Bahir Dar University

Faculty of Humanities

Course Programme: MA in Reading and Literacy

Course Title: Applied Research Methodology

(EdLi 5031)
Assignment 1: Reviewing literature on topics in research methods and methodology

Instructor: MogesYigezu (PhD)

Submitted by: Meseret Atalel

ID. No.BDU

Submitted to: D.r Moges Yigezu (PhD)

December, 2019
Bahir DarUniversity
Research is a scientific and systematic search for information on particular topic or issue.it is also known
as the art of scientific investigation. According to Redman and Moray(1923) ,defined as research is
systematized effort to gain new knowledge.it is an academic activity and therefore the term should be
used in a technical sense. According to Clifford woody Kothari (1988) Research comprises defining and
redefining problems; formulatinghypothesis or suggested solutions; collecting, organizing and evaluating
data making deductions and reaching conclusions; finally, carefully testing the conclusions to determine
whether they fit the formulating hypothesis.

Research may be defined as a method of studying problems whose solutions are to be derived
partly or wholly from facts( W.S.Monroes).Smith( 1981) suggest that research is disciplined
inquiry which must be conducted and reported so that its logical argument can be
carefullyexamined ;it does not depend on surface plausibility or the eloquence,status, or authority
of its author;error is avoided ;evidential test and verification are valued.

“Research is an honest, exhaustive, intelligent searching for facts and their meanings or
implications with reference to a given problem. The product or findings of a given piece of
research should be an authentic, verifiable contribution to knowledge in the field studied.”(P.m
Cook).

Research is considered to be the more formal, systematic intensive process of carrying on the
scientific method of analysis.it involves a more systematic structure of investigation, usually
resulting in some sort of formal record of procedures and a report of results or conclusion.”
(John W. Best)Research simply seeks the answer of certain questions which have not been
answered so far and the answers depend upon human effort. According to C. FranciesRummel

“Research is an endeavor to discover, develop and verify knowledge. It is an intellectual process

that has developed over hundreds of years, ever changing in purpose and form and always
searching for truth.

2. Objective of research

The objective of research is to discovery answers to questions by applying scientific

procedures.In the other words, the main aim of research is to find out truth which is hidden and
has not yet been discovered.Although every research study has its own specific
objectives.objective research may be to gain familiarity with or new insights in to a phenomena
(i.e formulateresearch studies).Important guide lines that should be observed when developing
research objectives are;

 They should be presented briefly and concisely.

 They should be presented in logical sequence.
 They should be realistic (e.gachieved with in the expected time frame ,achievedwith in
the available resource).
 They should be phrased in operational terms (i.e in a way that brings the organization
closer to its business objectives).
 They should be use action verbs that are specific enough to be evaluated or
measured(e.gassess, determine, compare,verifycalculate, describe).

3. Motivation in research

Motivation in research is always an interesting area for researcher’s.what really motivates a

researcher? The possible motives for doing research may be either one or more of the following;

 Desire to be of service to society.

 Desire to get respectability and many more factors, such as directives of government,
employmentconditions, curiosity about new thing.
 Desire to understand and casual relationships, social thinking and wakening and the like
may as well motivate (or at times compel) people to perform research operations.

4. Types of research

 Fundamental research: is concerned with generalizations and with the formulations of

atheory.
 Descriptive research: surveys and facts finding enquires of different kinds and the
description of the state of affairs as it exist s in present.it deals with everything that can
be counted and studied, which has an impact of the lives of the people.
 Applied research: refers to scientific study and research that seeks to solve practical
problem.it used to find solutions to everydayproblems cure illness and develop innovative
technologies, rather than to acquire knowledge for knowledge sake.
 Quantitative research: based on measurement of quantity or amount.
  Qualitative research: a phenomena relating to quality or kind.
 Experimental research: related to some abstract idea or theory and develop new
concepts or to reinterpret existing.
 Explanatory research: this kind of research attempts to clarify why and how there is
relationship between two aspects of asituation or phenomenon.
 Exploratory research: is a type of research conducted for a problem that has not clearly
defined.

5. Research approaches:

Research approach is a plan and procedure that consists of the steps of broad assumptions to
detailed method of data collection, analysis and interpretation.

There are three research approaches are advanced;

 Qualitative research approach is an approach for exploring and understanding the

meaning individuals or groups ascribe to asocial or human problem .the process of
research involves emerging questions and procedures ,data typically collected in the
participants setting ,data analysis inductively building from particulars to general themes
and the researcher making interpretations of the meaning of the data.
 Quantitative research approach : is an approach for testing objective theories by
examining the relationship among variables .these variables ,in turn ,can be
measured ,typically on instruments ,so that numbered data can be analyzed using
statistical procedures.
 Mixed research approach: is an approach to inquiry involving collecting both
quantitative and qualitative data, integrating the two forms of data and using distinct
designs that may involve philosophical assumption and theoretical frame work.

6 .Significance of research

The main purpose of research is to confirm action ,to prove atheory and contribute to developing
knowledge in a field or study .The significance of research with the following points .

 A tool for building knowledge and for facilitating learning.

  Means to understand various issues and increase public awareness.
 Away to prove lies and to support truth.
 An aid to business success
 Means to find ,gauge and seize opportunities
 Aseed to love reading ,writing ,analyzing and sharing valuable information
 Nourishment and exercise for the mind
 To analysts and intellectuals research may mean the generalization of new theories
 To gain familiarity with a phenomenon or to achieve new insights in to it (studies with
this object in view are termed as exploratory or formative research studies).

7. Research method vs. methodology

The research process consists of the steps that need to be followed in order to carry out research
effectively.

Method : are defined as the methods or techniques that are used to gather evidence and conduct
research.it involves conducting surveys ,interviews ,experiments.the main objective is to
discovery solutions to research problems and narrow scope of practice (consists of various
research strategies ,methods techniques,etc.).

Methodology : is away in which to systematically solve the research problem(i.e.analyses the

logic behind the steps taken by aresearcher to answer said research question).it is the
systematic,theoretical analysis of the method applied to a field of study .Irny and Rose,2005)
said that methodology does not set out to providesolutions ,it is therefore ,not the same thing as
amethod.methodology seeks consideration of the following aspects ;

 Finding the suitable research method for the chosen problem

 Discovering the accuracy of the results of achosen method
 Ensuring the efficiency of the research method
 Introduce and explain reasons for the overall methodological approach
(qualitative,quantitative,or mixed )used for investigation
 Indicate how the research methods are applicable to the study
  The main objective is to use the correct procedures to discover solution and much wider
scope of practice, which includes the research method.

8. Research and scientific method

The two terms are closely related

Research : is considered to be the more formal ,systematic intensive process of carrying on the
scientific method of analysis.it involves a more systematic structure of investigation ,usually
resulting in some sort of formal record of procedures and areport of results or conclusions (John
W.Best).Research implies the researcher is interested in more than particular results ;on the other
hand ,the philosophy common to all research methods and techniques ,although they may vary
considerably from one science to another, is usually given the name of scientific method. In this
context, Karl person writes,

“The scientific method is one and some in the branches (of science)and that method is the
method of all logically trained minds.. the unity of all sciences consists alone in its methods,no
its material.scientific method is the pursuit of truth as determined by logical consideration .the
ideal of science is to achieve asystematic inter relation of facts.scientific method attempts to
achieve this ideal by experimentation,observation ,logical arguments from accepted postulates
and acombination of these three in varying proportion .the scientific method is ,thus based on
certain basic postulates which can be stated as under .

-It relies on empirical evidence

-It utilizes relevant concepts

-It is committed to only objective considerations

-It results in to probabilistic predictions

-It aims at formulating most general axioms or what can be termed as scientific theories.

9. Importance of knowing how research is done

-The study of research methodology gives the student the necessary training in gathering
material and arranging or card –indexing them.participation in the field work when required and
also training in techniques for the collection of data appropriate to particular problems.,in the use
of statistics ,questionnaires and controlled experimentation and in recording evidence ,sorting it
out and interpreting it.importance of knowing the methodology of research or how research is
done stems from the following consideration;

-Knowing how research is done provides good training specially to the new research worker and
enables him to do better research.it helps him to develop disciplined thinking or a ”bent of mind
“to observe the field objectively.

-When one knows how research is done, then one may have the satisfaction of acquiring anew
intellectual tool which can become a way of looking at the world and of judging every day
experience.

Knowledge of how to do research will inculcate the ability to evaluate and use research results
with reasonable confidence. In other words, we can state that the knowledge of research
methodology is helpful in various fields such as government or business administration,
community development and social work where persons are increasingly called upon to evaluate
and use research results for action.

10. Research process

Research process contains aseries of closely related activities which has to carry out by
aresearcher.the following are the main steps in the research process.

Formulation of researchproblem;at the very outset, the researcher must decide the general
area of interest or aspect of a subject matter that he would like to inquire into and then research
problem should be formulated.

Extensive Literature Survey: Once the problem is formulated the researcher should undertake
extensive literature survey connected with the problem. For this purpose, the abstracting and
indexing journals and published orunpublished bibliographies are the first place to go to
academic journals, conference proceedings, government reports, books etc. must be tapped
depending on the nature of the problem.
Development of Working Hypothesis: After extensive literature survey, researcher should
state in clear terms the working hypothesis or hypotheses. Working hypothesis is tentative
assumption made in order to draw out and test its logical or empirical consequences. It’s very
important or it provides the focal point for research.

Preparing the Research Design: After framing hypothesis we have to prepare a research
design i.e. we have to state the conceptual structure within which research would be conducted.
The preparation of such a design facilitates research to be as efficient as possible yielding
maximal information. In other words, the function of research design is to provide for the
collection of relevant evidence with optimum effort, time and expenditure.

Determining Sample Design: A sample design is a definite plan determined before any data is
actually collected for obtaining a sample from a given population.in census inquiry we involve a
great deal of time, money and energy so it is not possible in practice under many circumstances.
Sample designs can be either probability or non-probability. With probability samples each
element has a known probability of being included in the sample but the non-probability samples
do not allow the researchers to determine this probability.

Collecting the Data: There are several ways of collecting the appropriate data which differ
considerably in context of cost, time and other resources at the disposal of the researcher.
Primary data can be collected either through experiment or through survey. In case of survey,
data can be collected by any one or more of the following ways; By observation,

 Through personal interview,

 Through telephonic interviews,

 By mailing of questionnaires or

 Through schedules.

Execution of the Project: Execution of project is a very important step in the research process.
If the execution of the project proceeds on correct lines, the data to be collected would be
adequate and dependable .A careful watch should be kept for unanticipated factors in order to
keep the survey realistic as much as possible.
Analysis of Data: The analysis of data requires a number of closely related operations such as
establishment of categories, the application of these categories to raw data through coding,
tabulation and then drawing statistical inference.

Hypothesis Testing: After analyzing the data, the researcher is in a position to test the
hypothesis, if any, he had formulated earlier. Do the facts support the hypothesis or they happen
to be contrary? This is the usual question which is to be answered by applying various tests
like‘t’ test, ’F’ test etc. F test have been developed by statisticians for the purpose .Hypothesis
testing will result in either accepting the hypothesis or in rejecting it. If the researcher had no
hypothesis to start with, generalizations established on the basis of data may be stated.

Generalizations and Interpretation: If a hypothesis is tested and upheld several times, it may
be possible for the researcher to arrive at generalization i.e. to build a theory. As a matter of fact,
the real value of research lies in its ability to arrive at certain generalizations. If the researcher
had no hypothesis to start with, he might seek to explain his findings on the basis of some theory.
It is known as interpretation.

Preparation of the Report or the Thesis: Finally, the researcher has to prepare the report of
what has been done by him. The layout of the report should be as follows; the preliminary pages,
the main text and end matter. The preliminary pages carry title, acknowledgements and forward
and then index. The main text of the report should have introduction, review of literature and
methodology.

11. Criteria of good research

Although the research works and studies differ in their form and kind, they all still meet on the
common ground of scientific methods employed by them. Hence, scientific research is expected
to satisfy the following criteria:

-The aim of the research should be clearly mentioned, along with the use of common concepts.
-The procedures used in the research should be adequately described, in order to permit another
researcher to repeat the research for further advancement, while maintaining the continuity of
what has already been done.

-The researcher’s procedural design should be carefully planned to obtain results that are as
objective as possible.

- The flaws in the procedural design should be sincerely reported by the researcher to correctly
estimate their effects upon the findings.

-The data analysis should be adequate to reveal its significance.

-The methods used during the analysis should be appropriate.

-The reliability and validity of the concerned data should be checked carefully.

-. The conclusions are needed to be confined and limited to only those data, which are justified
and adequately provided by the research.

-In case, the researcher is experienced and has a good reputation in the field of research, greater
confidence in research is warranted.

-In other words, we can state the qualities of good research as following;

Systematic - This states that the research is structured with some specified steps, which are to be
followed in a specified sequence, according to the well-defined set of rules. Systematic
characteristic of the research does not actually rule out creative thinking, but it does discourage
the use of guessing and intuition in order to arrive at conclusions.

Logical - This states that the research is guided by the rules of logical reasoning, and that the
logical process of induction and deduction are essential while conducting a research. Induction is
the process of reasoning from a part to the whole; while, deduction is the process of reasoning
from some premise to a conclusion that follows from that very premise. Besides, logical
reasoning enables the research to be more meaningful in the context of decision making.
Empirical - This states that the research is basically related to one or more aspects of a real
situation. Moreover, it deals with the concrete data, which provides a base for the external
validity of research results.

Replicable - This states that the research results should be allowed verification by replicating
their study, to thus build a sound basis for decisions.

12. Common problems encountered by researchers

There are several problems encountered by students and novice researcher’s .some of them are;

Lack of Scientific Training: The research methodology is not systematic. Many researchers
undertake research work without having actual knowledge of the research methods. They just
look for similar studies and copy the methodologies listed in it. Even the research guides do not
have a thorough knowledge of the various methodologies.

Lack of communication with the supervisor: A university professor is abusy person .it is
important to have guidance on aresearch project. Poor communication gets on the way of the
progress of the research.

Time management: spending ample time in learning the skills and practical implementation
consumes a lot of time in such a scenario, taking out time for intense research and to draft a top –
notch research paper becomes impossible.

In sufficient data: insufficiency of data is apotential problem .most of the business

establishments are of the opinion that researchers may miss use the data provided by them.

Lack of confidence: it is one of the most common problems among researchers .researchers with
low self-esteem feel less motivated there by affecting the quality of the work.

Library management: library management and functioning is not satisfactory in many

universities .a lot of time and energy is spent on tracing appropriate books, journals,
reportsetc..Also, many of the libraries are not able to get copies of new reports and other
publications on time.
Coping of data (plagiarism): some researchers (as they call themselves), merely copy other
international studies or studies which have been done by researchers (students) of other
universities .this is a crime and should not be promoted .a researcher can be reevaluate others
study by considering and overcoming the limitation of previous study, but at no cost should be
copied or repeated.

There does not exist a code of conduct for researchers and inter university and inter departmental
rivalries are also quite common hence, there is need for developing a code of conduct for
researchers which, if adhered sincerely, can win over this problem.

A quantity of literature : it can be difficult to deal with the quantity of literature that one might
have accessed .the literature review is iterative .this involves managing the literature ,accessing
data supports .the frame work of the research ,identifying key words and alternative key
words ,as well as constantly looking for new source.

13 .what is research design

Research design is defined as a frame works and techniques chosen by aresearcher to combine
various components of research in a reasonably logical manner so that the research problem is
efficiently handled .it provides insights about how to conduct research using aparticular
methodology .research design is defined as different social scientists in different terms;

Leedy (1997:195) defines research design as a plan for a study, providing the overall frame work
for collecting data.

Mac Millan and Schumacher (2001:166) define it as a plan for selecting subjects, research sites
and data collection procedures to answer the research question(s).

For Durrheim (2004:29) research design is a strategic frame work for action that serves as a
bridge between research questions and the execution or implementation of the research strategy.

The research design should be able to provide answers of the following reserve quires.

What is the study about and, what type of data is required?

. What is the purpose of study?

. What are the sources of needed data?

What should be the place or area of the study?

. What time, approximately, is required for the study?

What should be the amount of materials or number of cases for the study?

. What type of sampling should be used?

. What method of data collection would be appropriate?

How will data be analyzed?

What should be the approximate expenditure?

14 .types of research design

Descriptive research design: in a descriptive research design, a researcher is solely interested in

describing the situation or case under his/her research study .it is theory based research design
which is created by gather, analyze and presents collected data, by implementing an in depth
research design such as this, a researcher can provide insights in to the why and how of research.

Experimental research design: it is used to establish a relationship between the causes and
effect of a situation .it is acausal research design where the effect caused by the independent
variable on the dependent variable is observed .for example, the effect of an independent variable
such as price on a dependent variable such as customer satisfaction or brand loyalty is monitored.

Correlation research design: is anon experimental research design technique which helps
researcher to establish a relationship between two closely connected variables .two different
groups are required to conduct this research design method .there is no assumption while
evaluating arelationshipbetween two different variables and statistical analysis techniques are
used to calculate the relationship between them.

Diagnostic research design: in the diagnostic research design, aresearcher is inclined towards
evaluating the root cause of aspecifictopic; elements that contribute towardstroublesome
situation are evaluated in this research design method.
Explanatory research design : The researchers idea and thoughts are key as it is primary
dependent on their personal inclination about aparticular topic .explanation about un explored
aspects of asubject is provide along with details about what ,how and why related to the research
questions .

15 .why do we need research design

The need for a research design arises out of the fact that it facilitates the smooth conduct of the
various stages of research .it contributes to making research as efficient as possible ,thus yielding
the maximum information with minimum effort ,time and expenditure . a research design helps
to plan in advance of the methods to be employed for collecting the relevant data and the
techniques to be adopted for their analysis, so as to pursue the objectives of the research in the
best possible manner ,given the available staff.time and money ,hence ,the research design
should be prepared without most care,so as to avoided any error that may disturb the entire
project .thus ,research design plays acrucial role in attaining the reliability of the results
obtained ,which forms the strong foundation of the entire process of the research work .

The research design helps the researcher to organize his/her ideas in aproperform, which would
facilitate him/her to identify the in adequacies and faults in them.

16 .features of a good research design

A good research design often possesses the qualities such as being flexible ,suitable ,efficient
economical and so on .Generally ,aresearch design which minimizes bias and maximizes the
reliability of the data collected and analyzed is considered a good design (Kothari: 1988) .good
research design possesses the following features;

Objectivity: It refers to the findings related to the method of data collection and scoring of the
responses. The research design should permit the measuring instruments which are fairly
objective in which every observer or judge scoring the performance must precisely give the same
report. In other words, the objectivity of the procedure may be judged by the degree of
agreement between the final scores assigned to different individuals by more than one
independent observer. This ensures the objectivity of the collected data which shall be capable of
analysis and interpretation.
 Reliability: It refers to consistency throughout a series of measurements. For example, if a
respondent gives out a response to a particular item, he is expected to give the same response to
that item even if he is asked repeatedly. If he is changing his response to the same item, the
consistency will be lost. So the researcher should frame the items in a questionnaire in such a
way that it provides consistency or reliability.

Validity: Any measuring device or instrument is said to be valid when it measures what it is
expected to measure. For example, an intelligence test conducted for measuring the IQ should
measure only the intelligence and nothing else and the questionnaire shall be framed accordingly.

Generalizability: It means how best the data collected from the samples can be utilized for
drawing certain generalizations applicable to a large group from which sample is drawn. Thus a
research design helps an investigator to generalize his findings provided he has taken due care in
defining the population, selecting the sample, deriving appropriate statistical analysis etc. while
preparing the research design. Thus a good research design is one which is methodologically
prepared and should ensure that generalization is possible.

Adequate Information: The most important requirement of good research design is that it
should provide adequate information so that the research problem can be analyzed on a wide
perspective.

17 .Important concepts relating to research design

Before describing the different research designs, it will be appropriate to explain the various
concepts relating to designs so that these may be better and easily understood.

Dependent and independent variables ;aconcept which can take on different quantitative
values is called a variable .As such concepts like weight ,height ,income are all examples of
variables .if one variable depends up on or is aconsequence of the other variable ,it is termed as
adependent variable and the variable that is antecedent to the dependent variable is termed as an
independent variable .For instance ,if we say that height depends up on age ,then height is a
dependent variable and age is an independent variable .
Extraneous variable: Independent variables that are not related to the purpose of the study, but
may affect the dependent variable are termed as extraneous variables. Suppose the researcher
wants to test the hypothesis that there is a relationship between children’s gains in social studies
achievement and their self-concepts. In this case self-concept is an independent variable and
social studies achievement is a dependent variable.

Control: One important characteristic of a good research design is to minimize the influence or
effect of extraneous variable(s). The technical term ‘control’ is used when we design the study
minimizing the effects of extraneous independent variables. In experimental researches, the term
‘control’ is used to refer to restrain experimental conditions.

Confounded relationship: When the dependent variable is not free from the influence of
extraneous variable(s), the relationship between the dependent and independent variables is said
to be confounded by an extraneous variable(s).

Research hypothesis: When a prediction or a hypothesized relationship is to be tested by

scientific methods, it is termed as research hypothesis. The research hypothesis is a predictive
statement that relates an independent variable to a dependent variable.

Experimental and non-experimental hypothesis-testing research: When the purpose of

research is to test a research hypothesis, it is termed as hypothesis-testing research. It can be of
the experimental design or of the non-experimental design. Research in which the independent
variable is manipulated is termed ‘experimental hypothesis-testing research’ and a research in
which an independent variable is not manipulated is called ‘non-experimental hypothesis-testing
research’.
Experimental and control groups: In an experimental hypothesis-testing research when a
group is exposed to usual conditions, it is termed a ‘control group’, but when the group is
exposed to some novel or special condition, it is termed an ‘experimental group’.

Treatments: The different conditions under which experimental and control groups are put are
usually referred to as ‘treatments’. In the illustration taken above, the two treatments are the
usual studies programmed and the special studies programmer. Similarly, if we want to
determine through an experiment the comparative impact of three varieties of fertilizers on the
yield of wheat, in that case the three varieties of fertilizers will be treated as three treatments.

Experiment: The process of examining the truth of a statistical hypothesis, relating to some
research problem, is known as an experiment.

Experimental unit(s): The pre-determined plots or the blocks, where different treatments are
used, are known as experimental units. Such experimental units must be selected (defined) very
carefully.

18 .Basic principles of experimental design (this is very important in reading science)

There are three basic principles of design which were developed by Sir Ronald A.Fisher.

1 .Randomization – The principles of randomization involves the allocation of treatment to

experimental units at random to avoid any bias in the experiment resulting from the influence of
some extraneous unknown factor that may affect the experiment .in the development of analysis
of variance, we assume that the errors are random and independent .in turn, theobservations also
become random.

The random assignment of experimental units to treatments results in the following out come
It eliminates the systematic bias

It is needed to obtain arepresentative sample from the population

It helps in distributing the unknown variation due to confounded variables throughout the
experiment and breaks the confounding influence

2. Replication – In the replication principle, any treatment is repeated a number of times to

obtain avalid and more reliable estimate than which is possible with one observation
only .replication provides an efficient way of increasing the precision of an experiment .the
precision increases with the increase in the number of observation.

3. Local control (error control)

The replication is used with local control to reduce the experimental error .for example, if the
experimental units are divided in to different groups such that they are homogeneous with in the
blocks, than the variation among the blocks is eliminated and ideally the error component will
contain the variation due to the treatments only .this will in turn increase the efficiency.

19. What are contemporary issues in reading and literacy science?

Reference

C.R.Kothari,Research methodology ,methods and Techniques ,Wiley Eastern limited,New

Delhi,1988.
L.V Redman and A.V.H.Mory,The Romance of research ,1923.

Best.John,W.andKahn,James.(1986) research in education ,5thed prentice – Hall of

indiaPvtLtd:New Delhi.

. Fisher, R.A., The Design of Experiments, 7th rev. ed., New York: Hafner Publishing Co., 1960