Tag: research proposal

The use of observation, interview, and content analysis in qualitative research

Observation in qualitative research

Direct observation may be a valuable tool for collecting data in qualitative research. You can get certain kinds of information best by looking them over directly. For instance, the materials used in construction, the number of rooms used for different purposes, the size of the rooms, the quantity of furniture and equipment, the presence or absence of certain amenities, and other pertinent details are some features of a school structure. By contrasting these facilities with realistic benchmarks that have already been established by expert opinion and investigation, their sufficiency may be ascertained. However, data collection by observation becomes considerably more complicated when studying human subjects in activity is involved. You need to know “what to look for” and “how to look for” in this situation. You have to be able to tell the difference between elements of the case that are important and those that are not at all relevant to the inquiry. This necessitates identifying the circumstances in which observational methods are effective.

The obvious conduct of people in everyday situations is the focus of observation. The overt behavior of individuals in everyday situations is a significant area of study in human observation. Under the artificially created conditions of a laboratory, it is not profitable to observe many significant features of human behavior. Descriptive research methods aim to characterize behavior in its natural environment. Observation as a research method has to be methodical, narrowly focused, well documented, and guided by a clear goal. It needs to go through the standard processes of validity, reliability, and accuracy tests like any other research technique. The observer has to be aware of exactly what to watch out for and notice.

Observations may be direct or indirect, scheduled or unscheduled, and known or unknown. A more normal view of activity may be observed from unknown, unscheduled, indirect observations such as through a one-way-vision glass. People are known to have committed minor crimes to get a true picture of prison conditions.

Read: Research proposal and its different components. A guide to writing the research report

When presented with different options or circumstances, observational research enables the researcher to see what their subjects do.
Studying non-experimental scenarios where behavior is noted and observed falls under this umbrella phrase. The phrase “what’s going on or what’s she doing” might also be used. Since the variables in the study are not controlled or altered, it is categorized as non-experimental.

Interviews in qualitative research

One excellent method for conducting research is interviewing people. Compared to other research methodologies, they let you collect richer data and make more thorough findings by accounting for emotional responses, spontaneous reactions, and nonverbal indicators. Individuals are more likely to divulge information orally than in paper, therefore information will be provided more freely and completely during an interview than it would be on a questionnaire. There are indeed several benefits to the cordial exchange during an interview that come with restricted, faceless questionnaire interactions.

Probably the oldest and most common method the man uses to get knowledge is the interview. Face-to-face interactions take place as the interviewer poses questions to the responder, also known as the interviewee, with the goal of eliciting information relevant to the study’s concerns.

In-person interviews allow you, the interviewer, to continuously support and guide the interviewees as they delve further into a topic. You can learn things from an interviewee that can’t be expressed in written responses, such as accidental remarks, body language, and tone of voice. The visual and aural cues also assist you in maintaining the private conversation’s speed and tone to extract private and sensitive information and learn about the subjects’ motives, emotions, attitudes, and beliefs.

Interviews differ in their nature, goal, and extent. They might be carried out for advice or study. You can limit them to one person or give them to several individuals. There are, in essence, three primary uses for interviews.
a. It may be applied as an exploratory tool to help find variables and relationships, provide recommendations for hypotheses, and direct the next research stages.
b. It is capable of being employed as a research tool. In this instance, the research will include questions intended to gauge its variables. Consequently, rather than being merely information-gathering tools, these questions are regarded as items in a psychometric instrument.

Content analysis in qualitative research

It may be used to enhance other research methods in a study by tracking down unexpected outcomes, verifying other approaches, and delving more into respondents’ motivations and the reasons behind their responses. Qualitative data often comprises rich, subjective information that is expressed verbally and includes detailed details. Reading a lot of transcripts in search of patterns or distinctions, then identifying themes, and creating categories are all necessary steps in the analysis of qualitative data. To categorize data, researchers have traditionally used colored pens and “cut and paste.” These days, the procedure is comparatively simpler because of the usage of software made expressly for managing qualitative data, which significantly lowers technical complexity and makes the tedious work easier. Numerous computer software programs have been created to automate the process of “coding” and to search and retrieve data. This essay provides examples of how to apply them in the process of analyzing qualitative data. The following describes the fundamental characteristics and main instruments that help qualitative researchers organize and examine their data.

Qualitative data analysis requires a 5-step process:

Prepare and organize your data.

Collect your notes, papers, and other materials, and print off your transcripts. Include any demographic data you may have gathered, the source, and any other information that can aid in the analysis of your data.

Review and explore the data.

To gain an understanding of the contents of your data, you will need to read it through, most likely more than once. You might wish to jot down any questions you have or any thoughts or suggestions you have.

Create initial codes.

Make use of idea maps, sticky notes, highlighters, and other tools that will help you make a connection between your facts and yourself. Please refer to the accompanying paper, which shows how to highlight important words and phrases and annotate the margins to organize the data.

Review those codes and revise or combine them into themes.

Identify recurring themes, language, opinions, and beliefs.

Present themes in a cohesive manner.

Think about your target audience, the goal of the research, and the information that will best help your data tell its narrative.

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Research proposal and its different components. A guide to writing the research report

It is conventional for students doing research for a degree to first submit an overview or research proposal to the faculty for approval. The research adviser evaluates the value of the proposed study and talks with the student about the appropriateness of the chosen topic and the suggested study design. The faculty’s review aids in elucidating the students’ thoughts regarding the appropriateness of the problem chosen and the suggested technique. Additionally, the student saves a significant amount of time and effort by not having to spend it on a poorly constructed study that would have been rejected.

Though there is some variation in the format prescribed by different universities, the following information is most often required about the research proposal:

• Statement of the problem.
• Purpose, objective, and significance of the study.
• Definitions, assumptions, and limitations.
• Review of related literature.
• Theoretical framework.
• Hypotheses and questions.
• Proposed research procedures.
• Time schedule.

The aforementioned topics will be covered in detail in the upcoming parts, giving you the confidence to create a research proposal.

As you may remember, research is done when the intended goal appears to be tough to achieve. Research in this area is required as the existing testing method is only recognized for promoting memorization and does not assist in identifying potential. Conversely, because the family planning program is not assisting in slowing down the pace of population increase, a study on family planning practices and current attitudes towards different family planning devices must be done. The application of research to real-world issues is what makes it so valuable. Research should be appropriately conveyed to field people for it to be useful.

Read: Analysis of reforms in Pakistani secondary education curriculum: research proposal

The basic purpose of the research report is to communicate to others in the field, complete and accurate information about what was done, how it was done, and what results were obtained.

How to Write the Research Report: A Guide

The writing of the research report should be undertaken after all the data have been collected and analyzed, and the conclusions based on these data have been drawn and firmly established. The researcher should follow the outline that he submitted for the approval of his adviser/thesis committee. However, the preliminary research outline should only serve as a guide. Sometimes changes are introduced in the course of conducting a research study because the preliminary tryout may indicate that certain methods should be abandoned and new ones introduced. The research report should reflect what was done. The research report should describe as clearly, directly, and briefly as possible exactly how the research was conducted, how the data were collected, and how the conclusions were drawn.

Clarity is the best quality of a study report. Experience has proven that removing any superfluous, pointless, and unnecessary information from the report may help it become more clear. The writer should not disrespect the intellect of the people for whom the research reports are made or waste his time, since they are all familiar with the fundamentals of the subject and have a basic understanding of the background information. If the writer feels that a certain amount of basic background information is necessary, he should only mention it very briefly.

There should be thorough documentation in the research report. This implies that every assertion should have its source cited. Please note that the following claims do not require supporting documentation.
• claims that are regarded as fundamental presumptions, such as the following: using audio-visual aids enhances teaching-learning environments, production is required for the development of human resources, and education investments provide greater rates of return.
• statements based on firsthand observation, such as the inability of primary school pupils to remain still for extended periods, the reluctance of women to discuss their age relative to that of males, the tendency of eastern mothers to be overly protective of their children, etc.

Standard Format of the Research Report

There are several excellent and appropriate methods to deliver a research report in writing; there is no one right approach. However, some types of information must always be provided. Because of this, the reports’ formats are essentially the same.
The fresh information collected from the research investigation forms the fundamental basis of the research report. However, the research report has to make it very apparent what the issue was and how it was investigated to demonstrate that this new information is pertinent and useful. Therefore, there are three main sections in every study report, which are as follows:

1) The introductory explanation

2) The presentation of the data collected and its analysis

3) A summary of the general conclusions.

Documentation may be included in the text itself or the form of footnotes. Regardless of the format, the source from which the statement was derived as well as the author to whom credit is due must be mentioned. If the assertion came from a written, published source, it should be stated with the publication’s title, publisher’s name, and year of release. Documentation should be used to provide credit to the expert who provided the view.

Read: The significance of samples in research. Discuss various sampling techniques

Nature and Background of the Study

A research report should begin with an introduction that covers the purpose and context of the study as well as setting the scene for the main body of work. The study’s justification is given in this section. The primary subjects that need to be covered in this section are.

A. Statement of the problem:

The problem statement should be concise and direct. Just describe the study’s purpose and topic matter at this point. No rationale for doing the study has to be given. Giving a clear image of the study’s topic and the framework it will be done inside should be the goal.

B. Reasons for doing the research:

Here, the researcher has to explain why the study was carried out. A reader should be able to comprehend the challenges and barriers encountered in the field that made the study necessary after reading this subsection.

C. Review of related literature:

The researcher should acknowledge what was already understood about the issue before beginning his investigation. Any gaps in prior information may be highlighted, and shortcomings in the approaches used by earlier researchers may be identified. In a sense, the evaluation of relevant literature would provide his findings even more support. It is not necessary to attempt to present a review of every piece of literature that is currently accessible on the subject. Reviewing previous research should only include information that is pertinent to the components of the issue that the study addresses.

D. Further elaboration of the problem:

This subsection addresses topics such as problem delimitation, subproblems, hypotheses taken into consideration during research project development, etc.

F. General hypothesis:

At this point, the researcher ought to outline the hypothesis he intends to investigate. As such, the introductory chapter needs to set the reader up for the primary study and its conclusions. As previously said, if a chapter gets too long, it could be divided into two or more chapters. The division of the chapter is what explains the surface variations across various report formats.

Read: Observation types and record-keeping methods

Approach to Data Analysis and Presentation

This section of the research report constitutes the essential core. It is here that actual research is described in de’tails4nd the basic data collected are presented.

A. Actual steps followed in the course of the research:

If feasible, the researcher should provide enough data about his process so that other researchers might recreate the work if they so want.

B. Tools employed in data collection:

Every tool used in the research for collecting data—tests, surveys, forms, etc.—should be explained. The Appendix after the text should provide an example of each of these instruments. It should also be made clear why each of these tools was utilized and what stage of the study it was used for:

C. Validity and reliability of instruments:

The validity and reliability of the instruments employed determine the level of trust that can be put in the study findings. The researcher must furnish sufficient details on the validity and reliability of the instruments employed. If instrument pit testing was done, specifics about the findings must be provided.

D. Population and sample studied:

Information should be provided about the population studied and how the sample was drawn – characteristics of the sample – should be provided.

E. Summarizing the collected evidence:

Here, the researcher should provide the information obtained through charts, graphs, tables, and other visual aids. Analysis and interpretation of the data are necessary. Tables that summarise the essential facts for understanding the interpretation should be included in the text, whereas comprehensive tables go in the appendix. The data presentation ought to be organized by the subproblems and sub-hypotheses.

F. Summary of the findings

For the convenience of the reader, a summary of data and their interpretation should be presented towards the end of this chapter and point out what has been revealed by the data.

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Analysis of reforms in Pakistani secondary education curriculum: research proposal

Introduction

Everyone is aware of the value of education. In the modern world, it is essential to a country’s existence. Education shapes countries and shapes their future. Because of this, we need to utilize our education policies wisely, since they will determine our future. Islam also taught us the value of education and its significance in life. “To know Allah” is the true purpose of education in Islam, yet I believe that we have genuinely lost our way as a nation. Our children are not taught about this in our madrassas or Islamic Education Centres. We merely get ready to give them “Money” at school.

Problem Statement

There are several Islamic scholars who, with the aid of the Holy Quran, possess knowledge in a wide range of fields, including physics, chemistry, biology, astronomy, and many more. I believe the existing educational system is confining them rather than broadening our children’s horizons. Our kids are incredibly gifted; all they need is the proper guidance and environment to become the next Quaid-e-Azam, Allama Iqbal, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Alberoni, Abnalhasam, Einstein, Newton, or Thomas Edison. Our current educational system is no longer functional. We must figure out how to reduce the distance between the madrassa and the school. It is “the ultimate goal of education for young people to teach themselves throughout their lives,” according to Robert Maynard Hutchins. We need to provide our kids with a means of self-education. “Education is a better protection for freedom than the military,” declared Edward Everett. Regretfully, Pakistan allocates more funds to our weaponry than to education that fulfills our educational mission!

Read: The significance of samples in research. Discuss various sampling techniques

Objectives

Our instruction goes beyond only getting students ready for the “Financial Machine.” What is the reason for putting our children in a prestigious, large school when we are adding more books to their already heavy workload? Is it purely social? However, at our madrassas, we are preparing for those who struggle greatly to fit into contemporary society. There are moments when they appear to be extraterrestrial. A student at a madrassa cannot compete, not even in our nation where the planet is so far away. Even talking to a schoolboy is quite tough for her. While it is true that contemporary education is required for everyone to compete in this world, it is equally evident that Muslims must get an Islamic education.

Methodology

Let’s talk about our policymakers now; it appears that they are not working hard enough. The government reviews the education policy each year, but the outcomes remain the same. A new survey indicates that Pakistan’s rate of illiteracy is on the rise. Someone establishing “Parha Likha Punjab,” “Nai Roshni School,” etc. What is Pakistan supposed to teach? Well, in my opinion, no. For the past 60 years, these “People” have been manipulating our country purely out of greed and desire. As we correctly educate our children, should we also be thinking about their education? What shall we do if not? Work must be done immediately, or it will be too late in Pakistan!

Preliminary Literature Review

The principal conclusions and suggestions of the study are Pakistan has the second greatest number of unenrolled students in the world—millions—despite the country’s law requiring all children between the ages of five and sixteen to get a free, obligatory education. The public education system continues to offer inadequate education to meet the needs of the constantly expanding labor market, and the curriculum is faulty, encouraging xenophobia and prejudice towards other religions. In addition to contributing to religious fanaticism and sectarian bloodshed, poorly run madrasas and religious institutions replaced the defunct community education system.

After decades of neglect, the state has to act quickly to increase funding for low-income education programs, make sure that foreign help in this area increases rather than decreases the state’s financial commitment, and make wise changes to curricula, bureaucracy, instructors, and methodologies.

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