Essential Question: What primary concerns exist in ethics, validity and reliability in AR? How are you managing these concerns (or how will you) within your study?
“Reliability refers to the extent to which the same answers can be obtained using the same instruments more than one time. In simple terms, if your research is associated with high levels of reliability, then other researchers need to be able to generate the same results, using the same research methods under similar conditions” (Dudovskiy, 2019). This statement makes it impossible for educational action research to ever really be reliable because we are working with ever changing students. From one day to the next with the exact same students you could get completely different results. Indiana University (n.d.) recognized this issue and noted that “the key assumption is that one large group of students, on average, is similar to another large group of students if they both come from a similar cultural and environmental background.” One way I could be meeting the reliability qualification is by collaborating on this project with Amanda and Sam in Delta Junction. We are all working on completing similar research projects in our respective schools.
“Validity refers to how accurately a method measures what it is intended to measure. If research has high validity, that means it produces results that correspond to real properties, characteristics, and variations in the physical or social world” (Middleton, 2020). One way this can be achieved is by using a data collection method that is standardized and targeted. I will be using a questionnaire that is tailored to generate information about three specific questions. Each survey will have questions that are specific to the population of people that are answering the questions.
Paul Newman and David Burgess (2008) wrote a lengthy article which discusses many of the concerns above with reliability and validity in action research. They conclude by saying, “An action research process that reconceptualizes validity as contingent upon the mode of research being used promises to move action research toward a form of research that builds knowledge, improves practice, and attends to the moral, political, and emancipatory dimensions of teaching and research.” So while there may be concerns with recreating the exact study, it is still important as educators that we continue to conduct research and use data to drive our instruction.
Resources:
Dudovskiy, J. (2019). Reliability and Validity. Retrieved from https://research-methodology.net/research-methodology/reliability-validity-and-repeatability/
Indiana University School of Education. (n.d.). Validity and Reliability. Retrieved June 27, 2020, from http://webpage.pace.edu/jkilbane/gcu/understanding/designing/validity.html
Middleton, F. (2020, June 26). Reliability vs Validity in Research: Differences, Types and Examples. Retrieved from https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/reliability-vs-validity/
Newton, P., & Burgess, D. (2008). Exploring Types of Educational Action Research: Implications for Research Validity. Retrieved from http://www.su.se/polopoly_fs/1.268966.1454666541!/menu/standard/file/Newton%20%20Burgess%20_%20exploring%20types%20of%20educational%20action%20reserach%20(2).pdf
“Reliability refers to the extent to which the same answers can be obtained using the same instruments more than one time. In simple terms, if your research is associated with high levels of reliability, then other researchers need to be able to generate the same results, using the same research methods under similar conditions” (Dudovskiy, 2019). This statement makes it impossible for educational action research to ever really be reliable because we are working with ever changing students. From one day to the next with the exact same students you could get completely different results. Indiana University (n.d.) recognized this issue and noted that “the key assumption is that one large group of students, on average, is similar to another large group of students if they both come from a similar cultural and environmental background.” One way I could be meeting the reliability qualification is by collaborating on this project with Amanda and Sam in Delta Junction. We are all working on completing similar research projects in our respective schools.
“Validity refers to how accurately a method measures what it is intended to measure. If research has high validity, that means it produces results that correspond to real properties, characteristics, and variations in the physical or social world” (Middleton, 2020). One way this can be achieved is by using a data collection method that is standardized and targeted. I will be using a questionnaire that is tailored to generate information about three specific questions. Each survey will have questions that are specific to the population of people that are answering the questions.
Paul Newman and David Burgess (2008) wrote a lengthy article which discusses many of the concerns above with reliability and validity in action research. They conclude by saying, “An action research process that reconceptualizes validity as contingent upon the mode of research being used promises to move action research toward a form of research that builds knowledge, improves practice, and attends to the moral, political, and emancipatory dimensions of teaching and research.” So while there may be concerns with recreating the exact study, it is still important as educators that we continue to conduct research and use data to drive our instruction.
Resources:
Dudovskiy, J. (2019). Reliability and Validity. Retrieved from https://research-methodology.net/research-methodology/reliability-validity-and-repeatability/
Indiana University School of Education. (n.d.). Validity and Reliability. Retrieved June 27, 2020, from http://webpage.pace.edu/jkilbane/gcu/understanding/designing/validity.html
Middleton, F. (2020, June 26). Reliability vs Validity in Research: Differences, Types and Examples. Retrieved from https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/reliability-vs-validity/
Newton, P., & Burgess, D. (2008). Exploring Types of Educational Action Research: Implications for Research Validity. Retrieved from http://www.su.se/polopoly_fs/1.268966.1454666541!/menu/standard/file/Newton%20%20Burgess%20_%20exploring%20types%20of%20educational%20action%20reserach%20(2).pdf
Good discriptions.
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