-
lidity by the Multitrait-Multimethod Matrix. Psychological Bulletin 65,
81-105.
Cohen, L. and Manion, L. (2012). Research Methods in Education.
Beckenham: Croom Helm.
Flaunders, N. (2008). Analysing Teacher Behaviour. Massachusetts:
Addison - Wesley.
Flick, U.W.E. (2009). Introduction to Qualitative Research. 4th Edition.
London: Sage.
Gardner, J.R., Livingston, P.M., Fraser, S.F. (2014). Effects of Exercise on
treatment-related adverse effects for patients with prostate cancer re-
ceiving androgen-deprivation therapy. A Systematic Review. J Clin
Oncol, 31:335-346.
Design (2nd Edition) New York: Macmillan Publishing Co.
Selltiz, C., Wrightman, L.S. and Cook, S. (1959). Research Methods in
Social Relations. New York: Holt.
Van Dalen, D.B. (1979). Understanding Educational Research: An Introduc-
tion in Marshall, C and Rossman, G.B. (2011). Designing Qualitative
Research. London: Sage Publications.

Unit Six
Writing the Research Proposal
6.0 Introduction
W
riting the research proposal is one of the most critical stages in
the entire research process. As rightly argued by Leedy (1980),
the proposal puts across your foresight, insight and ability to plan.
Your capability to present a clear, logical and convincing proposal attests to
your competency to conduct the intended research project. This unit outline
the role of the research proposal, its characteristics and its components.
6.1 Objectives
 write a research proposal including an introductory section and a method
section
 explain what each of the two sections entails
6.2 The Role of the Research Proposal

Research is a process that involves many people. In your research, you are
going to use resources far beyond your personal possessions and that re-
search may have an impact on many people. Your research proposal must be
inspected and approved by others, in your case by the University of Zimba-
bwe. Such approval can only come about as a result of your submitting a
document called a research proposal.
The research proposal discusses the problem for the research. It outlines
how the research is to be conducted and the resources (human and material)
available for achieving the results. We can quote the research proposal to an
architect's drawing of a proposed building. Without sound knowledge of the
type of house we want to build, it would be a mistake for us to simply rush
and start digging the foundation. We would have to answer certain questions
first; Is it a dwelling that we want to build? Is it going to be three-story? What
type of roof is appropriate? We could go on and on.
All these are very pertinent questions requiring answers, then the architect
can draw the plan ensuring that nothing is left to chance. As a researcher, you
would proceed in exactly the same manner as described in the preceding
paragraph. You need a proposal in which the problem and its sub-compo-
nents are clearly stated. All necessary terms need to be defined. Delimitations
must be given. Hypotheses should be articulated. The importance of the study
must be spelled out. Details of how you would acquire, arrange, process and
interpret data would also be necessary. In other words, you should anticipate
and answer all questions that may arise in the minds of those who would
review your proposal. A unanswered question is a weakness in you research
efforts. If the project proposal is not clear and explicit, it causes the whole
project to be turned down.
In your own reading, you may encounter other names for a research pro-
posal. These may include; research prospectus, plan, outline and draft. All
these refer to a research proposal if they are used in the context of research.

Unit 6 Writing the Research Proposal
6.3 What are the Main Characteristics of a Research

Proposal?
As we have pointed out earlier, your reputation as a researcher rests upon the
quality of the proposal you submit.
 A research proposal is a straight-forward document. It begins with an
introduction and quickly proceeds to a clear, straight-forward state-
ment of the problem. The statement of the problem needs no introduc-
tion because it can stand on its own. Those you are to review your
proposal are interested to see whether you can separate essential from
irrelevancies. This again reminds us of the architect's drawing - clean,
clear, economical, but leaving no details unattended to.
 A research proposal is precise. A proposal is not a literary piece of
work in the sense that it provides no room for extravagance in the use
of words. A proposal seeks to express and not to impress. The pur-
pose is to communicate clearly. In the proposal, you have a chance to
demonstrate your ability to state the problem, to delineate the treat-
ment of data and to logically establish the validity of a conclusion.
 A proposal is clearly organised. Your proposal should be written in
prose. Thoughts should be expressed in simple language, in paragraph
form, with proper use of headings and sub-headings. Remember, a
well organised piece of work indicates an orderly, disciplined mind.
Activity 6.1
From what we have discussed so far, formulate what you think should
? be some of the main characteristics of your proposal, then compare
them with the ones given below.
6.4 The Components of a Research Proposal

The research proposal consists of two main parts namely, the introduction
and method sections. Note that unlike the research report, which you should
write in past tense, the proposal is written in present or future tense.

6.4.1 The introduction section

The following are the sub-sections you will find under the introduction sec-
tion:
 Context of the problem. The orientation of the problem is best ac-
complished by providing its background. One acceptance way to es-
tablish the frame of reference for your problem is to quote relevant
authoritative sources. In this process, you identify the area in which
your research is to be found. In addition, as a basis for undertaking the
research project, this background should also point out that the prob-
lem has not been fully studied, so your research would make a useful
contribution.
 The statement of the problem. The statement of the problem must
come this early in this section, to make it possible for the reader to
quickly determine the purpose of the study. The reader should not have
to search through many paragraphs to discover the problem you intend
to examine. One or two sentences suffice to state your problem, for
example. The purpose of this study is to .. or ...; The present study
explores .. Here is a full example:
 The purpose of this study is to determine whether girls who plan to
pursue careers in science are more aggressive, more domineering, less
conforming, more independent and have a greater need for achieve-
ment than girls who do not plan such careers (Tuckman and Harper,
2012).
 Compose your own example of a statement, record it and refer to it as
you learn more about statements of problems.
 Review of literature. The purpose of reviewing literature is to ex-
pand upon what we have called the context and the background of the
study. The review helps you to further define the problem and to pro-
vide the basis for developing hypotheses. The review must be organ-
ised through the use of subheadings to make it easier to follow. These
subheadings should reflect the major issues in question.
 It is recommended that each subsection of the literature review should
begin by introducing the purpose, the content or relevance of the litera-
ture to be reviewed and end with a summary sentence of the findings.
Let us assume that "The theory of career development" is our subsec-
tion. You may then start and end as follows:
 This subsection is intended to identify relevant concepts related career
development. These concepts would help to clarify human, social and
other factors in career development ... Judging from the research above
the following concepts relate to career development (a) ..........; (b)

......... (c) .........;

 Hypotheses. These should be developed in order to determine and
describe the anticipated relationships between variables. For example,
Pupils in mission schools have more positive attitudes towards their
school work than those in government schools; Pupils with high read-
ing ability develop cognitive skills faster than those with low reading
ability.
 Definitions of terms. Just the principal terms are necessary to define.
 Significance of the study. The readers of your research proposal are
usually concerned with the relevance of the problem to theory and to
practice. There is value in conducting research for the solution of prac-
tically oriented educational problems. Such value is necessary to indi-
cate. Here are examples of the value of some researchers:
The study seeks to answer some question teachers have on the relationship
between pupils' socio-economic backgrounds and the effect these have on
pupils' performance in school;
This study is intended to stimulate researchers to further investigate the prob-

lem of developing relevant curricula in accordance with skills required in the
world of work.
6.4.2 The method section

The method section is concerned with the subjects (those who shall respond
to your questions), the procedures to be followed and how data shall be
analysed.
The Subjects The purpose of this subsection is to indicate who participates in

the study and how many they shall be. Where relevant, you may indicate
whether or not the subjects are to be volunteers, that is, how their participa-
tion was arranged. Of importance are the characteristics of the subjects, such
as their sex, age, status etcetera. The provision of such information make it
possible for another researcher to select an identical sample if he/she decides
to replicate the study. The entire method section should, therefore, be written
in such a manner as to provide other researchers a possibility of replicating
your method. Remember, that research is a process involving many people.
The importance of your research extends as far as its potential use of other
researchers.
The following are two examples of subjects for two different researches:
 A total of 72 rural school children, 12 boys and 12 girls from each of

grades 2, 4 and 6 shall serve as subjects. Stanford Reading Achieve-

ment Tests (Form B, 1976) will be administered to all subjects. The
mean ages for the respective grades are 8 years 3 months, 10 years 4
months and 11 years 11 months respectively.
 Subjects are 431 students currently enrolled in their junior or senior
year in High School. The first group of 253 consist of all students cur-
rently taking an elective science course beyond the minimum require-
ment. It is assumed that since the different elective science courses are
designed for all levels of student achievement and since all students
taking these courses are included, variations in I. Q, ability and sex
tend to equalise. The second group of 178 does not include any stu-
dents from the first group and was selected randomly from all English
classes. These classes were chosen since all juniors and seniors are
required to take English and selected samples from all classes tend to
equalise ability, sex and I.Q. differences. All subjects are volunteers for
this investigation (Tuckman, 1978; Sample Study III, Appendix A).
 Tasks these are activities in which some or all subjects participate.
 Procedures. In this subsection, you describe operational details such
as the specific order in which steps are undertaken, the timing, for ex-
ample, time for different procedures and between different procedures,
the instructions given to subjects, the briefings, the safeguards etcetera.
Here is an example of a procedure from Anderson (in Tuckman and
Harper, 2012):
All students shall be given the text and a formative test. The stu-
dents are instructed to write the time on the clock on their pro-
grammed booklets and begin working. After students have fin-
ished the booklet, they write the time they have finished and pick
up the formative test. They write the time they begin of the forma-
tive test, complete the test and write the time they have completed
it.
 Data Analysis. This subsection describes the statistical design to be
used and the analyses to be undertaken. Usually, it is not necessary to
describe the procedures step by step. You would simply name the sta-
tistical method(s) you would use such as t-tests, chi-square, correla-
tion, etcetera.

Activity 6.3
1. In order to demonstrate competency in writing a research proposal,
? you should prepare one proposal according to the expectation of your
degree programme.
2. In preparing the introductory section of a research proposal or research
report some of the following sections should be included. Please a
number for each section that must be included to indicate its order in
the sequence.
 statement of the problem
 review of literature
 context of the problem
 significance of the study
 conclusion
 definitions of terms
 tasks.
3. Given study: To relate teaching methods to the degree to which pupils
learn self discipline; write one short paragraph to illustrate the
significance of the study.
6.5 Summary
In Unit 6, we managed to introduce you to the basics of writing the research
proposal. We began by examining the role of the research proposal in con-
ducting research. We also highlighted the main characteristics of a research
proposal. Furthermore, we discussed the two major components of a re-
search proposal namely, the introduction and the method sections. The intro-
duction section comprises context of the problem, statement of the problem,
review of related literature, hypotheses, definition of terms and significance of
the study. The method section consists of the subjects, tasks, procedures and
data analysis. Unit 7 deals with the steps you need to follow when writing the
research report.

References
Creswell, .W. (2009). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative and
Mixed Methods Approaches. 3rd Edition. London: Sage.
Dominowski, R.L. (1980). Research Methods, New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Tuckman, B.W and Harper, V.E (2012). Conducting Educational Research,
(2nd edition). New York: Harcourt Braci Jovanovich.

Unit Seven
Writing the Research Report
7.0 Introduction
Y
our written research report is the primary means of communicating
your findings. A research report is a communicative document con
taining information and theoretical interpretations of the study con-
ducted. It is important that you, the writer, know how to communicate clearly.
Everything you have done in your research is useless unless it is clearly com-
municated. In this unit, we provide guidelines for preparing such a report.
7.1 Objectives
 write a final research report with the following sections: title page, ab-
stract, introduction, method, results, discussion and references
 explain what each section of the report entails
7.2 Specific Purposes Served by the Research

Report
The following are the specific purposes served by a research report:
 A research report that is informative and factual should: acquaint the
reader with the problem researched. This acquaintance must be done
in such a way that the reader is clear of the orientation of the problem.
This is the section where you create a meeting of minds between your-
self and the reader. Make the reader comprehend the problem and its
several ramifications. Help the reader to appreciate the setting in which
the problem is conceived.
 Serves the purpose of presenting the data fully and adequately. This
section answers the question; what are the facts? Data to do with the
problem must be collected and presented.
 Interpret data to the reader to the reader to demonstrate how the data
resolve the problem researched.
7.3 Specific Sections of the Research Report

7.3.1 The title page
The title page contains the title of the report, the author's name, the course for
which the report is prepared and the institution. The title of the report is put in
short, but adequately characterising the study concerned, for example, 'Anxi-
ety and Achievement in College Student'. The full details of the title would
appear in the statement of the problem.
7.3.2 The abstract

The abstract is a brief summary of the report at the beginning of the report. It
should be written in single line spacing. Usually 100-150 words suffice. Sum-

Unit 7 Writing the Research Report
marising your report in so few words makes you really think out what is
important and it forces you to state concepts precisely. In the abstract, in-
clude at least one sentence referring to each of the main sections of the report
- the introduction, the method, results and the discussion. The purpose is to
briefly tell what you intended to investigate, what you did, what you found
and what you concluded. Because of these details it is only possible and ideal
to deal the abstract until you have finished the complete report.
7.3.3 The introduction

The general purpose of the introduction is to provide the reader with back-
ground information necessary for understanding the study. The specific goals
are to: identify the central issue which the study addresses, summarise previ-
ous researches relevant to these issues and to your study and, provide spe-
cific reasons for conducting this particular study.
In treating the issues and relevant, prior research there is need to refer to
articles and books published by others. It is, therefore, necessary to give
credit where it is due. You need to distinguish clearly your own ideas and
those of others. Ensure that the introduction is well prepared so that when the
reader has gone through it, he/she has clear understanding of your reasons for
doing the study and the questions you hoped to answer.
Note that what we are discussing here, has been covered before in the pre-
ceding unit - the research proposal. The proposal and the final report are
(except for the tense) the same up to the methods section. Therefore, you
should have already observed that the first two chapters, The Problem and
the Review of Literature are contained within what we cal here, the introduc-
tion.
7.3.4 The method

In this section, unlike in the proposal where you tell the reader what you are
to do, this time you tell him/her what you have done. Remember, we have
already said that this section must be sufficiently detailed to allow the reader
to duplicate important aspects of your methods.
Appropriate subsections under this section include: design of the study, the
subjects, materials and specific procedures used. We have already seen, in
the preceding unit, examples of how to describe your subjects. The proce-
dure subsection is very important. Here you describe exactly what was done,
when subjects were seen, whether seen in groups or individually, if in groups,

how large the groups were and what instructions you gave. You also discuss
the sequence of events that occurred, (including times between successive
events, if necessary).
7.3.5 Presentation of results

This section must have data related to each of the sub-problems and these
data must be logically sequenced. As each sub-problem and its attendant
data are described, it is helpful to restate at the beginning of such a discussion,
the sub-problem in the exact wording in which it appears in the proposal and
the first chapter of the study.
Data could be summarised into charts, tables, graphs, statistical summaries

and so on. These may assist you to draw conclusions later. Choose the form
that provides the clearest presentation of your data. Each table or figure should
be numbered and with a heading to describe the date. In figures, you need to
label all axes clearly and draw accurately. Refer to each figure or table in the
text you are writing. Tell the reader what to look for and how information in
the figure is related to the analysis you are doing. Keep in mind that the results
section usually contains a fair amount of numerical information. Ease the reader's
task by explaining what the numbers mean. In short, guide your reader through
the section with care. If data are too extensive and are, therefore, summa-
rised in the report, they should be presented in full in the appendix.
7.3.6 The interpretation of data (Discussion)

The section on the interpretation of data explains the meaning of the research.
Interpretation is the sine quo non of research. Without inquiring into the intrin-
sic meaning of data, there can be no resolutions of the research problem or its
attendant sub-problems. What kinds of answers does your research come up
with? Do results support or reject your hypotheses? Look at the data from
many angles such as chart, graph, and so on. Ask, what has caused the plot-
ted data to peak, to reach a plateau, to dip, or to plummet. Such questions
break the shell of the data and reveal the meaning within. As a researcher, you
leave no stone unturned, no data unnoticed, no arrangement untried. Do your
findings support existing theory or suggest need for modifications.
You also need to compare your results with those of other researchers. What
are the agreements? What are the differences? Provide plausible explana-
tions for any differences. If your findings have any practical implications, state
what they are. If none of your expectations where upheld, if nothing worked,
accept your fate and try and provide a plausible explanation for the negative

results. For example, how can the study be redesigned in a productive fash-
ion?
It is an academic tradition to defend one's research effort. You defend in the

sense that you justify your conclusions, supporting your statements with the
backing of solid facts that have been presented in the report. This section
thus, closes with the summary, conclusions and Recommendations. Summa-
rising refers to gathering all loose threads together and distilling information
into a few paragraphs following precisely what has been accomplished in
each phase of the research activity. Your conclusions should be stated clearly
with respect to the problem. These conclusions should be supported by facts
previously presented. State also whether your hypotheses have been sup-
ported or not. Finally make recommendations for further study.
Note that in appendix 1, we give a sample research report, which should be

useful for both your research proposal and your research report.
7.3.7 References
We need to consider references in two ways.
 During the course of your writing, you periodically refer to someone
else's published work. It is your responsibility as a researcher to relate
your study to existing literature. Thus you should have references in the
text of your report. Follow the format used in your modules.
 The last section of your research report is a list of all the references
cited in the text.
The list allows the reader to consult the sources you have referred. Again
follow the format used in your modules for compiling this list.

Activity 7.1
1. In preparing the method section of your report, some of the following
? sections should be included. Place a number on each section that must
be included to indicate its order in the sequence.
 procedure
 data analysis
 results
 statement of hypothesis
 subjects
 tasks
 recommendations
conclusions
2. A sound way of structuring the results section would be to subdivide it
into subsections for each ______.
 task
 hypothesis
 definition of term
 section
3. Place an X next to each of the items served by the discussion section.
 to investigate
 to recommend
 to interpret
 to revise
 to collect relevant data
 to conclude
 to integrate
 to theorise
 to hypothesise
 to predict
4. A study has shown that children who perform well in school work
have school attendance records than children who perform poorly.
Write a short paragraph interpreting this finding.

7.4 Summary
In this last unit of the module, we have exposed you to the procedures of
writing the research report. We started by identifying the components of the
research report namely, title page, abstract, introduction, method, results, dis-
cussion and references. We also highlighted specific purposes served by the
research report. Eventually, we guided you on how best to write a research
report. We did so after giving you details of the aforementioned specific com-
ponents of a research report.

Recommended Reading
Dominowski, R.L. (1980). Research Methods. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Leedy, P.D and Ormrod, V.E (2012). Practical Research; Planning and
Tuckman, B.W. and Harper, J.B. (2012). Conduction Educational Research
(2nd edition). New Jersey: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
References
Babbie, E.R. (2012). The Practice of Social Research. Belmont: Wadsworth
Publishing Company.
Campbell, D.T. and Fiske, D.W. (1959). Convergent and Discriminant
Validity by the Multrait - multimethod Matrix. Psychological Bul-
letin, 65, 81-105.
Cohen, L. and Manion, L. (2012). Research Methods in Education. Buck-
ingham: Croom Helm.
Dane, F.C. (1990). Research Methods. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Fink, A. and Kosecoff, J. (1985). How to Conduct Surveys: A Step by
Guide. London: Sage Publications.
Flanders, N. (1970). Analysing Teaching Behaviour. Massachusetts:
Addison - Wesley.
Forcese, P.D. and Richer, S. (1973). Social Research Methods. New Jer-
sey: Prentice Hall.
Goldstein, H. (1987). Multilevel Models in Educational and Social Re-
search. London: Charles Griffin.
Leedy D.P. and Ormrod, V.E. (2012). Practical Research: Planning and
Design. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Inc.
Mouton, J. and Marais, H.C. (1991). Basic Concepts in the Methodology
of the Social Sciences. Human Sciences Research Council.
Parlett, M. (1981). Evaluation as Illumination in Parlette M. and Dearden G.
(eds.) Introduction to Illuminative Evaluation. Gilford: Society for
Research into Higher Education.
Selltiz, C., Wrightman, L.S. and Cooh, S. (1959). Research Methods in
Social Relations. New York: Holt Rinehartt and Winstone.
Travers, R.M. (1973). Second Handbook of Research on Teaching. Chi-
cago: McVally.
Tuckman, B.W. and Harper, J.B. (2012). Conducting Educational Research.
New York: Harcot Brace Jovanovich.
Van Dalen, D.B. (1979). Understanding Educational Research: An In-
troduction. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company.

Appendix 1
Glossary
Action research - research carried out to solve a social problem.
Anonymity - a condition when no one can relate a participant's identity to

any form of information pertaining to a research project
Behaviour - action performed by a respondent
Case study- an extensive study of a single participant over an extended

period of time
Cluster sampling - randomly selecting hierarchical groups from a sampling

frame
Coding - attaching some kind of meaning to observations
Concept - an abstract word representing a concrete phenomenon
Concurrent validity - comparing a new measure to an existing, valid meas-

ure
Confidentiality - prevails when only the researchers knows the participants

identities to her people
Construct validity - the accuracy with which a variable represents a con-

cept
Department variable - the issue under investigation
Descriptive - research concerned with examining a phenomenon in order to

define it more fully or to distinguish it from other phenomena
Design - the pattern of one's research project
Experimental design - research developed to test casual relationships
External validity - the relationship between the research experience and

everyday experience
Face validity - agreement that a measure represents a particular concept

History effect - effect that develops whenever some uncontrolled event al-
ters participants' responses
Hypothesis- a statement describing a relationship between variables
Independent variable - the suspected cause under investigation
Internal validity - the extent to which the independent variable is the only
systematic difference among experimental groups
Interpretation - use of recorded observations to describe events, generate

hypotheses or test hypotheses
Interview - a structured conversation between researcher and respondent

used to complete a survey
Measurement - determining the kind or intensity of something
Mortality - loss of participants during a research project
Nominal measurement - determining the presence or absence of a charac-

teristic, naming a quality
Objectivity - replicability of observations - observed by more than one per-

son under a variety of conditions
Ordinal measurement - ranking or determining an order of intensity for a

quality
Pilot study - a practice study to test the procedures to be used in the subse-
quent full - scale research project
Population - all possible elements that could be included in a research
Pretesting - carrying out research measures usually before full scale admin-
istration to participants
Probability sampling - any technique which ensures a random sample
Purposive sampling - sampling procedures directed toward obtaining cer-

tain type of element
Quota sampling - selecting sampling elements on the basis of categories

assumed to be existent within a population

Random selection - any procedure of technique that provides each element

of the population an equal chance of being included in the sample
Ratio measurement - a hard of measurement describing a variable whose

attributes have all the qualities of norminal, ordinal and interval measures and
in addition includes a value of zero, representing the absence of a quality
Reliability - the extent to which the same data would be collected each time
in repeated observations of the same phenomenon
Replication - the extent to which the initially observed relationship between

variables pursuits when a control variable is held constant
Representative sample - a sample that adequately resembles the popula-

tion in question
Research - a critical endeavour of asking and trying to answer questions

about an issue
Sample - a portion of the elements of a population
Simple random sampling - any unsystematic random selection process
Stratified random sampling - use of separate random selection for each

subgroup in a population
Survey research - obtaining information directly form a group of individuals
Systematic random sampling - choosing elements from a randomly ar-

ranged group according to some criteria
Validity - the extent to which a conclusion is based on sound thinking or

logic
Variable - a measurable entity

Appendix II
SAMPLE PROPOSAL FOR A RESEARCH PROJECT (Adopted
from Leedy, 1980)
A STUDY OF THE PERCEIVED AND THE
DESIRED DECISION MAKING PATTERNS AND
PROCEDURES IN ZIMBABWEAN PRIMARY
AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS
A research proposal
Presented to the Centre for Distance Education
University of Zimbabwe
In Partial Fulfilment for the Degree of Bachelor of Education
By
Arthur Thomas Munziriri
April 1995
The Problem and Its Setting
The Statement of the Problem
The purpose of this study is to investigate the perceived and the desired pat-
tern and procedures of decision making in primary and secondary schools as
viewed by assistant teachers, heads of department, headmasters, responsible
authorities and education officers at regional level.

The Sub-problems
1. How much assistant teacher involvement in decision making do assist-
ant teachers, heads of departments, headmasters responsible authori-
ties and education officers perceive in the area of curriculum, class-
room management, instrumental programme, general school organisa-
tion and building construction?
2. How much teacher involvement in decision making do the same groups
of people desire in the area stated above?
3. What are heads of departments' perceptions and desires of themselves
in decision making in the stated area?
4. What are headmaster' perceptions and desires of themselves in the
stated decisional areas?
5. What decisional procedures does each of the groups of people given
above and perceive and desire in each of the stated areas?
The Hypotheses
a) Decision-making patterns
This first hypothesis in this area is that assistant teachers generally desire greater
participation making them what they actually perceive.
The second hypothesis is that assistant teachers desire more involvement in

decision-making than what headmasters, responsible authorities and educa-
tion officers deem necessary
The third hypothesis is that trained assistant teacher desire more participation
in decision making than the untrained.
The fourth hypothesis is that there are no significant difference between male
and female assistant teachers' perceptions as well as between their areas.
b) Decision-making procedures
The first hypothesis under the theme is that assistant teachers perceive the use
of procedures that offer them very little or no involvement at all but desire
those Procedures through which they are involved more as groups than as
individuals. The second hypothesis in this theme is that all the groups desire
procedures to vary with the nature of the task

The Delimitations
The study will be concerned with responses from primary and secondary
school teachers, headmasters, responsible authorities and education officers
in the Masvingo region and in one district of that region.
In the schools concerned, the researcher will exclude expatriate personnel.

The study is restricted to five decisional areas namely, classroom manage-
ment, general school organisation, building construction, instructional pro-
gramme and curriculum.
The Definitions of Terms
Decision-making: This means the selection and effecting of a course of ac-

tion
Participation decision-making: This refers to one's involvement in deci-

sion-making in a given a given decision area
Perceived participation: This means the degree of involvement in decision-

making as perceived by an individual
Desired participation: This is the degree of involvement in decision-mak-

ing that one wishes
Assistant teachers: There are teachers whose function in a school is largely

instructional as approach to administrative. They hold a lower position in the
school than header of departments.
Heads of departments: This is a teacher in change of an academic depart-

ment of a school
Responsible authority: This means the person board or organisation re-

sponsible for the establishment and control of a school
Abbreviation in the Research
H.O. D: is the abbreviation for Head of Department
E.O: refers to Education officer
R.A: in the abbreviation for Responsible Authority

The Assumptions
The first assumption is that those who shall be asked to respond to question-
naire will be willing to do so and that they will offer genuine answers to given
questions. The second assumption is that the questionnaire, which is the re-
search's instrument and which the researcher believes shall be well constructed
for the purpose, will be adequate to extract the information sought.
The third assumption is that the decisional areas selected for investigation, as
well as their sub-areas, are of deep concern to all respondents. The fourth
and last assumption is that since the study included the various types of per-
sonnel in the Zimbabwean education system, the results of the study shall be
fairly representative of the situation in all Zimbabwean primary and secondary
schools.
The Significance of the Study
Since this study is to be conducted during a time of change, from centralisa-

tion to decentralisation of the education system, the disparities that may exist
between the perceived and the desired decision-making patterns and proce-
dures which the study intends to highlight are likely to be useful indicators of
the kind of decentralisation necessary. The study provides a general picture
of the perceptions and desires of headmasters and their subordinates as re-
gards decision-making. Once peoples' desires are known and met, alienation
is reduced and job satisfaction increased. The study investigates five areas in
the school organisation. Such areas could be fertile ground for further studies.
The Review of Related Literature
Decision-making
Decision-making has become a central issue in the running of organisations.

Simmon (1961:1) rightly argues as follows: The task of deciding pervades the
entire administrative organisation quite as much as the task of administration
must include principles of organisation that will ensure correct decision-mak-
ing just as it must include principles that will insure effective action.
If decision-making is so critical to organisations, who then should decide on

what goes on in organisations and on what procedures to be used in carrying
at decisions. The present study addresses thus twofold question with regard
to schools.

Hoy and Miskel (1978) argue that effective administration requires making.
They argue that decisions are rational when they are appropriate for accom-
plishing specific goals. In order for schools to accomplish their goals a number
of people including teachers should participate in decision-making, hence the
present study's focus on teacher involvement in decision-making.
Participation
According to Tannerbaum (1973), participation generally refers to the formal

involvement of organisational members in the exercise of control. Research
has established that participation in deciding on matters of concern have posi-
tive effects on the participant. For example, in a study of children, Lewin,
Lippit and White's (1961) results revealed that the autocratic atmosphere
generated a higher degree of tension than the democratic.
Teacher Participation in Decision-making in Schools
A survey of research on teacher participation, in decision-making, shows that

teachers' desires exceed their perceptions.
Simpkins and Friesen (1969) attempted an analysis of teacher in fourteen

urban schools inAlberta. They identified three decision-making sources, namely
the individual teacher, the formal staff group and higher official authority from
the principal upwards. They identified from the principal upwards. They iden-
tified from general task areas in which decisions should be made as follows:
i) Curriculum planning
ii) Classroom management
iii) Instructional programme
iv) General school organisation
Findings of this study give firm guidance of a desire by teachers for more
authority in decision-making.
Decision-making in an Education System
March (1978) conducted a study to determine the degree of control over

educational decisions that was being exerted by each of five educational lev-
els in four provinces of Canada: the education department, the school board,
the Superintendent's Office, the school principal, and teaching staff.
While the Canadian system of education is different from the Zimbabwean

one, the school board scan be linked to the responsible authority, the educa-

tion department to the regional office of education and the superintendent's

office to the regional director of education's office.
Emerging Issues
It is evident from the literature review that decision making has become cen-
tral to the running of organisations. Schools would therefore have decision
making high on their agenda. The issue is whether the organisational mem-
bers' perceptions can be matched with their desires. The philosophy of de-
centralisation implies more authority for teachers in decision making while
current practices indicate that heads or higher officials viewed considerable
control.
Research Design
The Research Method
This study is to use the descriptive survey method of research in which, through
a questionnaire, the respondents are asked to provide the sought of the de-
scriptive survey method is to investigate the present status of phenomena.
The design is therefore relevant to the mode of the present study, which seeks
to investigate the present state of affairs as regards school decision-making.
The Instrument
A decision-making pattern and procedures questionnaire is to be used in this

study. The questionnaire approach permits wide coverage, for example, the
present study proposes to include 240 respondents, which would not be easy
with the use of such approaches as thee interview.
This study's questionnaire is made up to 3 parts. The first part asks for the
following background information: sex, position held in the school, teaching
experience and academic and professional qualifications. The second part
proposes to measure the degree of involvement in decision making by assist-
ant teachers, heads of department, headmasters, responsible authorities and
education officers in five decisional areas of curriculum, classroom manage-
ment, instructional programme, general school organisation and building con-
struction. The third part is concerned with decision-making procedures as
perceived and desired by the five groups of respondents in the five decisional
areas.

The Population and the Sample
Out of a total of 10 education regions in Zimbabwe, the researcher intends to

select (on convenience) one region (Masvingo), providing a population frame
of 790 schools, 188 secondary and 602 primary. The region has a total of
approximately 12.5% of the total teacher population in the country. Using the
lottery method, one district of the region is to be selected to constitute the
accessible population comprising 2 100 teachers which is approximately 3%
of the target population, a random sample of 30 school is to be selected
resulting in a total of 1 050 teachers. For each of these schools a random
sample representing a 20% of the teaching staff and all the headmasters were
asked to respond.
Questionnaire Distribution and Collection
Given poor postal service for some schools in the selected district, the re-
searcher intends to physically distribute and collect the information. The com-
pleted sheets are to be collected from individual respondents after a period of
4 to 7 days.
Data Analysis
Respondents perceived and desired scores are to be completed to find means

and standard deviations for each of the five main areas.
As regards decisional procedures, each time a given procedure is selected, it

is allotted a score of one. The total scores represent the frequencies for each
procedure. Means and standard deviations are to be completed for each
procedure. Through t-test, the various perceived and desired scores are to
be contrasted to test the hypotheses.

Appendix III
Preliminaries
Title page
Abstract
Acknowledgements
Table of comments
List of tables
List of figures
Content
Chapter
I. THE PROBLEM AND ITS SETTING
Introduction
The statement of the problem
The sub-problem
The hypotheses
The delimitations
The definitions of terms
The assumptions
The significance of the study
Abbreviations used in the study
The organisation of the remainder of the study
II. THE REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Introduction
Decision making
Participation in decision making
Decision making procedures
Decision making in an Education system
Emerging issues

III. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Introduction
Research Design
The Instrument(s)
The Population and the Sample (Note that this varies with the nature of the
Study)
Data Collection
Data Analysis
Summary
IV. DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS

Introduction
Biographical; Data
Decision Making Patterns
Decision Making Procedures
Hypothesis Testing
Summary of Findings
V. SUMMARY CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Summary
Conclusions
Recommendations
Bibliography
Appendices
Appendix 1:Introduction letter
Appendix 2:The instrument
Appendix 3:The obtained data
Appendix 4:The statistical method (s) used

Research Methodology

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Research Methodology

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Research Methodology

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Bachelor of Education in

Content Reviewer: Nelson Chibvonga Madziyire

Editor: Chesterfield K.T. Vengesayi

P.O. Box MP1119

The Zimbabwe Open University is a distance teaching and open

Cover Design: T. Ndhlovu

Layout and Design: D. Satumba Nyandowe

-Printed by: ZOU Press

Typeset in Times New Roman, 12 point on auto leading

© Zimbabwe Open University. All rights reserved. No part of this

The six hour tutorials should be so structured that the

Session I (Two Hours)

Session II (Two Hours)

Session III (Two Hours)

Conclusion for this course, but also to prepare yourself to

Module Overview ______________________________________________ 1

Unit One: What is Research?

Unit Two: Basic Tools of Research

Unit Three: The Problem: The Centre of the Research Project

Unit Four: Review of Related Literature

Unit Five: Research Design and Methodologies

Unit Six: Writing the Research Proposal

Unit Seven: Writing the Research Report

The sequencing of information in this module follows the research process.

In Unit 2, we introduce you to some of the basic tools of research. Chief

In Unit 4, we draw your attention to how to write review of related literature.

2 Zimbabwe Open University

1.2 Defining Research

1.3 Characteristics of Research

4 Zimbabwe Open University

Zimbabwe Open University 5

Steps in the Research Process are:

6 Zimbabwe Open University

 Manipulating and Controlling Variables: To allow us to find rela-

1.4 Educational Research

Zimbabwe Open University 7

 Empirical: Empirical work is work guided by the evidence we obtain

1.5 Some Ethical Considerations

8 Zimbabwe Open University

 The Right to Confidentiality: Participants (subjects) have the right

Zimbabwe Open University 9

10 Zimbabwe Open University

Zimbabwe Open University 11

12 Zimbabwe Open University

Basic Tools of Research

We are now in the computer world. As researchers, we need to know what

The truth that we discover through research must be communicated to others.

These tools of research are intimately interrelated. To find answers to your

14 Zimbabwe Open University

2.2 Research Tools

Zimbabwe Open University 15

The Dewey System:

The Library of Congress Classification System

16 Zimbabwe Open University

2.2.2 Measurement as a research tool

2.2.3 The nominal level of measurement

2.2.4 The ordinal level of measurement

Zimbabwe Open University 17

2.2.5 The interval level of measurement

2.2.6 The ratio level of measurement