If you are a researcher and if you have the readiness to plan the
research, first question that must come to your mind is;
What should be the objectives of the research?
That means, what you are going to attain through your research.
What are you going to establish through the research. Or, what are you going to
find out through your attempt.
Objectives of the research can only be formulated in tune to the type
of research and the data to be captured for analysis.
For example, read closely the following set of objectives of an
experimental research, titled:
TRYOUT OF AUDIO VISUAL AIDS TO IMPROVE LISTENING AND SPEAKING
SKILLS IN ENGLISH AT ELEMENTARY LEVEL.
1. To prepare and find out suitable Audio Aids for the students of
class V.
2. To prepare and find out suitable Visual Aids for the students
of class V.
3. To prepare and find out suitable Audio Visual Aids for the
students of class V.
4. To try out different Audio, Visual and Audio Visual Aids on the
students of class V for improving their Listening and Speaking skills.
5. To find out the
effectiveness of Audio Visual Aids in terms of students’ achievement in
improvement of listening skill.
6. To find out the effectiveness of Audio Visual Aids in terms of
students’ achievement in improvement of speaking skill.
7. To find out the effectiveness of Audio Visual Aids in terms of
urban students’ achievement in improvement of Listening skill.
8. To find out the
effectiveness of Audio Visual Aids in terms of urban students’ achievement in
improvement of speaking skill.
9. To find out the effectiveness of Audio Visual Aids in terms of
rural students’ achievement in improvement of Listening skill.
10. To find out the effectiveness of Audio Visual Aids in terms of
rural students’ achievement in improvement of speaking skill.
11. To compare the effectiveness of urban and rural students
achievement of both the tests.
12. To compare the effectiveness of students achievement of both
the tests.
13. To study the effect of treatment, and their various
interventions of students’ achievement.
Read one more set of objectives of another experimental research,
titled;
THE IMPACT OF LISTENING NARRATIVES
WITH EMOTIONAL PUNCH ON VERBAL-LINGUISTIC INTELLIGENCE OF THE CHILDREN IN CLASS
IV
1. To study the impact of listening narratives with emotional punch on
verbal-linguistic intelligence of children in class IV.
2. To examine the scope of listening narratives with emotional punch in the
present XYZ curriculum.
3. To envision a classroom that is conducive for listening narratives with
emotional punch.
While there are 13 objectives
with the first set, there are only three with the second set. The number of
objectives is not the factor that decides the gravity of the research. But,
what matters is the specificity with each and every statement.
To study, to
examine, to find out, to determine, to compare,
to establish are certain general root forms used while
stating the objectives. These forms have their own connotation, which shall not
be challenged by the researcher.
Before we go further, shall we
examine the sense of each one in the context of research?
- To study =
consider in detail and subject to an analysis in order to discover essential
features or meaning.
- To examine =
investigate thoroughly to see if true.
- To find out =
establish after a calculation, investigation, experiment, survey, or study.
- To
determine= find out with certainty, usually by making an inquiry or other
effort.
- To compare=
examine and note the similarities or differences of.
- To establish
= make clear the validity of something, as by an example, explanation or
experiment.
So, one can’t use any of the
above without understanding the periphery of the meaning of each word in the
context of research. When one writes to
find out or to determine, the reader expects certain calculation or
certainty made through inquiry. If the researcher does not satisfy such a requirement
in the collection of data and analysis of data, she/he can’t claim validity.
Above is the first point to be
considered while formulating objectives for research.
Next point is that, the
objectives should be in observable, measurable and provable terms.
Objectives beginning with to know or to envision are not in observable, measurable or provable form.
- See the following example of a
set of objectives, which are observable,
measurable and provable.
Title:
THE EFFECTIVENESS OF CERTAIN SELF
INSTRUCTIONAL MODULES IN THE IN-SERVICE TRAINING OF TEACHERS AT THE SECONDARY
LEVEL.
- To identify
the effect of the immediate and delayed achievement of the pupils whose
teachers have undergone in-service training through self-instructional modules
in the areas of Articles, Interrogatives and Tenses in standard IX.
- To determine
the effect of the immediate and delayed achievement of the pupils whose
teachers have undergone in-service training through face-to-face instruction in
the areas of Articles, Interrogatives and Tenses in standard IX.
These are my suggestions on formulating
objectives, especially for experimental type of research. Hope the readers may share their views so as
to open up a new discussion.
Sir, Let me congratulate first for starting a blog exclusively for educational research .Nowadays a lot of teachers and teacher educators are doing educational research as a part of their professional development. Most of them are doing part time Ph.D. I think .So it is very much difficult for them to do it systematically. I am one among the many. If we get a platform like this to discuss these things in detail it will be of great help.
ReplyDeleteThis post is very much helpful for me to recheck my objectives critically. The” objectivity “of the objectives was well expressed through the post.
Happy to read your comment. This blog is a platform for educational researchers, who may share their views on any ongoing research. Thus they are exposed to the rest of the world. Researchers with same mind and same anxiety join together for help one another.
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