Affect School Performance in Canberra - Research Proposal Example

Research questions I. What is successful schooling? II. Does teacher and student relationship improve learning? III. Is there a relationship between school success and school size? IV. Do extra-curricular activities improve learning process? V. Does school administration impact on the performance of the school? Statement of research- This research aims at establishing variables that affect school performance in Canberra. Methodology This research is will try to align theory and practice in exploring key features of a successful schooling system and which variables play an important role in improving schooling system in Canberra. The methodology selected in this in this case aims at providing information which will be essential in linking theory to practice. In order to complete this, in primary data collection, sampling strategy will be employed. This will be accomplished by sampling a number of schools within Canberra in order to compare and contrast their performances. The sample size for this project is 10 schools with an estimated 50 respondents. The respondents will include principals, teachers and head of departments from each school. In order to ensure uniform representation, stratified sampling technique will be employed in order to have the same number of participants from every area selected (James, Michelle & Thomas, 2008, p.10). A secondary data collection process will also be employed in this case, the secondary data will focus on academic journals, books, magazines and websites related to effective schooling systems. The Ministry of education will also be approached in order to obtain a Standard Evaluation Instrument as per the inspectorate of schools in Australia. This will be an important tool in analyzing the key performance indicators based on performance oriented assessment. This tool will be useful because it has rubrics which will add on the validity and reliability of the information acquired (Bryman, 2012). A response rate of more than 80 % is expected from this sample. In order to ensure that the research will proceed in a predictable manner, a pilot program will be conducted within the region. About 10 schools will be targeted and sample questionnaires created and given for the respondents. The response rate will be important in determining the best strategy for approaching the research process. In order to commence the research process, our research team will seek permission from the Ministry of Education as well as the administration of the schools that will be approached as well as other relevant authorities (Jorge & Kaylor, 2008, p.25). After the success of the pilot test, this study will focus on creation and moderation of the created questionnaires and interview questions. The interview questions will be based on easy response mechanism, Likert scale will be employed in this case. After this is completed, the research questions will be distributed to the selected 10 schools (Rebecca, & Anthony, 2013, p.34). A response time of a week will be given before the feedback is collected from respective schools. An online platform will also be created and link emails to respective correspondents in order to enhance the interview experience as well as create a convenience to them. For data analysis process, both qualitative and quantitative approaches will be employed. The rationale for this is to get in-depth knowledge on the key research objectives. Qualitative method will provide an overview of the results while quantitative approach will give detailed findings including means, modes, standard deviation, correlations and errors from the analyzed data (Rebecca, & Anthony, 2013, p.34). Social statistical tools such as SPSS will be employed because of its ease to use and effectiveness in conducting social research. Data analysis will also show the trend and provide conclusions and future recommendations on better ways of addressing the evident gaps and issues uncovered by the research (Bernard, 2000, p.417). This approach is a good way to investigate the proposed research because; the sample selected is effective in giving a wider picture of the entire Canberra region. Qualitative approach will also provide research feedback that cannot be quantified. Quantitative approach will provide quantifiable results based on the feedback. Conducting a pilot test is important in the sense that it will give an overview of what should be expected when the real research commences (Nancy, 2006,p.24). Ethical considerations There are a number of ethical considerations that will be evident in this research process. Getting consents from the participants will be imperative; the participants will have the right to ask any questions regarding the research as well as the importance or relevance of the research. In order to facilitate this, participants will be given a brief explanation about the purpose of the research and why their participation is important for the success of the research. They will be allowed to ask any question regarding any uncertainty of the research. It will also be our duty as investigators to enumerate how participant’s confidentiality and privacy will be addressed. The challenge to us as investigators will be to protect the information give to us from unauthorized observation; this will also include how the participants will be notified of any unforeseen findings from the research (Mantzorou & Fouka, 2011, p.5). In order to ensure confidentiality, the participants will be informed about the measures that we as researchers will take to protect their identity and ensure that no one else knows about the research. The participants will also be made as a free will and no unnecessary convincing will be made if participants decline to participate because of their own reasons. It will also be important for us as researchers to get permission from the University or institutional board in order to get the necessary approval for conducting the research. To observe ethical conditions, the study team acquired an informed consent from the Ministry of Education, and relevant schools among other relevant authorities. This will be useful in not only getting the permission but also the assistance of these authorities in accomplishing the objectives of the research (Maureen & Ronald, 2008, p.23). As a researching team, we will ensure that these ethical considerations are made before the research process begins. Limitations This research will have some limitations; firstly, all variables that affect schooling process will not be evaluated because of the limitation of time and the need to maintain easy and succinct questionnaires. The data collected may also not represent the true picture because of possible biasness from the participants. This will affect the overall conclusion of the research (Bryman, 2012). The methodology adopted for this case will also face limitation as not all the participants even those who participated in the pilot project will participate in the research. This is a notable limitation as it will impact on the overall sample size selected and hence limiting the true picture of the research outcome. The sample size given is also significantly low because of the monetary and time constrain. This will impact on the outcome as the result will require future analysis; the results from this process will thus have generalization aspect of the research objective to a considerable extent because of the small sample size selected. References Bernard, H. (2000). Social research methods: qualitative and quantitative approaches. Thousand Oaks, Calif: Sage Publications. Pp. 417-420. Bryman, A. (2012). Social Research Methods (4th ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. James B.E., Michelle, B.E., & Thomas, R. (2008). Analysis of Nonresponse Bias in Research for Business Education. Delta Pi Epsilon Journal, 50 (1), p. 10-19. Jorge, D., & Kaylor, G.(2008).Thoughts on Social Work Knowledge Development Activities within a Quantitative Framework, Social Work, 53(4) p.25-29. Mantzorou, M & Fouka, G.(2011). What are the Major Ethical Issues in Conducting Research? Is there a Conflict between the Research Ethics and the Nature of Nursing? Health Science Journal, 5(1). Pp.4-12. Maureen, D., & Ronald, C.(2008). Values in Qualitative and Quantitative Research. Counseling and Values, 53(1), p.23-34. Nancy, F. (2006). Conducting Qualitative Research: A Practical Guide for School Counselors. Professional School Counseling, 9( 5), p.22-28. Rebecca, F.K., & Anthony, O. (2013). Administering Quantitative Instruments with Qualitative Interviews: A Mixed Research Approach. Journal of Counseling and Development : JCD, 91(2), pp.34-54. Read More