ED 35 - Learning Goals: Quiz 2

4.2) Be able to define, identify, and provide examples of nominal, ordinal, and continuous variables in education research

ordinal- order of values matters; values = discrete (no decimals) [ex: good, neutral, evil] nominal- name/label; no specific order; values = usually words [ex: undergraduate major] continuous- measured along continuum; compute distance between values; values = numbers [ex: height, time spent studying]

5.3) Explain why different researchers might code the same data differently (focus of study; positionality)

different research purposes/focuses of study and different positionalities which leads to them having different analytical lenses which can impact the way they approach coding a text

6.3) Describe 4 tips for good survey design (from the list provided in class) and identify when they are/not present in a survey

-Prompts should be as brief and simple as possible (while still capturing the construct the researcher is interested in). -Avoid double-barreled prompts. -Open-ended prompts should be used thoughtfully (expensive, respondent fatigue, and low response rate). -Response options should include all possible/reasonable responses. -Response options should not be so numerous that they overwhelm or distract participants. -If response options include a midpoint, take care of interpreting those responses. -Instruments length should balance thoroughness with respondent fatigue. -Instruments should organize items into logical sections. -Instruments should use consistent response options for blocks of questions.

4.3) Explain what it means for two variables to be correlated; given two variables, explain why you would expect them to be (or not) correlated

Correlation: describe relationship between 2 variables; three types 1. Positive correlation: one variable high, other tends to be high as well 2. Negative correlation: one variable high, other tends to be low 3. zero/no correlation: one variable high, no reason to expect other will be h/l

6.1) Distinguish between cross-sectional and longitudinal study designs and explain when a researcher might use each

Cross-sectional study design: data collected; one time point; answer question "What is happening right now; what percentage/how many Longitudinal study design: data collected; multiple time points (2 or more); answer "How is X changing over time?"; changes over time,

5.1) Explain the difference between (i) descriptive and (ii) interpretive / reflective fieldnotes; distinguish between them

Descriptive information -physical setting -social environment (interactions, communication, conflicts, decisions, etc.) -participants and their roles -(as best you can) meaning from the perspective of participants -exact quotes -any impact you might have had on the situation Interpretive/reflective information -ideas, impressions, thoughts about what you're observing insights about why this may be occurring -unanswered questions -clarification/corrections from other parts of fieldnotes -thoughts on future observations

5.2) Describe the steps of a typical approach to qualitative coding

First pass -Read through all of the data, relatively quickly, not a deep dive, no analysis, just skimming Read-read-read/view-view-view -Look for repetitions, relationships, no coding yet Develop initial codes, apply to data -See if the codes work. Revising Revise codes and re-code data -May be going from steps 3 to 4 in a circle Step back -Get distance from the data Explain what's going on in the data (inductive logic) -Write up what you are seeing

5.8) Explain (about a paragraph) what qualitative data analysis software can and cannot do

Organize coded qualitative data; can't code qualitative data for you

5.7) Explain what reflexivity / positionality is and why it's important in (qualitative) education research

Positionality is the position of a researcher in relation to the study such as the context to why they chose the study due to their social or political affiliations. This is important in qualitative research because since the researcher is the instrument in the study collecting data it is likely their perspective or positionality will affect the research process such as which participants they choose and how they analyze the data.

4.1) Explain the difference between primary and secondary data; determine which is used in a given study

Primary: Data; collected by researchers, specifically for the research project at hand; qualitative research Secondary: data previously collected by someone else/for some purpose other than the research project at hand used to support the conclusion; quantitative research

4.4) Be able to describe "common features of quantitative research" from the list of features provided in class

Quantitative research: 1) describe relationship between two variables; 2) conduct experiment to see if treatment has effect; 3) determine whether difference between two groups - deductive reasoning; studies well-known factors; testing of hypotheses and theories; large number of participants; data numerical; data gathered, then analyzed; statistical analysis; participant responses highly constrained; variables of interest identified in advance; concerned with generalizing and replicating findings; secondary data; rarely discuss positionality

6.2) Explain how random sampling relates to representativeness in survey sampling and how random sampling improves inferential statistics

Random sampling: make claims abt population of interest -Want to say there isn't influence about participant sample (representativeness); show claim has some correlation (happen because of chance); -Sample mirrors population(representativeness); similar enough to say what happened in one can generally happen in other (inferential statistics) -Can't do this if say perhaps underrepresented/overrepresent one group; have bias

5.6) Describe how qualitative researchers strengthen the validity of their research

Researchers build a case for qualitative validity by... - Triangulating different data sources Try find similar theme across multiple sources; strengthen theme to capture in study - Using member checks Return to participants + check if interpret words correctly; "she said X which means Y" - Including rich, thick descriptions Lots of detail, put reader in setting/place; show due diligence to capture participant experience - Clarifying researcher bias (reflexivity, positionality) Recognizing certain position interpretation fuel; derive interpretation from positionality; limitation of qualitative analysis - Spending prolonged time in the field Collect lots of knowledge; become more involved

4.5) Given an article that uses this week's methodological approach, be able to (i) summarize the research design and (ii) point to where in the article we see at least 3 "common features of quantitative / qualitative research" (from the list of features provided in class)

qualitative: -inductive; -studies unknown/little known factors; -development of hypotheses & theories; -small # participants; data = textual, audio, & collected w/ field notes; -data simultaneously gathered and analyzed; -coding/ analysis of text, audio, visual data (noticing emerging themes); -minimally constrained participant responses ("tell me abt your experience w/..."); -patterns/themes emerge during analysis; -report complexity of situation -use primary data; often discuss positionality