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Full-Text Articles in Education

An Expose Of The Relationship Between Paradigm, Method And Design In Research, Godswill Makombe Prof Dec 2017

An Expose Of The Relationship Between Paradigm, Method And Design In Research, Godswill Makombe Prof

The Qualitative Report

It is crucial that any research inquiry be guided by a paradigm. However, many early career researchers do not mention the research paradigm guiding their inquiry. Furthermore, qualitative and quantitative methods are sometimes erroneously referred to as research paradigms or research designs. Experienced researchers often use the terms research paradigm, research methods and research design in a loose and confusing manner. Although it is reasonable to assume that experienced researchers do understand the distinction and relationship between the three concepts, the loose use of the concepts leads to confusion among early career researchers, especially Master’s and PhD students. By using …


Researcher Emotions As Data, A Tool And A Factor In Professional Development, Liora Nutov Dec 2017

Researcher Emotions As Data, A Tool And A Factor In Professional Development, Liora Nutov

The Qualitative Report

The purpose of this paper is to explore and reflect on my own emotions while carrying out a research process and on their effect on the research and on myself as a researcher. After a brief literature review of the ways in which researcher emotions are perceived in qualitative research in the field of social sciences, I offer a reflective account of my own experience and suggest that researcher emotions can serve both as additional data and as an analyzing tool, as well as being a factor in the professional development of researchers.


Teaching Students How To Make Their Dreams Come True: An Autoethnography Of Developing And Teaching The Dream Research Methods Course, E. James Baesler Dec 2017

Teaching Students How To Make Their Dreams Come True: An Autoethnography Of Developing And Teaching The Dream Research Methods Course, E. James Baesler

The Qualitative Report

How to make students’ dreams come true is the central focus of this autoethnography that chronicles the story of the transformation of a traditional undergraduate communication research methods course into a new and creative dream research methods course. Pedagogical and institutional issues in teaching the traditional methods course join personal influences in my life story to birth the new dream research methods course. The content and format of the new course are described chronologically using personal stories, student perspectives, advice to teachers, and reflection questions. I encourage teachers, by experimenting with the ideas in the dream research methods course, to …


In The Light Of Shared Words: Collaborative Writing In A Research Study On Student Voice In Spanish Schools, Teresa Susinos Rada, Noelia Ceballos López, Ángela Saiz Linares Dec 2017

In The Light Of Shared Words: Collaborative Writing In A Research Study On Student Voice In Spanish Schools, Teresa Susinos Rada, Noelia Ceballos López, Ángela Saiz Linares

The Qualitative Report

This article describes the process of collaborative writing between teachers and researchers which constitutes the final phase (results dissemination) of a qualitative-collaborative research project. This study was developed in Cantabria (Spain) with the purpose of promoting and analysing student voice experiences in various schools. The final process of collaborative writing was organised in two parts: one oral, based on an epistemic interview and a second moment of written production based on a shared writing of the report. This process of collegial writing facilitated a new reading and reappropriation of the described student voice experiences by the participants. It also constitutes …


Journal Conversations: Building The Research Self-Efficacy Of An Aboriginal Early Career Academic, Michelle L. Dickson Dec 2017

Journal Conversations: Building The Research Self-Efficacy Of An Aboriginal Early Career Academic, Michelle L. Dickson

The Qualitative Report

This paper shows how I used my research journal mainly as a reflective tool throughout the process of applying for and completing a PhD. Embarking on a PhD can be daunting for anyone and I was challenged by my lack of academic self-efficacy. In the absence of a formal academic mentor my research journal became my confidante, a tool that helped me make progress at times when barriers to research seemed insurmountable. It helped me decrease the cognitive dissonance I was experiencing about issues of subjectivity/objectivity and the positioning of my self in the research. This paper shares research journal …


Pre-Service Foreign Language Teachers’ Perceptions Of Research Skills: A Qualitative Study, Eda Elmas, Selami Aydin Dec 2017

Pre-Service Foreign Language Teachers’ Perceptions Of Research Skills: A Qualitative Study, Eda Elmas, Selami Aydin

The Qualitative Report

While research skills seem significant for effective and successful foreign language teaching and learning, few studies focused on how English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers perceive research skills in the EFL teaching and learning processes. Research also lacks how EFL teachers perceive research skills and to what extent they are aware of the role, teacher as researcher. Thus, this study aims to explore pre-service EFL teachers’ perceptions of research skills for a deeper understanding of how their perceptions of research skills affect or contribute to the teaching and learning processes. The sample group in the study consisted of 44 …


Cul-De-Sacs And Narrative Data Analysis – A Less Than Straightforward Journey, Gwyneth James Dec 2017

Cul-De-Sacs And Narrative Data Analysis – A Less Than Straightforward Journey, Gwyneth James

The Qualitative Report

This article focuses on the methodological journey I took as a novice narrative inquirer, particularly regarding data analysis, for my doctoral data; a journey characterised by floundering, meandering, wrong turns and cul-de-sacs. It explains the initially overwhelming process of moving from collecting “data” to constructing the narratives of five postgraduate international students, challenges faced as well as lessons learned. Despite its complexities, narrative data analysis enables colour and emotion to be added to research. This article continues to add to a somewhat meagre research literature about how to move from collecting “data” to constructing narratives.


Writing With The ‘Other’: Combining Poetry And Participation To Study Leaders With Disabilities, Rama Cousik, Paresh Mishra, Mariesa K. Rang Nov 2017

Writing With The ‘Other’: Combining Poetry And Participation To Study Leaders With Disabilities, Rama Cousik, Paresh Mishra, Mariesa K. Rang

The Qualitative Report

In this paper, we describe the process of transformative co-authorship between researchers and a participant with disabilities. The researchers were conducting a larger study that aimed to identify different factors that shaped individuals with disabilities to assume leadership roles. Drawing from interview data obtained from the participant, one researcher wrote a poem that provided a stage for the researchers and the participant to engage in reflexive process that transformed the researchers-participant relationship to that of co-authors. This paper describes this transformative process and what everyone learned from this enriching experience.


The Myth Of Entitlement: Students’ Perceptions Of The Relationship Between Grading Practices And Learning At An Elite University, Clara S. Lewis, Breanna Della Williams, Minkee Kim Sohn, Tamara L. Chin Loy Nov 2017

The Myth Of Entitlement: Students’ Perceptions Of The Relationship Between Grading Practices And Learning At An Elite University, Clara S. Lewis, Breanna Della Williams, Minkee Kim Sohn, Tamara L. Chin Loy

The Qualitative Report

While the existence of grade inflation in the American system of higher education is well documented, the argument that student entitlement drives this dynamic remains unproven. Drawing on an abductive analysis of twenty-nine in-depth, semi-structured interviews conducted by undergraduate co-authors, this study addresses these questions: (1) How do undergraduates on one elite campus understand the meaning and function of the grades they have received in college and (2) Do these students think that grading practices impact their undergraduate learning experience, and if so, how? Our results show that entitlement is not a fixed generational attitude so much as a conditional …


Autoethnography As An Instrument For Professional (Trans) Formation In Pharmaceutical Care Practice, Daniela Álvares Machado Silva, Simone Araújo Medina Mendonça, Maureen O´Dougherty, Djenane Ramalho De Oliveira, Clarice Chemello Nov 2017

Autoethnography As An Instrument For Professional (Trans) Formation In Pharmaceutical Care Practice, Daniela Álvares Machado Silva, Simone Araújo Medina Mendonça, Maureen O´Dougherty, Djenane Ramalho De Oliveira, Clarice Chemello

The Qualitative Report

The recent inclusion of pharmacists in primary healthcare in Brazil through the Family Health Support Team has encouraged them to reflect on the need to change from a professional focused on medications to one focused on individuals. This autoethnography allowed a pharmacist to confront her perspectives on clinical practice between 2014 and 2016, a period when she decided to challenge her traditional training as a pharmacist centered on medications. Using pharmaceutical care practice as the theoretical framework that prompted the profession of pharmacy to change its focus to the patient, the authors collaborated to construct a monologue that engages readers …


Friend Or Foe? A Case Study Of Ipad Usage During Small Group Reading Instruction, Terry Husband 7078260, Roland K. Schendel Nov 2017

Friend Or Foe? A Case Study Of Ipad Usage During Small Group Reading Instruction, Terry Husband 7078260, Roland K. Schendel

The Qualitative Report

The purpose of this case study is to examine how two early childhood teachers in one university laboratory school utilize the iPad in their reading practices. Data collection involved: (a) observations, (b) audio recordings, and (c) researcher journal. Findings indicate that the teachers had a continuum of purposeful uses for the iPad and the associated applications during their small group reading instruction. In addition, the teachers had mixed overall perceptions toward using the iPad as an effective literacy tool. Implications for practice are presented.


College Students, Experiences On Smart Phone Technology Usage: A Qualitative Content Analysis Study, Fatemeh Jafarzadeh-Kenarsari, Parand Pourghane Nov 2017

College Students, Experiences On Smart Phone Technology Usage: A Qualitative Content Analysis Study, Fatemeh Jafarzadeh-Kenarsari, Parand Pourghane

The Qualitative Report

Besides many benefits of the cell phone technology, numerous arguments are raised on the different and important negative effects of such a technology. This qualitative content analysis study explored the common usages of smart phone technology, its challenges, and benefits among Iranian college students. Participants were 32 bachelor degree students who were recruited using purposive sampling method with maximum variation. Data were collected through 11 individual semi-structured interviews and 3 focus group discussions (5-8 students in each group). Data analysis was done based on a conventional content analysis approach. Data analysis resulted in 3 main themes and 12 sub-themes. The …


Qualitative Delphi Method: A Four Round Process With A Worked Example, Dia Sekayi, Arleen Kennedy Oct 2017

Qualitative Delphi Method: A Four Round Process With A Worked Example, Dia Sekayi, Arleen Kennedy

The Qualitative Report

The Delphi Method was originally designed to collect data from a panel of experts to aid in decision making in government settings. Delphi has been described as a qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods approach. The anonymous collection of narrative group opinion coupled with the tightly structured nature of the process and quantitatively described results renders the approach difficult to situate in a methodological category. The purpose of this article is not to settle the debate. Rather, the aim is twofold: to present a modification of Delphi that is definitively qualitative, and to provide a worked example to demonstrate the proposed method.


Kites Flying: Chinese Overseas Kites Flying: Reflections Of Chinese Students In New Zealand On National Identity Students’ Reflections On National Identity, Xiudi Zhang Oct 2017

Kites Flying: Chinese Overseas Kites Flying: Reflections Of Chinese Students In New Zealand On National Identity Students’ Reflections On National Identity, Xiudi Zhang

The Qualitative Report

The study described in this paper examined the national identity tension that often occurs between Chinese international students and Western host country members. Research questions guiding the study were: How does the experience of studying in New Zealand provide challenges for Chinese international identity, and how do Chinese students reflect their cognitions of national identity in everyday life. Case study was used as a method to collect data from 20 Chinese international students. Cross-national discussions of China from the participants’ life experiences reveal a complex, sometimes contradictory, relationship between the individual and state, which is deeply rooted in Chinese culture …


Principal’S Coalition Building And Personal Traits Brings Success To A Struggling School In Malaysia, Mohammad Noman, Rosna Awang Hashim, Sarimah Shaik-Abdullah Oct 2017

Principal’S Coalition Building And Personal Traits Brings Success To A Struggling School In Malaysia, Mohammad Noman, Rosna Awang Hashim, Sarimah Shaik-Abdullah

The Qualitative Report

This paper presents findings from a single site case study of a school in a rural part of Malaysia. Based on data collected through semi-structured interviews of the principal, teachers, students and parents, and observations, document scanning and field notes, the study attempts to identify the context under which the school operates, the core practices of the school principal and the enactment of these core practices. The data analysis was carried out through data reduction resulting in initial themes which were further refined several times until consensus was achieved. The themes were then discussed under the light of theories resulting …


The Potential Of Virtual Environments To Support Soft-Skill Acquisition For Individuals With Autism, Jennifer Gallup, Mary E. Little, Barbara Serianni, Onur Kocaoz Sep 2017

The Potential Of Virtual Environments To Support Soft-Skill Acquisition For Individuals With Autism, Jennifer Gallup, Mary E. Little, Barbara Serianni, Onur Kocaoz

The Qualitative Report

This study examined the phenomenon of online gaming to describe the social interactions of young adults with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) as they socialize and develop relationships within virtual environments. This research built upon previous literature related to the identification of alternate modes of developing social skills and interpersonal relationships of adolescents with ASD by exploring the social implications of virtual environments. Young adults with autism experience grim outcomes such as low enrollment in postsecondary education, low wages, few living independently, and few maintaining full time employment as a result of poor social skills. Given the availability of online …


Learning And Changing: The Shaping Of A Teacher’S Identity Through Time, Across Spaces And In Different Contexts, Nikolaos Bogiannidis, Jane Southcott, Maria Gindidis Sep 2017

Learning And Changing: The Shaping Of A Teacher’S Identity Through Time, Across Spaces And In Different Contexts, Nikolaos Bogiannidis, Jane Southcott, Maria Gindidis

The Qualitative Report

This research paper explores the confluence of significant events in my life that shaped my identity as a teacher and researcher. I employed autoethnography to explore my personal life journey across time, space and context, in order to identify and to analyse the significant moments of epiphany that impacted on my decision to become a teacher. The findings of this study reveal a number of universal qualities of good teachers across three continents who, independently and unbeknown to each other, acted as role models in shaping my identity and my desire to become a teacher in order to serve the …


Decision Domains And Teacher Participation: A Qualitative Investigation Of Decision-Making In Egyptian Schools, Waheed Hammad Sep 2017

Decision Domains And Teacher Participation: A Qualitative Investigation Of Decision-Making In Egyptian Schools, Waheed Hammad

The Qualitative Report

The purpose of this paper is to explore the gap between actual and desired decision domains as a potential factor affecting teacher participation in decision-making in Egyptian schools. In order to explore this gap, the study sets out to answer three questions: (1) what would a typology of school decisions look like in Egypt’s secondary schools? (2) How do Egyptian teachers perceive actual decisions made in their schools? (3) What decision domains are most desired by Egyptian teachers? The study employed a qualitative, descriptive research approach based on individual, semi-structured interviews with a sample of 85 school teachers and senior …


Preservice Teachers’ Perceptions Of Using Ipads With Students With Learning Disabilities, Daljit Kaur Sep 2017

Preservice Teachers’ Perceptions Of Using Ipads With Students With Learning Disabilities, Daljit Kaur

The Qualitative Report

Preservice teachers reflected on their experiences teaching mathematics to ten students using iPads. The students had learning disabilities and were tutored over 5 consecutive weeks. Teachers reflected weekly for 5 weeks then responded to an online open-ended survey regarding their overall teaching experience. Findings suggest that the experience allowed preservice teachers to gain helpful insight, knowledge, and ideas on how to use iPads as an instructional tool.


How Do Immigrant Students Develop Social Confidence And Make Friends In Secondary School? A Retrospective Study, Shyanna Albrecht, Gina Ko Sep 2017

How Do Immigrant Students Develop Social Confidence And Make Friends In Secondary School? A Retrospective Study, Shyanna Albrecht, Gina Ko

The Qualitative Report

This paper pertains to a retrospective study of immigrant students’ experience of making friends and gaining social confidence in secondary school. In the study, 17 undergraduate students participated in either a one-to-one semi-structured interview or focus group. Questions were asked to understand their experiences in making friends and gaining social confidence when they came to Canada between grades five to nine. Thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006) was used to analyse the data. This method was useful in looking for commonalities in meaning in participants’ responses. In total, seven themes and 20 subthemes were discovered, which are discussed in detail. …


“It Helps If You Are A Loud Person”: Listening To The Voice Of A School Student With A Vision Impairment, Jill Opie, Jane Southcott, Joanne Deppeler Sep 2017

“It Helps If You Are A Loud Person”: Listening To The Voice Of A School Student With A Vision Impairment, Jill Opie, Jane Southcott, Joanne Deppeler

The Qualitative Report

Students with vision impairment who attend mainstream secondary schools in Australia may not experience education as an inclusive and positive experience. This study of one senior secondary student with vision impairment provides a rare opportunity to give voice and provide understandings of the experience from the perspective of the student. The research question that drove this study was: What is the experience of mainstream schooling for a student with a vision impairment? The participant in this Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis study was Edward (pseudonym), a student in his final year of secondary schooling. Edward encountered significant barriers to inclusion, specifically teaching, …


The Song (Does Not) Remain The Same: Re-Envisioning Portraiture Methodology In Educational Research, Spirit D. Brooks Aug 2017

The Song (Does Not) Remain The Same: Re-Envisioning Portraiture Methodology In Educational Research, Spirit D. Brooks

The Qualitative Report

This conceptual paper explores how portraiture methodology re-envisioned was used in an educational research project with white teachers. What qualifies as authentic voice and an appraisal of how portraiture and auto-ethnography hold up against the critique of voice-centered research made by Lather (2009), Mazzei and Jackson (2012a) and English (2000) are discussed in the context of the author’s personal narrative journey to the use of portraiture methodology. Next, the trail blazing methodological contribution portraiture makes by allowing an expansion of creative research methods in education is discussed.


The Construction Of “Discomfort Psychological”: An Exploration Of Italians Teachers' Reports, Antonio Iudici, Matteo Fabbri Aug 2017

The Construction Of “Discomfort Psychological”: An Exploration Of Italians Teachers' Reports, Antonio Iudici, Matteo Fabbri

The Qualitative Report

Although there are several studies on youth problems in school, there are few studies on how teachers report psychological discomfort of the students and on what criteria does their procedure. Considering that schools increasingly make such reports to social or neuropsychiatry services, we wanted to find out whether it is flawless (bias, etc.) and how it can affect a student's career. This research presents an investigation on how the practice of signaling "psychological discomfort" at school is set up. Objects of the survey are the procedures used by the teachers to submit the psychological problems. The research subjects were Secondary …


Facilitating The Transition From Military Instructor To Academic Educator: Cognitive Apprenticeship In Teacher Induction At The United States Air Force Academy, Thomas T. Swaim Aug 2017

Facilitating The Transition From Military Instructor To Academic Educator: Cognitive Apprenticeship In Teacher Induction At The United States Air Force Academy, Thomas T. Swaim

The Qualitative Report

This article examines teacher induction in the military undergraduate education context. The U.S. Air Force Academy relies on approximately 520 military and civilian instructors to educate nearly 4000 future military officers each year. These educators must be highly skilled and unquestionably capable in their abilities to teach these future leaders. Many of these instructors derive from highly technical active duty operational career fields (such as pilot, missile operator, etc.). This article reveals how Collins’, Brown’s, and Newman’s (1989) theory of cognitive apprenticeship is manifested within teacher induction experiences at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Using a qualitative multiple-case study approach, …


Between Paradigms: Becoming A Pathological Optimist, Carol Isaac Aug 2017

Between Paradigms: Becoming A Pathological Optimist, Carol Isaac

The Qualitative Report

Using an autoethnographic poststructural lens, I examined my academic journey in becoming a qualitative methodologist. I integrated my mentor’s maxims such as, “the institution will not love you back,” “prisoner of your words,” “make plans; if they don’t work, make new plans,” “one has mentors and tormentors and both help shape us,” “ever the opportunist,” “strategic groveling,” “a mosaic approach to mentoring” and “just get naked.” Despite paradigmatic contradictions between my doctoral and postdoctoral experiences, I gained much from working between the polarities of the social science and biomedical discourse. In time, I became a “pathological optimist,” one of the …


Regulation Of Learning: From The Perspective Of Male Students In Pakistan, Zainudin Abu Bakar, Rafaquat Ali Aug 2017

Regulation Of Learning: From The Perspective Of Male Students In Pakistan, Zainudin Abu Bakar, Rafaquat Ali

The Qualitative Report

Studies have shown that the students’ regulation of learning is associated to their learning outcomes, cognitive processing strategies and understanding of the content. In Pakistan, it was suggested that science students at secondary school possesses inadequate learning behaviours which diminished regulation of learning behaviours. This study was conducted with the intention to explore the issue of regulation of learning among secondary school science students in Pakistan. Twenty-four male students were selected purposefully to participate in the study. The data was collected through focus group interviews to understand their view of self-regulation of learning behaviour. The Applied Thematic Analysis was executed …


The Influence Of Mentorship And Role Models On University Women Leaders’ Career Paths To University Presidency, Lilian H. Hill, Celeste A. Wheat Aug 2017

The Influence Of Mentorship And Role Models On University Women Leaders’ Career Paths To University Presidency, Lilian H. Hill, Celeste A. Wheat

The Qualitative Report

While the literature concerning female administrators in higher education indicates the critical role that mentors and role models play in contributing to women’s professional advancement, the relationship between mentorship and women’s attainment of senior leadership positions including the college presidency remain underexplored. The purpose of this study was to explore how women in key-line administrative positions to the presidency (e.g., academic dean, vice president, chief academic officer) and women presidents understood the role of mentoring relationships and role models in their career paths to leadership. This study employed a postmodern feminist theoretical framework and a feminist qualitative design to give …


Intersecting Autoethnographies: Two Academics Reflect On Being Parent-Researchers, Rosemary G. Bennett 086385, Peter De Vries Dr Aug 2017

Intersecting Autoethnographies: Two Academics Reflect On Being Parent-Researchers, Rosemary G. Bennett 086385, Peter De Vries Dr

The Qualitative Report

This article presents two intersecting autoethnographies generated by two academics working in the same university, who were both parent-researchers. We researched aspects of our own children’s lives, primarily in the home focusing on their engagement with dance and music. As autoethnographers we engaged in shared and individual systematic sociological introspection. In this inquiry we employed observation, copious field notes, video and photographic recording to gather longitudinal data about often unpredictable moments of creative arts engagement that occurred in the home setting. Our research provided a unique window into child directed dance and music behaviours which are rarely seen and which …


Reflections On Teaching Qualitative Methods Using Team-Based Learning: An Exemplification By Photovoice, Nadia Rania, Laura Migliorini, Stefania Rebora Jul 2017

Reflections On Teaching Qualitative Methods Using Team-Based Learning: An Exemplification By Photovoice, Nadia Rania, Laura Migliorini, Stefania Rebora

The Qualitative Report

This research article as a part of larger study intends to explore the role of teaching qualitative methods is not easy and often represents a great challenge. In this work, we describe our experience of teaching a qualitative methods course for undergraduate psychology students. In this course, we used a Team-Based Learning (TBL) approach in which we had students cluster into small groups to enhance their education by having them become more active in their learning. To teach qualitative methods, we used TBL and in this paper, we present the exemplification of this method by choosing Photovoice. The Team-Based methods …


“You Can Sort Of Feel It”: Exploring Metacognition And The Feeling Of Knowing Among Undergraduate Students, Antonio P. Gutierrez De Blume, Pamela Wells, C. Amelia Davis, Jason Parker Jul 2017

“You Can Sort Of Feel It”: Exploring Metacognition And The Feeling Of Knowing Among Undergraduate Students, Antonio P. Gutierrez De Blume, Pamela Wells, C. Amelia Davis, Jason Parker

The Qualitative Report

Traditional research on the metacognitive practice of calibration has been primarily investigated within the realm of quantitative experimental methodologies. This article expands the research scope of metacognitive calibration by offering a qualitative approach to the growing body of literature. More specifically, the current study investigates the learners’ perspective on the calibration process. Ten undergraduate students were selected to participate in a structured interview on their previous calibration performances (five students low in calibration processing and five proficient in calibration processing). Ultimately nine students (N=9) participated in individual interviews. Participant interviews are qualitatively assessed through the mediums of (1) Serra and …