Analysis and Critique of Two Research Papers Related to Education - Essay Example

Analysis and Critique of Two Research Papers The two research articles critiqued here are the qualitative study “Towards a more telling way of understanding early school leaving” by David Hodgson and the quantitative study “Emotional intelligence and teacher self efficacy: The contribution of teacher status and length of experience” by Andrea Penrose, Chris Perry and Ian Ball. These studies have chosen pertinent issues related to education and make good use of the varied aspects of qualitative and quantitative research. As the former study deals with the socio-cultural and ethical aspects of the phenomenon of early school leaving, the latter investigates the relationship between emotional intelligence and teacher self efficacy. Both the research articles aim at an empirical analysis based on the data collected. However, the methods of analyses vary in accordance with the objectives of quantitative and qualitative research. Hodgson makes use of the specific data collected for the study to give a complete description of the situation and the insights that can be derived from the data. There is no need for statistical analyses since the study focuses on a value based exegesis. There cannot be a clear hypothesis for this kind of study since the outcome of the study may be vague and totally dependent on its outcome. On the contrary, the quantitative study by Penrose et. al. have a clear hypothesis, though the results may either affirm or contradict them. The methodology for this kind of study involves statistical analyses and the result can be presented in tables, charts and graphs. The study has to be conveniently delimited and the entire report will revolve around the methods and analyses of data, not veering to the researcher’s personal viewpoints of ideological stance. For these reasons, the first study appeals more to the quality of the research work, thereby contributing towards the ethical and philosophical aspects while the second one is strictly delimited to a particular aspect with reference to the quantity of data collected and analyzed. The first study presents new insights to a particular field and suggests future research on those lines. In that sense, it can be considered a preliminary study, augmented by the author’s vision and experience. However, it will have to adapt the quantitative method as in the second study in the later stages to present clear results rather than suggestions. In Hodgson’s study the design is not preconceived, and it evolves on its own as the research progresses. Though there is a general direction to which takes off and brings information that confirms to the beliefs of the author, most of the findings are unpredictable and serendipitous. The second study has a clearly charted out modus operandi to carry out the entire study. It is decided in advance how to conduct the experiments, which population would be used for it, what methods are to be adapted and how they are to be evaluated and assessed. Hodgson collects the data personally and gets deeply involved in them. It is the intellect and emotional balance that work the most in a qualitative analysis. Hodgson gets familiarized to the data and the pattern in which they are to used evolves by itself. The arguments are persuasive, based on the author’s convictions. On the contrary, Penrose et. al. use various tools and equipments to collect data. While the data of the first study is in words and pictures, the second study makes use of numerical data. Hodgson interprets the issue of early school leaving from a subjective view point, making use of the restricted perceptions of five students. Though this cannot be dismissed as unscientific or lacking in evidence, qualitative analyses can be considered more objective. Penrose et. al. make use of the latest statistical tools to present precise measurements and to validate the results. Hodgson’s study brings forth interesting insights related to the topic analyzed, but cannot be considered a comprehensive one, since it is not possible to generalize on the basis of its results. The research process is more time consuming and can be considered a creative endeavor. The second study is more self-sufficient and reliable in that it presents the findings in an efficient manner. However, the contextual significance may be more appealing in a qualitative study like Hodgson’s. The emotional involvement of Hodgson in his study is evident from the words and phrases used in the report and the general presentation. However, the authors of the second study maintain a distance from the study and don’t get involved in it emotionally. As a result, it is rather dry in its presentation when compared to the qualitative report. Though there are many differences between the two papers, they have a scientific attitude to the topics researched and present results that are original. They contribute towards the already existing knowledge in their respective areas. In the first article Hodgson makes clear that the study goes beyond the deceptively simple notions of early school leaving which put its responsibility to the students who leave the school and conclude that their lack of aptitude and interest in studies lead to it. On the other hand, Hodgson uses the methods of qualitative research to draw information from the perspectives and experiences of five students who have already left the school or were in the process of doing it. The statement of the problem is made with reference to the necessity to move towards a clearer understanding of how ‘winnowing’ at the institutional level leads to early school leaving. The implication of ‘Winnowing’ is "to subject to some process of separating or distinguishing” (Delbridge & Bernard, 1988, p.1165). Hodgson makes use of it as a metaphor, invoking “images of a gradual but continual process of sifting” (Hodgson, 2007). The statement of the problem is clear, though the implications of winnowing remain a bit ambiguous in the introduction. The review of literature revolves around studies related to early school leaving in Australia and the United States. References are also made regarding the dwindling statistics of early school leaving the eighties and nineties. Referring to the argument of the report by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER, 1999), that “early school leaving is best seen as an international phenomenon that is irreducible to any particular variables or explanations”, the study promises to be a relevant investigation to the various aspects of early school leaving. The problem statement provides a complete and accurate statement of the problem actually studied. However, the subjective nature of the study and the limited number of students who are interviewed makes it difficult to lead to deal with it workability and critical mass. Sufficient interest in the study is evoked in the beginning itself, with the help of a quote from the response of a student who was interviewed and by drawing attention to the deceptively simple nature of it. The study provides theoretical value as far as it reveals the power structures underlying educational institutions and exposes the element of winnowing behind early school leaving. However, one cannot attribute a comprehensive value to the study on a theoretical or practical basis, since it is restricted to the experiences of five students who have undergone similar experiences from particular school circumstances. The report is persuasive in nature and argues strongly from the perspective of the five students, leading to the conclusion that ‘winnowing’ took place in the case of all of them, which led to their early school leaving. There is a sufficient review of literature with empirical focus, highlighting the findings and shortcomings of earlier research and leading gradually to the relevance of a fresh research on the area. The review draws upon significant figures from previous research with technically accurate citations and references, revealing the socio-economic difficulties aroused in the personal lives of those who leave school early. Based on these the introduction offers the hypothesis that ‘winnowing’ can be used as an apt metaphor to explain the part played by institutional power relations in early school leaving. Since the study makes use of a narrative interview approach, the findings and interpretations could exhibit subjective elements, though the persuasive arguments based on the issues revealed through the interviews would open up new avenues for further research in the area. Since the study depends on the judicious analysis of the narrative interviews, moderator variables have to be subsumed to the findings. For the same reason operational definitions deal with the sorting of the information from the interviews and linking them to various issues that contribute towards winnowing. On the whole the approach of this study is analytical descriptive, leading to conclusions based on logical reasoning. The methodology followed was a non-probability sampling method. The data comprised transcripts of in-depth unstructured interviews. The author concedes that this posed a number of methodological and conceptual problems. He has used the narrative analysis framework to ensure the validity of the constructive nature of the data analysis. The direct use the participant’s ‘testimonio’ is the strength of this study. The author claims to have solved the problems of bias in analyzing and manipulating the data with the help of a scientific framework. The study leads to conclusions in each section where the narrative interviews are analyzed under the factors that lead to early school leaving. Focusing on the specific aspects of difficulties faced by the five students – Robert, John, Peter, Jason and Stuart – the author brings in various issues like the geography of trust and reciprocity, historical antecedents, loosing faith in the usefulness of the system and attracted to job prospects, tacit invitations to please leave quietly, explicit invitations to leave, ordering, status and competition and a resignation that arises from the loss of faith. In the final concluding section, the assumptions from these individual issues are related to form a theoretical insight from the perspective of the leavers. The study suggests that “early school leaving is, in part, an institutional phenomenon that has a range of historical antecedents” , and using winnowing as a metaphor can throw light on the rather instrumental role played by the leavers. The discussion does not overgeneralize the findings, yet lacks clarity as to tracing the specific patterns of winnowing. However, the study can lead to further research on the area that would help minimize the effect of power relations at the institutional level that lead to early school leaving. The second article by Penrose, Perry and Ball makes use of quantitative research on the interrelatedness of emotional intelligence and teacher self efficacy. The report has a clear statement of the problem, linking the prospects of it with reference to the relevant research that has already taken place in the area. The study contributes to the field of education, since differential teacher effectiveness can have a significant impact on the learning process of students at their charge. Departments of education have acknowledged the link between teacher effectiveness and teacher self efficacy. Hence, establishing a possible link between emotional intelligence and teacher self efficacy can lead to proactive research on teacher effectiveness and the learning process. The study makes use of a quantitative analysis of data collected from primary and secondary school teachers. The review of literature makes use of proper references and citations, contrasting the positive effect that teachers with high efficacy have on the learning process and the negative effect that teachers with low have on the same. The review also refers to findings with regard to the elements of age, gender, experience and status in teacher efficacy. The findings of previous research on the relationship between emotional intelligence and teacher efficacy are also mentioned, with a proper definitions of the terms based on these studies. The study is delimited to the relationship of emotional intelligence and teacher efficacy in Australian teacher, with references to age, gender, teaching experience and status. There is a clear hypothesis as well, that a) teachers who reported higher levels of emotional intelligence would also report higher levels of self efficacy and b) the relationship between emotional intelligence and self efficacy would be moderated by gender, age, length of teaching experience and current status within the school. The population selected for the study was representative in nature, belonging to both the primary and secondary level, from the Gippsland Region. Proper arrangements were made, providing the questionnaire, reply paid addressed envelope and an explanatory statement. Participants were instructed to answer the questionnaire anonymously, disclosing their gender. The male/female ratio and averages of age, teaching experience and status were calculated and categorized before analyzing the responses. The responses were to be in two scales – The Reactions to Teaching Situations (RTP) (Perry et al, 2004) to measure the construct of emotional intelligence and The Teaching Efficacy Scale (TES) (Gibson & Dembo, 1984) to measure personal teaching efficacy. The use of these established scales contributed to the testability, validity and reliability of the study, related it to the previous studies and led to a consensus of varied findings on the area. The study also made use of an exploratory factor analysis using principal components. The research methods are well explained and the rationale for choosing them is provided with reference to previous studies in the area. The analysis was conducted in a comparative mode among independent groups. Examination of bivariate associations was made among continuous variables. The first hypothesis analysis relied on exploring the link between emotional intelligence and teacher self efficacy. The second hypothesis analysis called for the variants of gender, age, length of teaching experience, and current status in relationship to the two factors mentioned above. A preliminary test was conducted, adhering to the insights from previous research. This contributed towards the reliability and validity of the tests. The hypotheses testing proved that there was a significant moderate positive relationship between emotional intelligence and teacher self efficacy. Moderating effects between continuing variables is also analyzed. Four standard multiple regression analyses were conducted in which the predictor (emotional intelligence) and the moderator (either gender, age, length of teaching experience and status) variables were centered before conducting the analyses to reduce the potential for multicollinearity between the interaction terms and components. Teaching efficacy was the dependant variable. The results were presented effectively in tables and graphs. Proper explanation was provided to justify the use of the methods with the help of self-sufficient graphic representations. The results are clearly described and explained. The first hypothesis is supported by the results. As it was hypothesized, emotional intelligence had a direct influence on teacher self efficacy. According to the authors, “The moderate association found between emotional intelligence and teacher self efficacy provides empirical support to the theorized association between these two constructs” (Penrose, et. al., 2007). However, the second hypothesis is not fully supported by the results. Moderation the relationship by the variables of age, length of teaching experience and current status were not supported. Moreover, there were no significant main effects for gender or age on the relationship between teacher self efficacy and emotional intelligence. However, the years of teaching experience and status were seen to be related to a teacher’s sense of efficacy. Among these, status has a stringer influence though none of these have a stronger influence than emotional intelligence on teacher self efficacy. The finding can be summarized that teachers’ level of emotional intelligence is related to their sense of efficacy, independent of gender, age, status and experience. The relevance of the study is emphasized by the authors by pointing out that the findings of it can be used to formulate proper training programmes for teachers to build emotional intelligence ion them. The implication of study are related to a better student achievement in the learning process since higher emotional intelligence would mean better teacher self efficacy, which in turn leads to better teacher efficacy in classrooms. The concluding discussion is a well balanced one, referring to the two hypotheses of the study and how far the results have supported them. Moreover, it highlights the significance and implications of the study in the field of education. There are no overgeneralizations, and suggestions for future research are also provided. The results presented in the statistical data are foolproof and can be replicated by future researchers. Proper explanations are provided to assist the readers through the research process. References Delbridge, A., & Bernard, J. R. L. (1988). The Macquarie concise dictionary (2nd ed.). NSW: The Macquarie Library Pty Ltd. Gibson, S. & Dembo, M. (1984). Teacher efficacy: A construct validation. Journal of Educational Psychology, 76, 569-582. Hodgson, David. (2007) Towards a more telling way understanding early school leaving. Issues in Educational Research. Vol. 17. NCVER. (1999). Research at a glance: Early school leavers and VET. Kensington Park, South Australia: Australian National Training Authority. Penrose, Andrea, Chris Perry and Ian Ball (2007). Emotional intelligence and teacher self efficacy: The contribution of teacher status and length of experience. Issues in Educational Research. Vol. 17 Perry, C., Ball, I. & Stacey, E. (2004). Emotional intelligence and teaching situations: Development of a new measure. Issues in Educational Research, 14(1), 29-43. http://www.iier.org.au/iier14/perry.html Read More