Handouts in Practical Research 1

Inquiry-Based Learning
Inquiry - learning process that motivates you to obtain knowledge or information about people, things, places, or
events. It requires you to collect data, meaning, facts, and information about the object of your inquiry, and
examine such data carefully.
-gets its support from three educational theories serving as its foundation: John Dewey’s theory of connected
experiences for exploratory and reflective thinking; Lev Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) that
stresses the essence of provocation and scaffolding in learning; and Jerome Bruner’s theory on learners’ varied
world perceptions for their own interpretative thinking of people and things around them.

Benefits of Inquiry-Based Learning

1. Elevates interpretative thinking through graphic skills
2. Improves student learning abilities
3. Widens learners’ vocabulary
4. Facilitates problem-solving acts
5. Increases social awareness and cultural knowledge
6. Provides mastery of procedural knowledge
7. Encourages cooperative learning
8. Encourages higher-order thinking strategies
9. Hastens conceptual understanding

Meaning of Research
-Research is the systematic investigation and study of materials and sources to establish facts and reach new
conclusions.
-Research is a process of executing various mental acts for discovering and examining facts and information to
prove the accuracy or truthfulness of your claims or conclusions about the topic of your research.
-Although, it may take place in different settings and may use different methods, scientific research is universally
a systematic and objective search for reliable knowledge. (Walker, 2010)
-Research is an act of studying something carefully and extensively in order to attain deep knowledge. When
done in a larger scale, research contributes to the welfare of humanity. It can be creative, exploring or just
reassuring in nature.

Research holds the following significant data:

1. To gather necessary information
2. To make changes
3. To improve the standard of living
4. For a safer life
5. To know the truth
6. To explore our history
7. To understand arts

Characteristics of Research
1. Accuracy. It must give correct or accurate data, which the footnotes, notes, and bibliographical entries should
honestly and appropriately documented and acknowledged.
2. Objectiveness. It must deal with facts, not with mere opinions arising from assumptions, generalizations,
predictions, or conclusions.
3. Timeliness. It must work on a topic that is fresh, new, and interesting to the present society.
4. Relevance. Its topic must be instrumental in improving society or in solving problems affecting the lives of
people in a community.
5. Clarity. It must succeed in expressing its central point or discoveries by using simple, direct, concise, and correct
language.
6. Systematic. It must take place in an organized or orderly manner.
7. Empirical. Research is based on observations and experimentation of theories.

Process of Research
1. To learn how to work independently
2. To learn how to work scientifically or systematically
3. To have an in-depth knowledge of something
4. To elevate your mental abilities by letting you think in higher-order thinking strategies (HOTS) of inferring,
evaluating, synthesizing, appreciating, applying, and creating
5. To improve your reading and writing skills
6. To be familiar with the basic tools of research and the various techniques of gathering data and of presenting
research findings
7. To free yourself, to a certain extent, from the domination or strong influence of a single textbook or of the
professor’s lone viewpoint or spoon feeding.
Types of Research
1. Based on Application of Research Method
Is the research applied to theoretical or practical issues? If it deals with concepts, principles, or abstract
things, it is a pure research. This type of research aims to increase your knowledge about something.
However, if your intention is to apply your chosen research to societal problems or issues, finding ways
to make positive changes in society, you call your research, applied research.
2. Based on Purpose of the Research
Depending on your objective or goal in conducting research, you do any of these types of research:
descriptive, correlational, explanatory, exploratory, or action.
a. Descriptive Research – This type of research aims at defining or giving a verbal portrayal or picture of a
person, thing, event, group, situation, etc. This is liable to repeated research because its topic relates
itself only to a certain period or a limited number of years. Based on the results of your descriptive
studies about a subject, you develop the inclination of conducting further studies on such topic.
b. Correlational Research – A correlational research shows relationships or connectedness of two factors,
circumstances, or agents called variables that affect the research. It is only concerned in indicating the
existence of a relationship, not the causes and ways of the development of such relationship.
c. Explanatory research – This type of research elaborates or explains not just the reasons behind the
relationship of two factors, but also the ways by which such relationship exists.
d. Exploratory research – An exploratory research’s purpose is to find out how reasonable or possible it is
to conduct a research study on a certain topic. Here, you will discover ideas on topics that could trigger
your interest in conducting research studies.
e. Action Research – This type of research studies an ongoing practice of a school, organization,
community, or institution for the purpose of obtaining results that will bring improvements in the
system.
3. Based on Types of Data Needed
a. Qualitative research requires non-numerical data, which means that the research uses words rather
than numbers to express the results, the inquiry, or investigation about people’s thoughts, beliefs,
feelings, views, and lifestyles regarding the object of the study. These opinionated answers from people
are not measurable; so, verbal language is the right way to express your findings in a qualitative
research.
b. Quantitative research involves measurement of data. Thus, it presents research findings referring to the
number or frequency of something in numerical forms (i.e., using percentages, fractions, numbers).
i. Primary data are obtained through direct observation or contact with people, objects, artifacts,
paintings, etc. Primary data are new and original information resulting from your sensory
experiences.
ii. Secondary data are data already been written about or reported on and are available for reading
purposes.

Approaches to Research
1. Scientific or Positive Approach – you discover and measure information as well as observe and control variables
in an impersonal manner. It allows control of variables. Therefore, the data gathering techniques appropriate for
this approach are structured interviews, questionnaires, and observational checklist. Data given by these
techniques are expressed through numbers, which means that this method is suitable for quantitative research.
2. Naturalistic Approach – in contrast to the scientific approach that uses numbers to express data, the naturalistic
approach uses words. This research approach directs you to deal with qualitative data that speak of how people
behave toward their surroundings. These are non-numerical data that express truths about the way people
perceive or understand the world. Since people look at their world in a subjective or personal basis in an
uncontrolled or unstructured manner, a naturalistic approach happens in a natural setting.
3. Triangulation Approach – it is the combination of scientific and naturalistic approach. In this case, you are free to
gather and analyse data using multiple methods, allowing you to combine or mix up research approaches,
research types, data gathering, and data analysis techniques. Triangulation approach gives you the opportunity
to view every angle of the research from different perspectives. (Badke 2012; Silverman 2013)