Postgraduate Module Descriptor

ERPM000: The Nature of Educational Enquiry

This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.

Module Aims

The aims of the module are to develop a critical understanding of:

  • The nature and purpose of educational research, its history, and its relationships with ethical, social, political, economic and power factors and influences;
  • The range of philosophical and theoretical ideas, perspectives and debates underpinning current educational and social science research, including the diversity of educational methodologies and paradigms, and their characteristics, strengths and weaknesses;
  • The central and constitutive roles of meta-theory and language in educational research; and
  • The use of theory and methodology in current research projects, debates and publications.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

This module's assessment will evaluate your achievement of the ILOs listed here - you will see reference to these ILO numbers in the details of the assessment for this module.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to:
Module-Specific Skills1. demonstrate detailed knowledge of philosophical and theoretical foundations of educational research and research methodologies, as well as styles and paradigms utilized in the field and current debates and controversies;
2. demonstrate understanding of the significance of alternative epistemological positions for theory construction, research design, and the selection of appropriate analytical techniques;
3. demonstrate understanding of educational research in its social, political and ethical context from a variety of viewpoints;
Discipline-Specific Skills4. demonstrate the ability to apply the knowledge and skills developed in the module in a critical analysis of research papers and presentations;
5. demonstrate the ability to make an informed judgment about the strengths and weaknesses of available research approaches based, among other things, on ethical considerations;
Personal and Key Skills6. demonstrate skills in self-management - in particular the management of time, tasks and evaluation of own learning;
7. demonstrate skills in personal judgment - particularly in respect of ethically sensitive issues;
8. demonstrate the ability to work independently and cooperatively;
9. communicate and present your ideas when writing and speaking and to listen effectively and persuade rationally;
10. demonstrate the ability to problem solve - to think logically, laterally, strategically, analyzing and evaluating;
11. demonstrate data handling skills; and
12. demonstrate effective use of ICT -the use of electronic data bases in the library, email, word processing, the internet.

Indicative Reading List

This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.

General

Pring, R. (2015). Philosophy of educational research.  3rd edition online access. London/New York: Bloomsbury 

Norwich, B. (2019) Thinking about the nature of educational research: going beyond superficial theoretical scripts. Review of Education, DOI: 10.1002/rev3.3182

Overview topics:

Issues in educational research : 

Hammersley, M. (2003) Social research today: some dilemmas    and distinctions. Qualititative Social Work, 2(1), 25-44.

Osberg, D.C. & Biesta, G.J.J.  (2007). Beyond    Presence: Epistemological and pedagogical implications of    'strong' emergence.  Interchange 38 (1) 31-55.

Schwandt, T.A. (2011) The SAGE Dictionary of Qualitative Inquiry. Thousand Oaks. SAGE Publications.

Stenhouse, L. (1981) What Counts as Research? British    Journal of Educational Studies, 29 (2) 103-114. 

Symonds, J.E. and Gorard, S. (2010) death of mixed methods?    Or the rebirth of research as a craft? Evaluation and research    in Education, 23,2, 121-136. 

Pragmatism

Alexander, H.A. (2006) A view from somewhere: explaining the paradigms of educational research. Journal of Philosophy of Education, 40, 2, 205-221 

Morgan, D.L. (2014) Pragmatism as a Paradigm for Social Research. Qualitative Inquiry, Vol. 20(8) 1045–1053

Talisse R About pragmatism - listen to podcast from Philosophy Bites website

Critical realism

Scott, D. (2007) Resolving the      qualitative-quantitative dilemma: a critical realist      approach. International Journal of Research & Method      in Education, 30 (1), pp. 3–17

Evidence-based practice

Biesta, G.J.J. (2007). Why ‘what works’ won’t work.    Evidence-based practice and the democratic deficit of    educational research. Educational Theory 57(1), 1-22.      

Clegg, S. (2005) Evidence-based practice in educational    research: a critical realist critique of systematic review    British Journal of Sociology of Education,  26, 3,.    415–428. 

Hammersley, M (2005) Is the evidence-based practice    movement doing more good than harm?, Evidence and Policy, vol.    1, no. 1, 2005, pp1-16

MacLure,M. (2005) ‘Clarity bordering on stupidity’: where’s    the quality in systematic review?, Journal of Education Policy,    20(4), 393-416. 

Critical-emancipatory perspectives

Biesta, G (2010) A New Logic of Emancipation: The Methodology of Jacques Ranciere. Educational Theory 60, no.1: 39-59.

Carr, W (2007) Educational research as a practical science,  International Journal of Research & Method in Education,30:3,271-286.

Reygan, Finn, & Dennis Francis (2015) Emotions and pedagogies of discomfort: Teachers’ responses to sexual and gender diversity in the Free State, South Africa, Education as Change, 19:1, 101-119.

Schostak J. & Schostak J. (2012) Writing Research critically. Developing the power to make a difference London and New York. Routledge.

Post-modern/post-structural approaches

Adams St. Pierre, Elizabeth (2013). The posts continue: becoming, International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 26:6, 646-657.

Ball, S. (2013) Foucault, Power and Education. Abingdon: Routledge.