Key concepts in educational research.

The first readings and tutorials in this unit introduced the central concepts of ontology, epistemology, methodology and methods. In my Bachelor studies I had at least two, if not three, modules on research methods and I am certain that the words ontology and epistemology were never even mentioned. The small scale research I did then, and have also done so far in this degree, was therefore carried out without knowingly considering the philosophocal viewpoints I was taking in constructing and carrying out my research.

Having now watched the tutorials and read the texts it is clear that these issues are important and have an impact on what you research, how you research and how you interpret your results. The definitions I will be building my work on for the rest of this module can be summarised as:

Ontology - the study of reality or being.

Epistemology - the study of knowledge. 

Methodology - a combination of techniques used to research something.

Methods - an individual technique for data collection or analysis. 

The question now is, what do these concepts have to do with educational research?

Ontology

For the researcher an ontology is how you view the world. This includes ideas about what exists, how it is made up and how different parts interact. Your personal ontology will therefore obviously influence what you choose to research and the questions you choose to ask. For example, if in your ontology there is one "true" reality shared by everyone then quantitative, empirical research is all you will need to understand society as a whole. If, on the other hand, you believe that every individual creates their own reality then qualitative methods such as interviews will be required which allow each subject to describe their own personal reality.

Epistemology

As the study of knowledge your epistemological viewpoint will influence both what you already know, or think you know, and what you think you will be able to find out. Epistemology covers issues relating to ideas such as the validity of knowledge and the sources of knowledge. These viewpoints have been defined by theorists on a scale with Positivism at one end of the scale and Constructionism at the opposite end. A postivist would for example believe that there is one reality external to us which we can understand through observation. Also known as the scientific method, this knowledge is gained through methods such as experimentation and statistical analysis.

The constructivist viewpoint holds that each individual constructs their own reality and it is therefore not possible to define one all-encompassing theory. Constructivist research therefore concentrates on individuals and on recording their own personal opinions and attitudes to an event.     

Methodology

How you carry out your research is obviously influenced by your view of the world and the nature of knowledge. If you are a positivist and believe in one true reality then you will be interested in received as much statistical data as possible which confirms your hypothesis. Typical tools for this are experiments, questionnaires and statistical analysis. A constructivist is more interested in individuals and will therefore favour instruments like participant observation and diaries. A combination of these different methods will form the methodology of your research.

Methods

The methods you choose in your research will influence the type and amount of data you receive as well as the time it will take to collate and analyse it. The statistical methods favoured by positivists, such as experiments and questionnaires, can be fast and economical but do not offer in-depth knowledge. In comparison, constructivist tools like unstructured interviews, and observation can be time-consuming and expensive.   Methods from both ends of the epistemological spectrum are however sometimes combined in an attempt to get the best of both worlds.

Now that these concepts and their importance in educational research have been clarified it is time to move on to consider epistemology in more detail. That will be the topic of my next post. 

Sources

Chinn, C. (2009) Epistemological beliefs,
http://www.education.com/reference/article/epistemological-beliefs/ [accessed 20/10/2012].

Darlaston-Jones, D. (2007) Making connections: The relationship between epistemology and research methods. in The Australian Community Psychologist, Volume 19 No 1 May 2007.

Freimuth, H. (2009) Educational research: An introduction to basic concepts and terminology,
http://www.education.com/reference/article/epistemological-beliefs/ [accessed 4/10/2012].

Mack, L. (2010) The philosophical underpinnings of educational research,
http://r-cube.ritsumei.ac.jp/bitstream/10367/1887/1/1-Polyglossia19_The Philosophical Underpinnings of Educational Research.pdf [accessed 20/10/2012].