Teachers Perception, Attitudes, and Beliefs Regarding the Subject Matter - Dissertation Example

?Chapter III Research Methodology Introduction In the literature review, the impact of the teachers’ attitudes, beliefs and perspective regarding inquiry methods have been elucidated. According to the literature, teachers’ personal disposition affects the manner in which they present and actualize the teaching methodology they adopt in classroom (Trumbull et al., 2006). It is significant because if the teacher is not comfortable with the activities, it disrupts not only the flow of classroom activities, but also influences the students’ appreciation of science (McDonald, 1992; Lin & Chen 2002). Thus, teachers’ perception, attitudes, and beliefs regarding the subject matter play a crucial role in shaping the concepts of the subject and the approach in which it is delivered (Lin & Chen, 2002). In this regard, current scholarly literatures agree that there is an important correlation between the teachers’ perceptions, beliefs and attitudes vis-a-vis inquiry based teaching methodology In this chapter, the research methodology that has been adopted in the entire course of the research was presented. In addition, the justification for the selected research methodology, the research approach, research philosophy adopted some ethical concerns and other significant facets clarifying the research methodology for the study. This was done in order to provide a clear frame in which the information and the data used in answering the questions of the research were gathered. In addition, it established the steps taken to achieve the purposes of the study In this regard, the purposes of this research are first, to determine and establish the correlation between teachers’ perception, beliefs and attitudes and inquiry–based teaching methodology. Second, the study aims to identify the factors affecting and influencing the correlation between teachers’ perception, beliefs, and attitudes and inquiry–based teaching methodology. Finally, third, it aims to identify approaches to inquiry-based method teaching that will enhance students’ independent learning, enable teachers to gain further knowledge, self-growth, and fulfillment. Thus, in the end, empowering not only the students, but also the teachers and other stakeholders in the learning process The research seeks to address the following questions. 1. What is the relationship between the teachers’ perception of Science and inquiry-based teaching methodology? H.0. There is no relationship between the teachers’ perception of science and inquiry-based teaching methodology. 2. What is the relationship between the teachers’ beliefs regarding Science and inquiry based teaching methodology? H.0. There is no relationship between teachers’ beliefs regarding Science and inquiry-based teaching methodology. 3. What is the relationship between the teachers’ attitude towards Science and inquiry- based teaching methodology? H.0. There is no relationship between teachers’ attitude towards Science and inquiry-based teaching methodology. In order to clarify further these three main questions, some sub-questions will also be addressed. These are (1) what is perception? (2) What is the meaning of beliefs? (3) What is attitude? All of these questions were asked within the context of Science as formal subject in school. It is deemed necessary to ask these questions as these concepts connote broad definitions and scope. As such, as a form of limitation, the focus of understanding perception, beliefs and attitude were geared in connection with teaching Science as formal subject in elementary. These questions were developed to “give direction to the study, limit the scope of the investigation, and provide a device for evaluating progress and satisfactory completion” (Hatch, 2002, p. 41). Research Design Research design is the overall structure that guides the entire research endeavor. It provides the framework in which the conduct of the research is patterned. The above schema presents the design that has been followed in the conduct of the research. For the study, a combination of quantitative and qualitative study had been chosen. The mixed method had been selected because it enabled the researcher to play an active role in the data collection and analysis, in the gathering of the literary narratives and in the inductive logic employed in the study (Creswell, 2007: Hatch, 2002; Patton, 1990; Yin, 2009). Moreover, in the mixed method, the researcher was not only an active participant in the whole inquiry process (Hatch, 2002), but the researcher was also able to observe social facts critical in understanding the phenomenon being observed (Patton, 1990). In this way, the researcher was not only outside looking inside the phenomenon being observed, but was in the phenomenon together with the participants in constructing meanings and understandings for the articulation of the event being observed (Hatch, 2002). The literary narratives, which were integral in the interviews and narrative shared, provided the framework and the content in which the phenomenon was to be comprehended (Shank, 2006). The themes laid the grounds in which to explain and explore the phenomenon (Hatch, 2002). Meanwhile, the study was inductive primarily because the “researcher gathers data to build concepts, hypotheses or theories” (Merriam & Associates, 2002, p. 5). The survey was constructed with the notion that it questions the experiences, perceptions, attitudes, and beliefs of teachers as they used inquiry–based methods in teaching Science. In this sense, through a mixed method a more holistic view of the phenomenon was reached since it seeks to understand the phenomenon within the social context or circumstances where it was happening (Janesick, 2004). For the qualitative part of the research, Creswell (2007) noted that there are five different approaches to qualitative research; “narrative research, phenomenology, grounded theory, ethnography, and case study” (p. 53). For this research, narrative and phenomenological approached had been adopted. This was chosen because the discourse was drawn from the actual experiences and stories of the people who are part of the phenomenon (Merriam 2008). In this way, the researcher moved away from abstracted quest for theories removed from lived life towards lived realities of people (Wertz, 2005). Thus, through this narrative and phenomenological approached the phenomenon under study becomes grounded on real experiences opening an arena wherein the experientially meaningful is explained and understood within the context of the phenomenon (Wertz, 2005). On the other hand, the survey provides the objective observation of the event. The constructed survey seeks to find the correlation of the teachers’ perception, beliefs and attitudes vis-a-vis inquiry-method based teaching by measuring the possible degree of correlation between these factors. Furthermore, as the researcher tallied the outcome of the survey, the subjective values of the researcher did not have any influence on the result. As such, the objectivity of the observed phenomenon is upheld. Justification of the Research Approach The justification for the study intends to provide the rationale behind why mixed methodology was selected for the research. By combining qualitative and quantitative research, the researcher was able to operate on the ontological reality of that is understood not only from a single perspective, but also from variegated views of reality (Trochim, 2000). Through the quantitative approach, the single unitary ontological reality was affirmed, while through the qualitative part of the research, reality from the angles of the researcher and the participant were acknowledged as real. Thus, creating wider scope of that which is supposed to be real. In addition, by adopting the mixed methodology, the researcher was not limited in the roles that they assumed during the research. This is very important as it defines the epistemological fluidity that is inherent mixed methodology. Since, in mixed methodology the researcher was given the chance to (1) gain knowledge of the phenomenon being observed by observable measurements resulting from the survey, while at the same time (2) it gave the researcher the opportunity to grasp the experientially meaningful facets of the phenomenon from the people who experience the phenomenon. Furthermore, through the mixed methodology, the researcher was able to combine three research philosophical approaches namely, positivist, constructivist and interpretavist. Although the tension among the three philosophies is apparent, it does not mean that it cannot be combined to establish a wider range of what can possibly be known. Even if, the researcher was sometimes grappling with two extremes, but this experience enabled the researcher to see knowledge and what can be known from only a single perspective, but from a multivariate facet of reality. It should be noted that others would call the approach as ‘realist’ or ‘post positivist’ (Wertz, 2005). However, the researcher disagrees on the supposition that the phenomenon can be known and that reality does not remain in the sphere of unknowable. This is based on the notion that knowledge that we gain is not noumenal but phenomenal. Knowledge of things as they are is an abstraction of what is supposed to be real. However, the phenomenal reality presents to the human mind, perhaps not the entirety of knowledge, but aspects of what can be known which is crucial in addressing the issues of this research. Finally, this approached was adopted because it showed the truism that there is no one monolithic approach to knowledge and reality. It attested to the truism that were and are many ways to knowing, may paths to reality (Golafshani, 2009). At the same time, the researcher believes that quantitative research alone or qualitative research alone could not adequately meet the aims of the study or address the questions of the research. This is based on the assumption that the questions of the research require that it should be answered using various ontological perceptions of reality to attain a wider coverage of knowledge claims and as such, ascertain the connection between teachers’ perceptions, beliefs and attitudes vis-a-vis inquiry-based teaching method. Role of the Researcher In both the quantitative and qualitative research incorporated in the study, the researcher actively participated in the entire inquiry process. The researcher became the “primary instrument for collecting and analyzing data and, as such, can respond to the situation by maximizing opportunities for collecting and producing meaningful information” (Merriam, 1998, p. 20). In adopting mixed methodology, it was essential that the researcher was a skilled communicator, focused on a single phenomenon, flexible, open minded and comfortable in dealing with personal bias in order to arrive at a valid and reliable data (Hatch, 2002; Merriam & Associates, 2002; Savin-Badin & Van Niekirk, 2007; Yin, 2009). One of the issues raised against qualitative research is that the research is subjective, tainted with the unique personal bias of the researcher. The researcher holds that nobody approaches knowledge tabula rasa. Kuhn (1986) claims that a person is conditioned by the various trainings, activities and education that they received. One can never claim complete freedom from these factors of conditioning. Knowledge is approached one’s background (Kuhn, 1986). The researcher supports the notion of Kuhnian paradigm. Truth, knowledge, and reality are not monolithic and sacrosanct. Even the search knowledge is not perfect. In this condition of human propensity to error and bias, and never entirely free from personal conditioning/bias (Creswell, 2007; Kuhn, 1986). As a safety net, someone not connected to the research reviews the entire work. Methodology Framework The research was carried out in three phases. The first phase was the literature research, done through library research (Ahmed, 2010). The second phase was the construction of the survey questionnaire and its distribution. During this phase, the interview dates were also being scheduled. The third phase was the actual individual interviews, and group interviews and collection of questionnaire. During the second and third phases of the gathering of data, the primary ethos that guided the research was respect for the integrity and dignity of all the participants. In the distribution of the survey, the participants were not forced to answer the survey. They were informed first of what the survey was all about, its purpose and what their only when they were given the necessary information and when they agreed to be part of the survey, was the questionnaire given. In the same manner, during the interview, date was set at a time and place that were comfortable to the participants. They were informed of what they the research was all about, it objectives and how their participation could contribute to research. They were also informed that if they feel uncomfortable at any moment of the interview, they could cut it short and not finish the interview. What was essential was respect for the integrity and dignity of all the participants at all times during the interview (Yin, 2009). In addition, the researcher saw to it that the narratives of the participants were those that were heard. Questions that were asked by the interviewer were only to clarify some details of the story, but it was not intended to re-frame or re-direct the narratives of the participants according to the views of the researcher. These observed ethos and steps were also adopted during the group interview. Selection of Documents For the literature review, The electronic databases Academic Source Complete, Jstor, PsycheInfo, Humanities, and ERIC were searched using a combination of the following key terms: education, beliefs, perceptions, attitudes, teaching methodology, teaching Science, inquiry-based teaching method and teaching. Articles written only in English and published in journals from the period of 2000 until 2010 were selected. Moreover, articles that provided a conceptual analysis of beliefs, perceptions, attitude, teaching, Science, teaching Science, teaching methods and inquiry-based teaching method had been searched. Likewise, included in the search are ethics codes and articles that used qualitative and quantitative research in analyzing the possible relationship among teachers’ perceptions, beliefs and attitudes vis-a-vis inquiry –based teaching method. Correspondingly, excluded in the selection were editorials, case studies, position papers, pamphlets and monographs. The reference list of the articles was searched to identify additional relevant publications. Population and Sample For the individual interviews, 10 Science teachers were selected from 2 public schools. 6 teachers have been teaching Science for less than three years while the other four teachers have been teaching Science for more than ten years. As such as possible, a balance in the division of gender was attempted. However, due to circumstances, of the 10 interviewees 7 are females and 3 are males. The groups are divided into – the neophyte (N) and the seasoned (S). Those who have been part of the service for less than 3 years, they were placed in the N-group and the S-group were made u of teachers who have been part of the service for more than 10 years and teaching Science. The rationale behind the division was to know their experiences, then compare if the years of service have an impact on the perception, beliefs and attitudes of teachers vis-a –vis inquiry-based teaching methodology. Diversity in experience, age, and gender were purposely incorporated in the selection of the participants in order to obtain varied and vast information, which is critical to the subject matter of the research (Patton, 1990). At the same time, the variations reveal the inherent differences in perspectives, beliefs, and attitudes as it increases the probability of “shared patterns that cut across cases and derive their significance from having emerged out of heterogeneity” (Patton, 1990, p. 172). For the survey questionnaires, 50 questionnaires were distributed to several elementary schools. It was distributed to all Science teachers. It was the only criterion adapted to the survey, that the participant should be teaching Science. This is because there is an assumption that Science teachers normally use inquiry-based teaching method and as such, more familiar with this technique. Data Collection Procedures Yin (2009) suggests three principles of data collection and these are use of multiple sources of evidences, creating a case study database, and maintaining a chain of evidence (p. 114). In this study, the researcher, first determined the questions and from there “decide what information will be needed to address the problem and how best to obtain the information” (Merriam, 1998, p. 71). The primary tool for the collection of the primary data was through face-to-face interview and the group discussion. In the face-to-face interview, the researcher opted that the encounter with the participants was less formal, more relax, and non-threatening. This approach was selected because the researcher holds that a more cordial ambiance for the interview would make sharing of the stories more free flowing. Open-ended questions were used as the guide for the interview, and through it, the participant and the researcher examined the issue together (Hatch, 2002; Yin, 2009). The group discussion was intended to deepen what the participants shared. The group sharing was not just about eliciting opinions and belief, but it was primarily aimed to investigate deeper into their responses and provide additional opportunities to explore perceptions (Merriam & Associates, 2002). On the other hand, for the survey, the Likert range of 1 – 5 was used. This segment of the research was an integral in the study since “the quantitative data provides a valid description of current conditions and an analysis of causal relations that may be inhering in the phenomenon being observed” (Gay & Airasian, 2000, p. 11). Data Analysis In the qualitative research, the data collection and the data analysis were both done simultaneously so that the ideas, themes, and questions may emerge (Hatch, 2002; Yin, 2009). Creswell (2007) claimed that in a qualitative study, it is necessary that “data analysis should follow certain procedures, which include data managing, reading, memoing, describing, classifying, interpreting and representing” (p. 156). For this research, all of the above-mentioned steps were incorporated in the assessment of the gathered data. For the quantitative research, after the results were taken, it was tabulated SPSS ver 12. The correlation of the data established using also SPSS ver12. Basic statistical description of the survey was also provided. Ethical Considerations Having human subjects participate in the research require that protection and respect for the human dignity, integrity and autonomy of all the participants. Some of the ethical issues concerning participation of human subjects include “(a) gaining permission from participants, (b) privacy and confidentiality of individuals, and (c) providing an accurate account of the data collected” (Yin, 2009, p. 73). In addition, to maintain the privacy and confidentiality of the participants, the researcher used “aliases and pseudonyms for individuals and places to protect identities” (Creswell, 2003, p. 66). Moreover, the researcher disclosed the data gathered from the interviews to the participants. In this way, not only the validity and reliability of the data were maintained, but it also became the venue for the researcher to establish a respectful relationship with the participants (Hatch, 2002). Finally, these ethical considerations are paramount in the validity and reliability of the data collected. As such, the ethical considerations mentioned in this study are essential for the entire study. Summary For this research, mixed methodology was adopted in order to know and understand the relationship between teachers’ perception, beliefs, and attitudes vis-a-vis inquiry-based teaching methodology. This approached was chosen because it afforded the researcher a more holistic picture of the phenomenon being observed. The research has been conducted in three phases. The first phase involves the collection of scholarly materials required for the literature review The second phase is the distribution of the survey questionnaire.. Finally, the third phase includes the in-depth face-to-face interview and the group discussion. All the primary data and secondary data that have been used in the study have been collected in these three phases of the mixed- method adopted in the research. In this chapter, the research methodology used in the collection of data relevant to the issues raised in the research was discussed. In addition, through this chapter, how the data was analyzed, and why the method was chosen were also given. This chapter provided support for the authenticity of materials, data, and information used in the conduct of the research. References Ahmed, J.U. (2010). Documentary Research Method: New Dimensions. Indus Journal of Management & Social Sciences, 4(1), 1-14. Creswell, J.W. (2003). Research design qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. --- (2007). Quality inquiry & research design choosing among five approaches. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Fragnoli, K. (Nov/Dec 2005). Historical inquiry in a methods classroom: Examining our beliefs and shedding our old ways. The Social Studies, 247 – 252. Gay, L. R. & Airasian, P. (2000). Educational research competencies for analysis and application (6th ed.). Eglewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Hatch, J. A. (2002). Doing qualitative research in educational settings. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press. Janesick, V. J. (2004). “Stretching” exercises for qualitative researchers (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Lin, H., & Chen, C. (2002). Promoting preservice chemistry teachers’ understanding about the nature of science through history. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 39(9), 773–792. McDonald, J.P. (1992). Teaching: Making sense of an uncertain craft. New York: Teachers College Press. Merriam, S. (1998). Qualitative Research and Case Study Applications: Revised and Expanded from Case Study Research in Education. San Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass. Merriam, S. & Associates (2002). Qualitative Research in Practice: Examples for Discussion and Analysis. San Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass. Patton, M (1990). Qualitative evaluation and research methods (pp. 169-186). Beverly Hills, CA: Sage. Savin- Badin, M & Van Niekirk, L (2007). “Narrative inquiry: theory and practice”, Journal of Geography in Higher Education, 31(3), 459–472. Trochim, W. M. (2000). The research methods knowledge base. Retrieved April 29, 2012 from http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/ Trumbull, D.J., Scarano, G., & Bonney, R. (2006). relations among two teachers’ practices and beliefs, conceptualizations of the nature of science, and their implementation of student independent inquiry projects. International Journal of Science Education, 28(14), 1717–1750. Wertz, F.J. (2005). Phenomenological research methods for counseling psychology. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 52(2), 167-177. Yin, R. (2009). Case Study Research Design and Methods, Fourth Edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc. EBOOK COLLECTION: Shank, G.D. (2006). Qualitative research: A personal skills approach (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.  Kuhn, T. (1996). The structure of scientific revolutions. Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press. Read More