Conducting

Educational Research
Purpose of Educational Research
Every individual has their own beliefs about the best way to teach. How do they know that their beliefs are
correct, though? Is it possible to support your beliefs with more valid evidence than just that you believe it
to be true, it is true from your personal experiences, or that an expert said that it is true? Sometimes two
people have two opposite beliefs, so is it possible to determine which person is right? For example, some
individuals think that pupils should be given constant positive encouragement to improve academic
achievement. On the other hand, other individuals think that positive encouragement will decrease
academic achievement because a pupil will think that they do not need to keep putting forth effort. These
are two opposite beliefs, so which is true?
Educational research is the answer to all of the above questions. Educational research uses the
scientific method to study best practices in teaching. An educational research study can be conducted to
answer the question: Will students learn better or worse when they are given positive encouragement? To
do this, the scientific method will be employed to compare a group of students who are given positive
encouragement with a group of students given negative criticism and a control group of students given no
encouragement. After receiving positive encouragement, negative criticism, or no encouragement,
individuals in these groups will then be compared on important dependent learning variables such as their
performance, effort, and motivation. Once this has been done, the data will provide a definitive answer
about whether positive encouragement, negative criticism, or no encouragement results in the best
academic performance. Educational research that uses the scientific method to collect scientific data can
provide a definite answer about best practices in teaching.
The purpose of educational research is to develop new knowledge about the teaching-learning situation
to improve educational practice. Educational research can address the following variables:

Learning: How do students best learn various subjects?

Teaching: What are the best teaching practices to foster student achievement?

Motivation: What are the best practices for teachers to motivate their students to achieve?

Development: How do children and adults change over time, including their cognitive, social, and
emotional skills?

Classroom management: What classroom or school practices make the classroom optimal for
student learning?

By collecting scientific data about these important topics in education, educational research can establish
the best practices that teachers, counselors, administrators, and students should use to improve learning
outcomes. Therefore, educational researchers - particularly researchers in Nigeria - should focus on
practical research projects that will have significant implications for education.

For example, Siegler & Ramani (2009) conducted a research study to examine best practices of teaching
number skills to young children. Maths teachers typically teach number skills by asking pupils to recite the
number string (e.g., "Say after me: 1, 2, 3..."), count objects (e.g., "How many beans are there?"), and
name numerals (e.g., "Which number is written on the board?"). However, Siegler and Ramani looked at
a theory of how young children understand number and thought that they could come up with a better and
more engaging method of teaching number skills. They developed a number game that might look
something like this:

The game simply requires a piece of paper with the numbers 1 to 10 written across it, two markers (the
smiley faces - these can be bottle caps), and a spinner with the numbers 1 and 2. (Alternatively, the
numbers 1 and 2 can be written on pieces of paper and put into a cup). To play the game, the players
take turns spinning the spinner (or pick a number from the cup) and move their marker that many spaces,
naming the numbers they land on. ("I am on the number four. I picked the number two. I move five, six.").
Children at a school were randomly placed in either a traditional maths group or the game group. Children
in the traditional maths group received normal maths instruction whereas children in the game group
played this game. Both groups spent an equal amount of time studying mathematics. After a few weeks,
all of the children were tested on their maths skills. These researchers found that on average, children in
the game group performed better than the traditional group in maths estimation, comparing numbers, and
arithmetic! Siegler and Ramani found a better and more engaging way of teaching maths, and they have
scientific evidence based on the children's maths test scores to support that their way of teaching is more
effective than the traditional method. They can conclude that teachers who use this game to teach
number skills will help their students do better in mathematics.
If you are conducting an educational psychology research study, then your topic will be primarily focused
on individuals in an educational context. The purpose of psychological research is to study key variables
about a human being: how they behave, think, feel, believe, etc. As such, psychological research must
examine individual characteristics, not group structures. Therefore, an educational psychology study will
examine student performance, student motivation, student attitudes, student beliefs, teachers' knowledge,
etc. However, an educational psychology study will not examine school-level variables, such as school
facilities, government funding, etc.
Whatever type of educational research you are pursuing, though, recall that the purpose of educational
research is to improve educational practice. Having an understanding of educational research and
conducting high quality educational research can have the following benefits for educational practice:

Provide instruction that maximizes students' learning.

Understand and support the developmental needs of pupils.

Develop an educational environment that supports students' motivation.

Provide solutions to educational problems.

Therefore, develop a research study that can have a significant impact on improving the teaching-learning
situation.
Because educational research can have significant implications for the teaching-learning situation, it is
essential that educational researchers complete their research projects in good faith. Poorly conducted
research can cause further harm to the educational process than no research at all. Consequently, under
no circumstances should an educational researcher "cut corners" to get their project completed faster or
easier. Educational researchers also have a responsibility to check and double check their work to ensure
that their methods are valid, their calculations are correct, and their conclusions accurately reflect the data
that has been collected. Careful, thoughtful, and trustworthy research can go a long way in improving
education in Nigeria.
Reference
Siegler, R. S. & Ramani, G. B. (2009). Playing linear number board games - but not circular ones improves low-income preschoolers' numerical understanding. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101,
545-560.

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