Artifact 1

ETR 520 Introduction to Educational Research

Introduction and Reflection

Saudi Students experience with MOOCs at King Khalid University

The course ETR520 is designed to introduce students to research methods in education which

include evaluating articles, planning, and design research methods and developing a research

proposal. This was my first ERE course in my M.S in educational research and evaluation. Taking

this course helped me first how to identify related peer-reviewed articles and how to find a research

gap based on the literature. Its also helped me to differentiate between qualitative and quantitative

research methods and understand the principles of each type. I also become aware of the ethical

principles of researchers that must be considered when conducting a study. More importantly. I

learned how to design research questions based on the research theoretical framework.

The presented paper above was the final project for the course ETR520. The title of this

proposal was Saudi Students experience with MOOCs at King Khalid University. The aim of

this research proposal was to explore the perspectives and experiences of the students who have

taken MOOCs at KKU in Saudi Arabia.

Evidence of Mastery of Objectives 1 and 3

Objective 1: Design a study of an educational research problem or phenomenon using

appropriate methodologies
The presented artifact above shows my ability to identify and define a research problem based on

related peer reviewed articles. It also demonstrates my ability to provide a solid justification for

my research and select an appropriate theory and research design that fits with the nature of the

study. Thus, this objective is met.

Objective 3: Distinguish between ethical and unethical behavior when conducting educational
research or evaluations
In this proposal, I have discussed several ethical issues that should be considered in qualitative

study. The related ethical issues of this research study include explaining the purpose,

confidentiality, informed consent, and data access and ownership. In addition, I discussed the

required approval and permission to collect the data such as applying to the Institutional Review

Board (IRB) to get permission to conduct the study. Thus, this objective is met.