The Importance of Educational Research - Essay Example

Student Name: Tutor: Title: The Importance of Educational Research Course: Introduction Educational research refers an organized approach of asking, answering as well as effectively reporting a question. It is a cyclical process of identifying a research problem. It entails literature reviews, describing the study purpose and analysis of data and further interpreting the information (Ado, 2013). Educational research is very crucial in the life of educators, learners, practitioners, managers, policy makers and the entire society at a large. Education research is important for adding to the existing knowledge on important topics within various subjects. It equips teachers and learners with the various skills of analyzing data and interpreting information gathered (Mills, 2011). The learning as well as experience of teaching is based on research together with evidence but runs the risk of being just one of the ideology, theory, prejudice or convenience. Educational research enhances performance of the learners as they understand new ways of tackling various issues in the subjects that they are learning. Data gathering and analysis provides vital learning opportunities to the researchers to perfect ways of interpreting and gathering information (Hine, 2013). Educational research is pivotal in any student’s or educationist’s life and it goes to assist them in other careers before the learning environment. Discussion Educational research improves practice. Research can give alternative ways of improving practice that have been thoroughly verified with many applications and by different types of people, which is not easy for practitioners. The results of a research are able to trigger changes in methods as well as practices (Cain & Harris, 2013). This ensures that suitable education is provided enabling an efficient or effective population. Research explores numerous concepts providing another angle or line of thought to be used in further research or learning. Research translates into trying something new out of the box. Research does not necessarily refer to a concept that managers, practitioners as well as policy makers respect. In many circumstances, it is viewed as being an academic activity carried out by others (Johnson, 2012). When students engage in research, they demonstrate their level of maturity through making informed decisions in the course of the research. Educational research adds knowledge. Research is important since apart from giving ways of improving practice, it adds to what people know about how others learn and what can be done to effectively facilitate the process of learning. The importance of carrying out educational research will commence from effective programs as well as methods of teaching which assist students in learning discovering relationships among variables in educational settings for planning interventions (Hine, 2013). Research helps students in understanding cultural contexts of schools of schools to support justice and decrease cases of inequality and prejudice. Research helps in the understanding any subject as well as its principals in a much easier and better way. New questions as well as researched answers to those questions lead to learning of new theories (Stringer, 2008). Research education professional are ever in the process of learning, analyzing information, finding out things, adapting behavior as the information received, looking for ways of improvement as well as adapting to modern changing demands. Missing the technical and instrumental ways of assessing researching and teaching are types of educative interrelationships that allows the asking of ethical and moral questions concerning the actions’ rightness. Research is founded on educative relations; self-reflective practices are involved with identifying narrow prejudices as well as structured silences (Berg, 2007). Research provides a participative ways that students can engage in the learning process and gather important skills that will help them in their career development. Skills like strategic planning and conceptualization of issues are shaped through educational research. Educational research is important in the development of new products since it encourages innovation and new ideas (Holter & Frabutt, 2012). The data and information gathered through educational research can be vital in further exploring different areas of interests that require expounding. Research is an integral component of academic role as a well as a key factor when it comes to academic promotion. Collectively or individually, Educational research is the quest for meaning. Knowledge conceptions, such as conceptual and linguistic meaning, are both contextually and personal based (Berg, 2007). Some educational researchers have emphasized on epistemological meaning. Practitioners have the role of complying with policy. On the other hand, teachers have to adapt it in order to fit to the specific needs of their pupils. Whereas teachers are held accountable, the public on its part has to have faith in the profession. Teachers Have the ability of projecting their personality through learning experiences (Mills, 2011). In many circumstances, this is purely intuitive and the decisions could be successful or encounter failure. The methodologies in research offer teachers the means to analyze as well as make decisions concerning their practice. Historical research comes up with descriptions, as well as attempted explanations, of situations, conditions, or even events that have transpired in the past. For instance, a study documenting the growth of training programs for teachers since the start of the century, having the purpose of explaining vividly the historical origins of the processes and contents. Descriptive research offers information of situations, conditions, and events that happen within the present state. For instance, a survey of the school buildings’ physical condition for the purpose of establishing a descriptive profile that is present in a typical school (Perrett, 2003). Co relational research entails the search correlations between variables using the applications of various ways of statistical association. An inquiry into a correlation between satisfaction of teachers with their job as well as factors describing the quality and provision of teacher salaries, housing, entitlements to leave, and classroom supplies availability. Casual research has the purpose of suggesting connectivity between variables through analyzing available phenomena and then looking through available data in for the purpose of trying to point out causal relationships that are plausible. For instance, a study of factors relating to student ‘drop out’ in secondary school using data found in school records in the past. Experimental research is applied in circumstances where defining variables could be organized in a systematic fashion for the discerning ‘effects’ on other variables. Case study research refers generally to two types of equally different research approaches (Cain & Harris, 2013). The first one entails a keen study of a particular classroom, or school with the purpose of getting a nuanced explanation of the cultural setting which affects education, as well as an account of the interactions. Educational research addresses gaps in knowledge. Through educational research what is little know can be further explored and provide important library material for other people. Research helps teachers in sharing knowledge with their colleagues (Holter & Frabutt, 2011). Educational research can be successfully used in the filling of the gap between theory and practice hence it assists practitioners to come up with new knowledge that is directly connected to their classrooms. Educational research aptly facilitates teacher empowerment. Where teachers are permitted to take risks as well as make changes related to learning and teaching, students’ achievement is enhanced. Schools become learning communities that are more effective through educational research (Holter & Frabutt, 2012). Teachers are empowered automatically in the process of collecting their own data to be used in making decisions concerning their schools as well as classrooms. Educational research encourages professionalism where researchers have to carry out their work following a particular methodology. Students come to understand the stages of preparing and planning to carry out a qualitative research in the school. They gain insight into various subjects of interests that forms the basis of their research. Research in education provides an opportunity to experience some of the issues that have been taught in class (Stringer, 2008). The researchers learn to be objective and look at issues with an open mind without being judgmental. Educational research makes learning to be an active process and student-centered. Teachers become facilitators as students take an active role in the learning process through the research process. Educational research has numerous benefits for educators who are committed to an important and investigative process of searching for ways to improve the school practice, culture, and policy. Research is always a worthwhile and effective means of professional growth as well as development. Research enhances self-awareness and self-improvement (Hine, 2013). The solution-based focus, focusing on enhancing practitioner empowerment, as well as pragmatic appeal of educational research turns research methodology into a kind of professional development activity for both learners and teachers that are worthwhile. Educational research is important in expansion of knowledge. Research allows learners and educators to extend what they know in other ways that were not conceived before. It is better to encourage research within education as innovation and invention in order to be focused on future and benefit learners as opposed to researchers themselves (Stringer, 2008). In action research among education students need to focus on a specific area of concern in their school or classroom. Students carry out qualitative research with the aim of highlighting possible solutions available to the identified problem. In the course of this period, students are directed on how to narrow down their focus in the project highlighting research participants as well as important stakeholders. This is accomplished to make sure research projects are always manageable but challenging as well as focused keenly on the desired phenomenon (Mills, 2011). Without proper guidance before research proposal presentation, there is a high chance that some research projects can be too wide to be accomplished in the specified time period. Students learn through educational research how to focus on the area of interest that can be accomplished within the given time. It makes the learners to understand goal-setting and accomplishing every task as outlined in the research proposal. The research project requires the students to carry out the research while at the same time accomplishing full-time duties in schools, time management becomes very challenging. In the course of the research students create timelines that explain key events in the unit and how they will be accomplished (Ado, 2013). The students through research sharpen their time management skills since they have to accomplish the research while continuing with other activities in the school. Lecturers and students are able to discuss in the course of the research and provide solutions to some of the problems that need further research. Research is important in replication of knowledge. Educational research can act as a means of verifying previous findings. Practitioners and policy makers benefit from educational research that is carried out on important issues affecting different areas in the society (Perrett, 2003). Research is important in adding significant perspective for different types of learning. Research is a valuable exercise that has to be undertaken by any student or educationist who wants to further his skills while offering solutions to existing problems within the society. Since most of the research is conducted within the surrounding community, students learn how to relate with others and acquire important interpersonal skills that prove to be very vital in their future careers (Johnson, 2012). Reviews of other previous studies enable one to gather further information about the subject that was not taught in class. The researchers are able to trace history of different phenomena and how they affect the current world. Conclusion Carrying out research in research project allows students to really commence thinking and putting all the components of their education together. The goal of research within education is reflecting critically on effectiveness as well as professional practice. Research contributes to the development of good as compared to correct practice. Without educational research there would be many areas in the education sector that will be static. Life is dynamic and so is learning and education. Educational research enables adaption to new methods of understanding concepts and analyzing issues. Educational research benefits the community apart from equipping the learner with the necessary skills that will be vital in the further education. It would be difficult to pursue certain areas of interest in the learning environment without educational research. Educational research has transformed the learning environment to be practical and research-based. Educational research is very important. References Ado, K. 2013, Action research: Professional development to help support and retain early career teachers. Educational Action Research, 21(2), 131-146. Berg, BL. 2007, Qualitative research methods for the social sciences (6th ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon. Cain, T. & Harris, R. 2013, Teachers’ action research in a culture of performativity, Educational Action Research, 21(3), 343-358. Hine, GSC. 2013, The importance of action research in teacher education programs. Issues in Educational Research, 23(2), 151-163. Holter, AC. & Frabutt, JM. 2012, Mission driven and data informed leadership. Catholic Education: A Journal of Inquiry and Practice, 15(2), 253-269. Holter, AC. & Frabutt, JM. 2011, Action research in Catholic schools: A step-by-step guide for practitioners (2nd ed.). Notre Dame, IN: Alliance for Catholic Education Press. Johnson, A. P. 2012. A short guide to action research (4th ed.). New Jersey: Pearson Education. Mills, GE. 2011, Action research: A guide for the teacher researcher (4th ed.). Boston: Pearson. Perrett, G. 2003, Teacher development through action research: A case study in focused action research, Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 27(2), 1-10. Stringer, ET. 2008, Action research in education (2nd ed.). New Jersey: Pearson. Read More