Hello EDUC 721 class! I am writing to you from Virginia and wish I was in class discussing these wonderful topics. I can’t wait to join everyone in July!
My initial impression after reading the first three chapters is that educational research provides opportunities for a very wide range of topics using a vast array of methodologies. While this should not be surprising, considering the range of topics that are relevant to education (i.e. everything from the science of brain function to the politics of school funding to the concept of culture), it is somewhat intimidating to consider all that one must know in order to conduct meaningful and ethical research in education. Based off of the descriptions between qualitative and quantitative research, I feel as if my natural inclination is to be geared towards a qualitative research project. I like the idea of conducting research through interviews as a method of collecting data. As the text suggests, research methods should match research objectives. The importance of a well articulated and carefully crafted research question seems especially important. The question should be explicit, without foreshadowing the outcome and it should not “overextend.” Information about the process called “ literature review “ that is provided in the text is a reminder of the importance of building on and extending work that has gone on before in the education profession and a reminder of one of the fundamental purposes of research in any field. At this point, I have interest in investigating teacher attrition/retention of first year social studies teachers. My curiosity with this topic is based off of my own observations and experiences since I started teaching. Although I like this topic, I fear that it might be too broad.
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4 comments:
Hi, Katie. Your comments are right on target. At this point, we are just exploring possibilities and thinking about both topics and methods. I think teacher attrition is interesting, but you might want to think more about what happens in the classroom...think about the intersection of student characteristics, content, and pedagogy. You might think about something like "What experiences do first-year teachers have?" or something like that, and you could identify some first or second year teachers to interview....
I think Dr. Mac's suggestions are right on...I think it would be really neat to interview 2nd and 3rd year teachers to see what their experiences were like...
Hi Katie,
I also think that you have an interesting idea. Teacher turnover is a problem in the private schools I have worked in and I always am curious as to why teachers decide to leave. Is it because they feel they aren't successfully? Perhaps think about the evolution of teaching methods by interviewing 1st, 2nd, and 3rd year teachers, and then see how that may influence teacher happiness and/or retention.
Hi, Katie! We miss you in class! I really like you idea. I have seen lots of teacher turn over in my four years in public school. My own department lost at least one teacher each year. I would be interested to see what you find out. I would think the amount of support the teacher gets from administration and peers would be a big factor. Something that also seems to have been an issue in my experience is the number of preps teachers have. We lost a really great teacher because he was just overwhelmed with the amount of work.
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