Qualitative research has many purposes. One of the reasons for this method of research is that it gives the rationale behind a particular behavior. It showcases the reason a certain phenomenon in a topic exists. For instance, in my topic, qualitative research could be used to know why students preferred using technology in a mathematics class. The methodologies in a qualitative research seek to answer the question as to why we adopt certain theories (Tracy, 2013). The methods are used to provide empirical support to the results of the research. Because of this, the methods can be said to reduce the ambiguity of the research hypothesis and provide evidence for them. It gives a deeper understanding of the theories in question since it goes beyond the usual descriptive nature of other research methods. It incorporates observation aspects of conducting research to give a realistic set of results.
Among the many characteristics of qualitative research methods is that of exploration. A piece of literature, like in the case above, offers a small amount of knowledge which lacks variables. Qualitative research explores the variables present in the origin of the information and gives a profound understanding of the phenomenon. It does so by concentrating on the participants as opposed to the literature. The literature only gives a foundation on the research, and qualitative methods further explore the topic (Creswell & John, 2014). In addition, qualitative research clearly stipulates the purpose of the literature. For instance, it would ask questions to guide the study on how technology is used in the mathematics classroom. The main reason for conducting the study would be to find out the effects technology has on a mathematics class, using students as participants. A number of questions also need to be set to guide the research as this is also a characteristic of qualitative research. It involves the use of a protocol in a chronological analysis guided by questions. For instance, it could ask about the types of technologies used in mathematical classrooms. It could also ask about the procedure used, and how it has improved the student’s performances.
A narrative research for my topic would pick two students and a teacher as participants. I will instruct the participants to write a narrative or story of their views on mathematical technology in their classroom. Thereafter, I would use interviews to ask them questions about their story. The questions will be formulated from the story, and the individuals will be engaged in a question and answer method. The same can be incorporated in a grounded theory. I can add five more participants and involve them in an interview. Thereafter, the interview will be represented in a visual chart or grid with data from the individuals. The data will be divided into different forms to dependent on the question. It will be compared among the results found with the other respondents. The data will then be prepared and help in the establishment of a theory that is grounded upon the analyzed data.
The researchers in this case need to collect a lot of information from their respondents for them to get adequate data. It poses a big challenge for researchers since most participants lack depth in their responses. In addition, getting participants who have experienced the theory of the research is hard. Most of them will have a vague experience or none. Besides, in the ground theory, the researcher must do the research in a chronological manner, and any interference might give inaccurate results. The case study leaves the researcher in the dilemma of choosing that one case to study, and determining the number of cases he should research on.
References
Creswell, John W. (2014). Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research + Video-enhanced Pearson E-text Access Card. Pearson College Div.
Tracy, S. J. (2013). Qualitative research methods: Collecting evidence, crafting analysis, communicating impact. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell.
