REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

ILOILO STATE COLLEGE OF FISHERIES

College of Education
GRADUATE STUDIES Regi78Q13035
Registration No.78Q13035
Tiwi, Barotac Nuevo, Iloilo

ED 501 - EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS

FEMA MAE A. POSADAS

ERNA JEAN C. BAWA
CHRISTY D. BATISLA-ON ETCHEL B. PALMA, PH.D.

Discussants/Reporters Professor/Mentor

UNDERSTANDING QUALITATIVE DATA

A. DEFINITION OF DATA
Data simply defined as the information that we collect to understand our research problem
and generate relevant solutions.
Any information collected during a research study that is Not related to that study does not
count as data.
Research data must be directly related to the research problem, we are expected to have a
clear plan of our data collection before we go out to collect our data. This helps us avoid
information that cannot count as data, or information that is not related to our research
study.
B. SOURCES OF QUALITATIVE DATA
 INTERVIEW
This one is the most common source of QLR data when human participants are involved. It
would be surprising if you did QLR with human participants and fail to interview them. It
is done on one-on-one basis between the researcher and the research participant (the
individual you are interviewing).
 FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSION
It’s a group interview. Usually, you are asked to interview people in groups of 3 to 6 people.
Having more than 6 can become a serious challenge in handling effectively the discussion.
 OBSERVATION
This source of QLR data helps by having the researcher observe the research participants
in their natural settings, such as observing students in their classroom or at their school,
observing farmers on their farm, observing parents at home while doing their parenting
job, observing administrators leading people, and observing religious people worshiping
God at their place of worship.
 WRITTEN DOCUMENTS
Written documents can provide important data to understand better the issues pertaining
to our research problem. These can include letters, posters on the wall or on the street,
written records, written assignments, written reports, and billboards.
 PICTURES
You can have two types of pictures. Some pictures could be those you take while
conducting your observations. Other could be pictures that were already taken and that
you find relevant to your research project. Carefully analyzing them can help you
understand better your research problem.
 ARTIFACTS
These are important objects that you may encounter while doing your observation or
talking to people in their natural settings. They usually carry historical or cultural value
that may be important for your research project. Instead of taking those artifacts away, it
is important in most cases to simply take a picture of them.
 EXISTING AUDIOS
Speeches of powerful leaders, sermons, radio talks, and audio-recorded lectures are just
some of the audios that you can use as source of data. Keep in mind that to analyze this
kind of data, you may have to transcribe it first.
 EXISTING VIDEOS
You can use videos or video clips that are accessible at home, in your school library or
online
C. POPULATION & SAMPLE
The word population refers to all the individuals who meet the selection criteria to
participate in your study. For instance, if you want to do research on why many teenagers
in a certain town drop out of school, all the teenagers in that town can be your population.
Identifying your population in quantitative research is very important because when you
are done with your research project, you want to generalize your findings over the whole
population. In quantitative research, you want to generalize over your population, even if
not every member of your population participated in your study. It is not so with QLR.
In QLR, the focus is on the sample. A sample is a small number of research participants
that you purposefully select based on their willingness to participate in and their expertise
on your research problem, since you know that you cannot include everyone who meets
your selection criteria in your research study, you select one or a few individuals to make
up your sample.
D. SAMPLING STRATEGIES IN QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
Sampling means the process of selecting a sample for your research study. These are many
types of sampling. Let’s focus only on some practical sampling strategies used in QLR.
When you take quantitative research classes, you will learn other types of sampling
strategy unique to that design that we will not discuss here because it is a much more
advanced sampling strategy for that advanced sampling strategy for that advanced QLR
design.
1. SOME SAMPLING DESIGN STRATEGIES
Four major sampling strategies used in QLR, as discussed by Merriam (2009).
 Purpose sampling or purposeful sampling
Sampling is the one commonly used in qualitative research. We don’t use random sampling
in QLR because that is peculiar to quantitative research. In purposive sampling, we select
research participants because we believe 9a) they meet our selection criteria, (b) they have
the expertise on our research topic, (c) are willing to share truthfully what they know.
 Snowball sampling
Snowball sampling is a type of sampling where you, as the researcher, select one or more
research participants and ask them to recruit other participants who fit your selection
criteria. This is used usually when you do not know well the people that you wish to include
in your research study. Once you identify one or two participants, you simply request them
to help you find other potential research participants that meet your preset selection
criteria.
 Multiple variation sampling
To be able to get multiple perspectives on your research topic, it is sometimes important to
use a varied sample. For instance, if we want to conduct our study on why parents are not
actively participating in the academic life of their children, we may decide to interview not
only the parents but also the teachers, the students, even some business owners who employ
these parents. Getting those multiple perspectives from those varied people can provide an
in-depth exploration of the study.
 Convenience sampling
This sampling method carries perfectly its name. This is about the type of sample that you
obtain simply by convenience. It could be that you select people simple because they are
readily accessible in your school. Your family, your church, your community, etc. this
sampling is the least preferred among the four. There are times, however, when
convenience sampling is the only option that you have. For instance, if you are conducting a
research study to try to understand the impact of heavy traffic jam on people’s lives, you
may start observing the traffic in Manila on a few days. While you are observing, you
suddenly see an accident. Of course, the best people to interview will be those who are
present at the scene when the accident happens. You will interview them because they are
conveniently available and accessible at that time.

While the most used and most preferred sampling strategy is purposive sampling, we can
use it in combination with other types of sampling. Whatever sampling method we decide
to use, we must specifically explain why it was the best option. We must also clearly outline
the selection criteria.

2. MINIMUM REQUIRED NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS

You may wonder how many people should be included in a research study. Different QLR
experts have different answers. One of the best answers is that you stop collecting data (for
example, through interviewing people) when you reach the saturation level of your data.
Data saturation is a stage that the researcher reaches when data starts being repeated. For
instance, when you are interviewing people, at a certain time, you will come to the point
where the new interviewees will tell you things that you have already heard from previous
interviews. When nothing new comes up in your interviews, you have reached the data
saturation level, or simply put, your data is saturated. At that point, you can stop collecting
data.

What makes it even more interesting is that different QLR designs have different rules. For
instance, you can conduct a case study with one to three people if you want to study them
so much in depth. However, you can conduct a case study with a much larger number of
people if your focus is on a specific phenomenon, program, or process that many people
experience.

In the case of wanting to use research participants for each QLR research design, the table
below presents our proposed number of participants for each design. This approximate
number is based on our extensive reading of a number of QLR books and articles, in
addition to our own experience conducting QLR studies. For a much larger list of QLR
designs, please refer to Creswell and Path (2016).
 Proposed Minimum Number of Participants per Design

QLR Design Minimum Number of Participants

1) Case Study 8
2) Ethnography 15
3) Phenomenology 8
4) Action Research 10
5) Content Analysis 10

E. RESEARCH SETTING
The research setting is the physical place where you plan to conduct your research project.
It can be a school, a local community, a town, a church or mosque, a classroom, a prison or
jail, a hospital or health clinic, a street, or any other place that fits best for your research
study. It is very important to describe fully the research setting because it helps the readers
to visualize it and decide on their own whether or not the findings of your study are
applicable to them (Lune &Berg, 2017; Neuman, 2014). You are expected to thoroughly
describe your research setting. You need to mentally walk your readers through the
research setting. You need to mentally walk your readers through the research setting in
your written description. You need to describe your research setting in such a way that
your readers “can see better what the researcher saw, hear better what the researcher saw,
hear better what the researcher heard, and feel clearly what the researcher felt in that
setting” (Wa-Mbaleka, 2017, p. 68). It is therefore important to spend quite some time
writing important details about the research setting that will help people understand your
research findings better.
F. CONSIDERATIONS BEFORE DATA COLLECTION
There are many important things that we must think about before starting collecting data
for our research project. Thinking about them in the planning process can help you
prepare better. It can help you collect the best data in the best way possible. Doing so can
save you time and effort. Wa-Mbalekta (2018, pp. 114-118) provides a long list of practical
questions to address in planning your research project before data collection.
1. Think about the data
 What data do I need to address my research questions and my research problem?
 What is the quality of the data that I will be getting?
 Are the data I would like to collect acceptable by other people who know QLR?
 Is it possible for me to access the data that I wish to collect?
2. Think about data sources
 What sources should I use to collect my data?
 Where can I find those sources?
 What is the best way to get the data?
 What permission do I need to use those sources?
 What legal issues may be involved in those sources?
 Can I prove to my readers that these sources are the best for this research topic?
3. Think about collection methods
 What are the best data collection methods for my research project?
 Have I followed good QLR principles in preparation for my data collection methods
and tools?
 Have I obtained permission from my potential research participants?
 Have I already obtained permission from leaders in the research setting?
4. Think about the needed permissions
 What permissions do I need to collect the data?
 Who provides those permissions?
 Are there forms ready to be used to apply for these permissions?
 In the selected research setting, is permission granted orally or in writing?
 How much time is required to obtain the permission?
 What kind of permission does my institution/school require?
5. Think about the gatekeepers
 Who are the gatekeepers (or people who give permission to collect data in my
research setting)?
 How many levels of authority do they have?
 How accessible are they?
 What process is needed to get them to give permission?
 What language do they use?
 What cultural practices do they expect from me?
6. Think about the research participants
 Who are they?
 How much do I know about them, their language and their culture?
 How willing are they to participate?
 What are their rights, benefits, responsibilities, and potential risks in this study?
 How accessible are they?
 What is the best way to recruit them?
 How much time is required of them to participate in this research study?
 How much time are they willing to spend on this research study?
7. Think about transportation
 What is the effective and efficient way for me to access the research setting?
 How far is it from my school or my home?
 Is it safe for me as a man/ woman/single/etc., to go there by myself?
 Do I know the place well?
 Who can take me there, if I don’t know how to get there?
 How much money will I need for transportation?
 Can I afford it?
8. Think about resources
 What is QLR competence to carry on this study?
 Are there QLR skills that I need to improv on first? If so, which ones?
 How good are my communication skills needed to collect my data?
 Approximately, how much is my budget?
 How stable are my finances?
 Who will help me in collecting and analyzing my data?
 How much time is required for me to complete this study?
 How much time is available to me?
 What resources do I need to collect my data?
 How will I record, store and manage my data?
9. Think about technology
 Do I have a duplicate of all technology tools that I plan to use, just in case one
doesn’t work?
 Do I know well how this technology works?
 Have I checked my technology devices to make sure they are working before data
collection?
 Are my technology devices user-friendly?
 Are my technology devices free from distracting me or my research participants
during the data collection?
10. Think about security
 When will I be collecting my data?
 How safe is it to collect data during that time?
 How safe is it for my research participants and for myself?
 What potential dangers are there and how can I avoid them?
 How trustworthy is my data, if I collect it in a hurry in fear of some security
danger?
11. Think about entering and exiting the site
 How will I enter the research setting without drawing too much attention to myself?
 How will I exit without causing too much disturbance to my research setting?
  Do I plan to visit this research setting in the future? If so, for what specific purpose?
 Should I inform my research participants about the future visit? Why or why not?
12. Think about ethical issues
 What ethical issues may arise as a result of this research project?
 What should I do to prevent or prepare for these ethical issues?
 How will I prevent or handle emotional trauma of my participants?
 How will I prevent developing some type of unsafe intimacy with my participants?
13. Think about other scholars
 What would be the acceptable QLR practices from my teachers, professors,
classmates or colleagues?
 Are the methods I plan to use acceptable in QLR?
 How will I prove quality in my report?
14. Think about Plan B
 What will I do if permission is not granted to me?
 What will I do if participants are not enough or drop out of my research study?
 What will I do if the participants are hesitant to share enough information with me?
15. Think about the research design
 Do my data collection methods fit for my selected research design?
 Are my data collection methods enough for my research problem and research
design?
 Is the time I’m planning to spend collecting this data enough for my selected
research design?
16. Prepare and submit your research proposal to your teacher/ professor or whoever
you are supposed to report to.
You can use the template below to prepare your proposal, if your institution or
organization does not have one. You are expected to use future tense for what you plan to
do in conducting your research study. You change it to the past tense when you write your
final report. The length of the proposal will be determined by your school/organization,
your teacher/professor, or your research advisor/supervisor.
 Title Page
Table of Contents
List of Tables
List of Figures

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION
Introductory paragraph
Background of the Study
Problem Statement
Purpose Statement
Research Questions
Scope
Limitations
Significance of the Study
Summary of the Chapter

CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW

Introductory paragraph
Section I
Section II
Section III
Section “n”
Summary of the Chapter

CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY

Introductory paragraph
Research Design
Research Setting
Sampling
Research Participants
Data Collection Procedures
Data Analysis Procedures
Quality Control Plan
Ethical Considerations
Summary of the Chapter

REFERENCES
APPENDICES
REFERENCES
Wa-Mbalekta, S & Gladstone, RK (2018). Qualitative research for senior high school
https://library.leeds.ac.uk/info/14062/research_data_management/70/find_reuse_and_cite_
data?fbclid=IwAR1jkasXyiXddj0krqalOXu_eZ-
UAHMA9zFRTFd1m9ZiGwTK1D8_aOPlWSQ
https://byjus.com/commerce/what-are-the-sources-of-data/?
fbclid=IwAR1X7yVjryfAYX0Z9Teeo5A2LFhuYeYZjtUjaBZmIKQo7hLicK-Vd4Nj_kw
https://libguides.macalester.edu/c.php?
g=527786%2F&p=3608643&fbclid=IwAR08Qak34ndWeSZ3dzk1LKFaGRQrcByh3uKtlY
iz864UDHnDZlruytCgneo