Methodology Panel
Tuesday 24 August, 14:00 - 15:00
AUD 1
The Methodology Panel has been designed to offer a taste of challenges of a range of methodological paradigms. Each speaker will talk for 10 minutes around one aspect or challenge of a particular methodological approach. This is not intended to offer a complete overview of this methodology, rather, the intention is to give the audience something to think about. Following the input from the panel members there will be a short time for questions before a coffee break to allow further reflection.
After the coffee break, four networks will lead workshops to explore their particular methodology in more depth.
The four workshops are:
Methodology Workshops
Tuesday 24 August, 15:30 - 17:00
Session I 01
Cross-sectional and longitudinal research designs in educational assessments: Applications and implications
AUD 1
Martin Goy, Rolf Strietholt, University of Dortmund
In this workshop, we will introduce you to two concepts in designing educational assessments: Cross-sectional and longitudinal research designs. The choice of research design, next to research instruments and analysis strategies, affects whether relationships between variables can merely be described, or whether and how relationships can be used to explain educational outcomes in causal terms. We will give a brief introduction to applications of these two research concepts and provide you with an overview of the preconditions and implications associated with both designs. Further, we invite you to discuss with us any questions you might have with regard to designing your own cross-sectional or longitudinal research projects.
Martin Goy works as a researcher at the Institute for School Development Research at the University of Dortmund. He is a member of the research staffs for PIRLS 2006 and for the National Educational Panel Study in Germany. His main research interests are international and comparative education, large-scale assessments, reading self-concept and motivation, and the development and facilitation of reading literacy.
Rolf Strietholt works as a researcher at the Institute for School Development Research at the University of Dortmund. He studied and worked in Germany and Sweden. His main research interest is empirical educational research with the focus on secondary analyses of cross-sectional and longitudinal large-scale assessments.
Session I 02, Research in the Classroom
AUD 2
Birgit Pepin, Professor of Mathematics Education, Høgskolen i Sør-Trøndelag
This workshop will identify critical features of classrooms and develop a framework for thinking about and researching classrooms which includes aspects/dimensions of teaching and learning.
In this presentation, and subsequent workshop, I explore classrooms that encourage ‘understanding’ developing a framework for thinking about and researching such classrooms. Each of us has different ways of thinking about learning with understanding. Leaning on and modifying the work of Hiebert et al (1997), the framework sets out five dimensions and core features that relate to these dimensions. In the workshop we will discuss these dimensions, what they mean for individual classrooms, and identify methodologies, and data collection strategies that suit the particular dimension. Thus, I am trying to get away from the typical methodological divides, such as qualitative vs quantitative methods; facts vs values; science vs politics/policy; subjectivity vs objectivity, to name a few - in order to explore the core features of classrooms.
Session I 03
Researching Teacher Practice: What on earth does that mean?
Sali 115
This session, comprising a panel presentation and workshop, will explore some of the issues involved in researching activities and concepts used by teachers in the classroom. This is a difficult area for three related reasons. Firstly, educational research includes paradigms drawn from a range of disciplines, such as psychology, ergonomics, sociology, political activism and counselling. These have their own traditions and procedures which do not always fit neatly into the chaotic world of classroom activity. Secondly, teachers themselves have varying attitudes towards research, and cannot be treated as neutral ‘objects’ but must be given at least a degree of ownership of the processes and results of research. Finally, there are ethical issues around classroom research which are increasingly significant in the design and implementation of research projects.
The panel presentation will briefly explore the above questions with the central theme of: How can teachers and researchers achieve a shared understanding of each other’s worlds?
In the workshop, we will address this question via the central issue of language. Research instruments and inventories are frequently created in entirely different contexts from those in which they are used, whilst research interviews frequently reveal that teachers and researchers have different mental maps or conceptual schemas, resulting in mutual incomprehension. The workshop will provide some practical examples and we will work in small groups to illustrate and overcome possible problems.
Session I 04
Ethical issues in research with children. An invitation to discuss challenges, demands and possibilities
Sali 224
In educational research, questions that involve children and their views on daily life are frequent. Current theoretical and ideological discourses on children and childhood emphasize the child as a subject with agency, whose experience and knowledge about life need to be considered in educational practice and policy. Like in all research involving human beings, deliberations on ethical aspects of the research process is demanded for the researcher dealing with children as informants. The purpose of this workshop is to make visible, discuss and share experiences of ethical issues in research including children. Formal rules and protocols as well as more informal aspects will be highlighted.
Drawing on the introductory case we will raise issues and invite the participants to discuss the following themes:
- Contemporary theoretical, epistemological and ontological issues and debates informing the process of ethical deliberation in research with children.
- European and international research governance and rules - articulation and problematisation in relation to ethical issues in research with children
- Capacities and preparedness among researchers to meet demands beyond adherence to gatekeeper protocols that includes and honours the child´s role and agency.
- Examples of our own experiences that can be unfolded in relation to issues and concerns that the PhD students present
John I’Anson lectures in education at the University of Stirling, Scotland, where he has responsibility for research ethics. He is currently principal investigator of a project that explores moving image literacies in educational contexts (Scottish Screen). His writing to date draws upon post-structuralist philosophies and his current work explores socio-material imaginaries in relation to cultural difference and children’s rights. He is co-convenor of the ECER Network 25, Research on Children´s Rights in Education.
Vicky Coppock is reader in Social Work and Mental Health at Edge Hill University, England. She researches and publishes in the field of mental health with a particular interest in asserting a positive rights agenda for children and young people in mental distress. She is author of ‘Children as peer researchers: reflections on a journey of mutual discovery’iin Children and Society DOI:10.111/j.1099-0860.2010.00296.x (February 2010) and ‘Meeting the challenge? Voicing Children and young people in Mental Health Research, in Goddard, J, McNamee, S, James, A, and James, A. (eds) (2005) The Politics of Childhood: International Perspectives, Contemporary Developments. London: Palgrave/Macmillan.
Solveig Hagglund is professor in education at Karlstad University, Sweden. Her research focuses on young children as actors and participants in social dynamics in pre-school and school contexts. Her publications relate to themes such as children as citizens, bullying, social inclusion, values education, and learning for sustainability. She is link-convenor of the ECER Network, 25, Research on Children’s Rights in Education.
Jonathon Sargeant is a lecturer and researcher in Special Education and classroom management at the University of Sothern Queensland, Australia. Jonathon’s research interests focus on giving children and youth (particularly tweens) a voice regarding their futures. He is particularly interested in developing better educational provision that incorporates young people’s perspectives through ethical research practices.
