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44-473: The National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) is an educational research charity which creates a range of insights on educational policy and practice that aim to strengthen practice in the classroom and inform and influence policymakers and other key decision makers. NFER’s expertise covers a wide range of education topics, issues and research methods, including: NFER’s research experts are divided up into six teams: NFER also have teams who conduct

88-409: A scientific theory . In colloquial usage, the words "hypothesis" and "theory" are often used interchangeably, but this is incorrect in the context of science. A different meaning of the term hypothesis is used in formal logic , to denote the antecedent of a proposition ; thus in the proposition "If P , then Q ", P denotes the hypothesis (or antecedent); Q can be called a consequent . P

132-522: A combination of qualitative and quantitative methods as well as common methodology from the fields mentioned above. In social research this phenomenon is referred to as triangulation (social science) . This idea is well summarized by the work of Barrow in his text An introduction to philosophy of education: Since educational issues are of many different kinds and logical types, it is to be expected that quite different types of research should be brought into play on different occasions. The question therefore

176-475: A convenient mathematical approach that simplifies cumbersome calculations . Cardinal Bellarmine gave a famous example of this usage in the warning issued to Galileo in the early 17th century: that he must not treat the motion of the Earth as a reality, but merely as a hypothesis. In common usage in the 21st century, a hypothesis refers to a provisional idea whose merit requires evaluation. For proper evaluation,

220-433: A different experimental method to test the same hypothesis ). 48.2 percent of the replications were performed by the same research team as produced the original study, and when the same research team published the replication studies in the same journals, 88.7 percent of replications were successful while only 70.6 percent were successful when published in a different journal. When different researchers attempted to replicate

264-519: A formative phase. In recent years, philosophers of science have tried to integrate the various approaches to evaluating hypotheses, and the scientific method in general, to form a more complete system that integrates the individual concerns of each approach. Notably, Imre Lakatos and Paul Feyerabend , Karl Popper's colleague and student, respectively, have produced novel attempts at such a synthesis. Concepts in Hempel's deductive-nomological model play

308-430: A hypothesis must be falsifiable , and that one cannot regard a proposition or theory as scientific if it does not admit the possibility of being shown to be false. Other philosophers of science have rejected the criterion of falsifiability or supplemented it with other criteria, such as verifiability (e.g., verificationism ) or coherence (e.g., confirmation holism ). The scientific method involves experimentation to test

352-461: A key role in the development and testing of hypotheses. Most formal hypotheses connect concepts by specifying the expected relationships between propositions . When a set of hypotheses are grouped together, they become a type of conceptual framework . When a conceptual framework is complex and incorporates causality or explanation, it is generally referred to as a theory. According to noted philosopher of science Carl Gustav Hempel , Hempel provides

396-424: A new school of thought that these derivatives of the scientific method are far too reductionist in nature. Since educational research includes other disciplines such as psychology , sociology , anthropology , science , and philosophy and refers to work done in a wide variety of contexts it is proposed that researchers should use "multiple research approaches and theoretical constructs." This could mean using

440-560: A proposed new law of nature. In such an investigation, if the tested remedy shows no effect in a few cases, these do not necessarily falsify the hypothesis. Instead, statistical tests are used to determine how likely it is that the overall effect would be observed if the hypothesized relation does not exist. If that likelihood is sufficiently small (e.g., less than 1%), the existence of a relation may be assumed. Otherwise, any observed effect may be due to pure chance. In statistical hypothesis testing, two hypotheses are compared. These are called

484-411: A useful metaphor that describes the relationship between a conceptual framework and the framework as it is observed and perhaps tested (interpreted framework). "The whole system floats, as it were, above the plane of observation and is anchored to it by rules of interpretation. These might be viewed as strings which are not part of the network but link certain points of the latter with specific places in

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528-436: A wide range of data management activities, design and develop a range of evidence-based products and services for schools and conduct a significant number of education related randomised controlled trials, surveys and evaluations. These activities are undertaken for government departments and agencies, and other non-profit organisations around the world. The Foundation also undertakes a range of internally funded projects exploring

572-424: A working hypothesis is constructed as a statement of expectations, which can be linked to the exploratory research purpose in empirical investigation. Working hypotheses are often used as a conceptual framework in qualitative research. The provisional nature of working hypotheses makes them useful as an organizing device in applied research. Here they act like a useful guide to address problems that are still in

616-446: Is "to determine the applicability of educational theory and principles by testing hypotheses within specific settings". The following are several defining characteristics written by Gary Anderson to compare basic (academic) and applied (contract) research. The basis for educational research is the scientific method . The scientific method uses directed questions and manipulation of variables to systematically find information about

660-448: Is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon . A scientific hypothesis must be based on observations and make a testable and reproducible prediction about reality , in a process beginning with an educated guess or thought. A working hypothesis is a provisionally-accepted hypothesis used for the purpose of pursuing further progress in research . If a hypothesis is repeatedly demonstrated by experiment to be true, it may become

704-687: Is an interdisciplinary research enterprise that "investigates learning and teaching in a discipline [normally from the STEM fields ] from a perspective that reflects the discipline's priorities, worldview, knowledge, and practices." Examples include: Educational research can also be organized by the subject or object of focus , as in school, teacher, student, etc., the relationship between actors such as student-teacher, teacher-principal, school-home, etc. by educational outcomes, such as motivation, learning of core subjects, learning of 21st century skills, attitudes, etc. In response to increased attention to

748-425: Is aptly known as applied or contractual research. Researchers in this field are trying to find solutions to existing educational problems. The approach is much more utilitarian and pragmatic as it strives to find information that will directly influence practice. Applied researchers are often commissioned by a sponsor and are responsible for addressing the needs presented by their employer. The goal of this research

792-431: Is less agreement about specific standards, criteria and research procedures. As a result, the value and quality of educational research has been questioned. Educational researchers may draw upon a variety of disciplines including psychology , economics , sociology , anthropology , and philosophy . Methods may be drawn from a range of disciplines. Conclusions drawn from an individual research study may be limited by

836-465: Is not whether research into teaching should be conducted by means of quantitative measures (on some such grounds as that they are more 'objective') or qualitative measures (on some such grounds as that they are more 'insightful'), but what kind of research can sensibly be utilized to look into this particular aspect of teaching as opposed to that. In analysis of mixed methods, the following ways might be used; Discipline-based education research ( DBER )

880-423: Is the assumption in a (possibly counterfactual ) What If question. The adjective hypothetical , meaning "having the nature of a hypothesis", or "being assumed to exist as an immediate consequence of a hypothesis", can refer to any of these meanings of the term "hypothesis". In its ancient usage, hypothesis referred to a summary of the plot of a classical drama . The English word hypothesis comes from

924-401: The ancient Greek word ὑπόθεσις hypothesis whose literal or etymological sense is "putting or placing under" and hence in extended use has many other meanings including "supposition". In Plato 's Meno (86e–87b), Socrates dissects virtue with a method used by mathematicians, that of "investigating from a hypothesis". In this sense, 'hypothesis' refers to a clever idea or to

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968-463: The null hypothesis and the alternative hypothesis . The null hypothesis is the hypothesis that states that there is no relation between the phenomena whose relation is under investigation, or at least not of the form given by the alternative hypothesis. The alternative hypothesis, as the name suggests, is the alternative to the null hypothesis: it states that there is some kind of relation. The alternative hypothesis may take several forms, depending on

1012-675: The Centre for Educational Research and Development in England and Wales, NFER's head office is located in Slough , with a separate regional office located in York . This England -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This Wales -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Educational research Educational researchers generally agree that research should be rigorous and systematic. However, there

1056-790: The Education of the Gifted , the Journal of Advanced Academics , the Journal of Cognition and Development , the Journal of Educational Psychology , the Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition , JMIR Medical Education , the Journal of Numerical Cognition , the Journal of Research in Reading , Language Learning , Learning and Instruction , Mind, Brain, and Education , and Scientific Studies of Reading have adopted result-blind peer review (i.e. where studies are accepted not on

1100-405: The ability of some hypothesis to adequately answer the question under investigation. In contrast, unfettered observation is not as likely to raise unexplained issues or open questions in science, as would the formulation of a crucial experiment to test the hypothesis. A thought experiment might also be used to test the hypothesis. In framing a hypothesis, the investigator must not currently know

1144-765: The basis of their findings and after the studies are completed, but before the studies are conducted and upon the basis of the methodological rigor of their experimental designs and the theoretical justifications for their statistical analysis techniques before data collection or analysis is done) as part of an initiative organized by the Center for Open Science in response to concerns about publication bias and p -hacking . Early analysis of such reforms in psychology journals has estimated that 61 percent of result-blind studies have led to null results , in contrast to an estimated 5 to 20 percent in earlier psychological research. Hypotheses A hypothesis ( pl. : hypotheses )

1188-441: The characteristics of the participants who were studied and the conditions under which the study was conducted. Gary Anderson outlined ten aspects of educational research: There are different approaches to educational research. One is a basic approach, also referred to as an academic research approach. Another approach is applied research or a contract research approach. These approaches have different purposes which influence

1232-491: The data which is descriptive in nature. Tools that educational researchers use in collecting qualitative data include: observations, conducting interviews, conducting document analysis, and analyzing participant products such as journals, diaries, images or blogs. Quantitative research uses data that is numerical and is based on the assumption that the numbers will describe a single reality. Statistics are often applied to find relationships between variables. There also exists

1276-583: The findings, only 54 percent of replications were successful. As of December 2021 , among more than 300 other psychology and medical journals, the British Journal of Developmental Psychology , the British Journal of Educational Psychology , the Canadian Journal of School Psychology , Exceptional Children , Frontiers in Education , the Gifted Child Quarterly , the Journal for

1320-484: The framer of a hypothesis needs to define specifics in operational terms. A hypothesis requires more work by the researcher in order to either confirm or disprove it. In due course, a confirmed hypothesis may become part of a theory or occasionally may grow to become a theory itself. Normally, scientific hypotheses have the form of a mathematical model . Sometimes, but not always, one can also formulate them as existential statements , stating that some particular instance of

1364-475: The hypothesis is proven to be either "true" or "false" through a verifiability - or falsifiability -oriented experiment . Any useful hypothesis will enable predictions by reasoning (including deductive reasoning ). It might predict the outcome of an experiment in a laboratory setting or the observation of a phenomenon in nature . The prediction may also invoke statistics and only talk about probabilities. Karl Popper , following others, has argued that

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1408-444: The key issues in education. NFER’s clients include government departments and agencies at international, national and local levels, third sector organisations, private and public companies, employers and other organisations with an interest in education. The independent, not-for-profit organisation invests any surplus funds directly back into its programme of research to address key questions in education. Originally founded in 1946 as

1452-440: The nature of the hypothesized relation; in particular, it can be two-sided (for example: there is some effect, in a yet unknown direction) or one-sided (the direction of the hypothesized relation, positive or negative, is fixed in advance). Conventional significance levels for testing hypotheses (acceptable probabilities of wrongly rejecting a true null hypothesis) are .10, .05, and .01. The significance level for deciding whether

1496-469: The nature of the respective research. Basic, or academic research focuses on the search for truth or the development of educational theory . Researchers with this background "design studies that can test, refine, modify, or develop theories". Generally, these researchers are affiliated with an academic institution and are performing this research as part of their graduate or doctoral work. The pursuit of information that can be directly applied to practice

1540-430: The null hypothesis is rejected and the alternative hypothesis is accepted must be determined in advance, before the observations are collected or inspected. If these criteria are determined later, when the data to be tested are already known, the test is invalid. The above procedure is actually dependent on the number of the participants (units or sample size ) that are included in the study. For instance, to avoid having

1584-400: The outcome of a test or that it remains reasonably under continuing investigation. Only in such cases does the experiment, test or study potentially increase the probability of showing the truth of a hypothesis. If the researcher already knows the outcome, it counts as a "consequence" — and the researcher should have already considered this while formulating the hypothesis. If one cannot assess

1628-402: The phenomenon under examination has some characteristic and causal explanations, which have the general form of universal statements , stating that every instance of the phenomenon has a particular characteristic. In entrepreneurial setting, a hypothesis is used to formulate provisional ideas about the attributes of products or business models. The formulated hypothesis is then evaluated, where

1672-414: The plane of observation. By virtue of those interpretative connections, the network can function as a scientific theory." Hypotheses with concepts anchored in the plane of observation are ready to be tested. In "actual scientific practice the process of framing a theoretical structure and of interpreting it are not always sharply separated, since the intended interpretation usually guides the construction of

1716-410: The predictions by observation or by experience , the hypothesis needs to be tested by others providing observations. For example, a new technology or theory might make the necessary experiments feasible. A trial solution to a problem is commonly referred to as a hypothesis—or, often, as an " educated guess " —because it provides a suggested outcome based on the evidence. However, some scientists reject

1760-498: The replicability of experimental findings in the sciences and medicine , in 2014, Educational Researcher published a review of the entire publication history of the 100 education journals with the highest five-year impact factors that found that out of 164,589 articles published only 221 articles (or 0.13 percent) were attempted replications of previous studies. Only 28.5 percent of the replication studies were direct replications rather than conceptual replications (i.e. usage of

1804-570: The sample size be too small to reject a null hypothesis, it is recommended that one specify a sufficient sample size from the beginning. It is advisable to define a small, medium and large effect size for each of a number of important statistical tests which are used to test the hypotheses. Mount Hypothesis in Antarctica is named in appreciation of the role of hypothesis in scientific research. Several hypotheses have been put forth, in different subject areas: hypothesis [...]— Working hypothesis ,

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1848-424: The teaching and learning process. In this scenario questions are answered by the analysis of data that is collected specifically for the purpose of answering these questions. Hypotheses are written and subsequently proved or disproved by data which leads to the creation of new hypotheses . The two main types of data that are used under this method are qualitative and quantitative . Qualitative research uses

1892-451: The term "educated guess" as incorrect. Experimenters may test and reject several hypotheses before solving the problem. According to Schick and Vaughn, researchers weighing up alternative hypotheses may take into consideration: A working hypothesis is a hypothesis that is provisionally accepted as a basis for further research in the hope that a tenable theory will be produced, even if the hypothesis ultimately fails. Like all hypotheses,

1936-399: The theoretician". It is, however, "possible and indeed desirable, for the purposes of logical clarification, to separate the two steps conceptually". When a possible correlation or similar relation between phenomena is investigated, such as whether a proposed remedy is effective in treating a disease, the hypothesis that a relation exists cannot be examined the same way one might examine

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