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Service-Learning Research Primer (PDF)
The Research Cycle
As described in Chapter 1, the cycle of research encompasses theory. "All research, both quantitative and qualitative, is most beneficial when the design of research is guided by a theory and when the information that is gained through data collection is relevant to supporting, developing, refining, and revising a theory" (Bringle & Hatcher, 2000, p. 69). The research cycle is illustrated in Figure 2. The basic process is the same whether the researcher uses a quantitative or qualitative approach. Qualitative research, however, involves a more iterative process than quantitative research, since the investigator uses an interpretative, discovery-type approach in determining procedures to be used and data to be gathered. That is, the qualitative researcher may start out looking at one type of document, noticing particular patterns and themes, then decide to switch to oral interviews to obtain a different perspective on the themes. This iterative process (represented by the arrows in Figure 2) might be repeated several times before the researcher creates a synthesis and interprets the data.
Table 1. Purposes of Assessment in Service-Learning Education
(Adapted from Bringle & Hatcher, 2000)
| Purpose | Focus of Inquiry | Examples of Questions or Information Gathered | Scope of Conclusions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Classroom Grading, Self-assessment | Individual student, faculty, or community member | How did this student perform in my class? What did this student learn? What did I learn from teaching this course? | Specific to the individual student, course, and faculty member |
| Process Evaluation | Specific course, class, or program | How well was the program implemented? What worked well in this class? How could it be improved? | Specific to that class, course, or program |
| Outcomes Evaluation | Specific course, class, or program | What could the students do at the end of the course? What was the level of moral development at the end of the program? What were the reading skills of the tutored children? | Specific to that class, course, or program |
| Qualitative Research | May start with specific case, but then extends across cases, groups of students, multiple classes, courses, or programs | How did faculty integrate civic learning objectives into course syllabi? | Relevant to other (similar) courses, programs, or possibly servicelearning in general |
| Quantitative Research: Correlational | Across groups of students, or multiple classes, courses, or programs | What is the relationship between prior service experience and students' efficacy at the end of a course? | Relevant to other (similar) courses, programs, or possibly servicelearning in general |
| Quantitative Research: Experimental or Theory Testing | Across groups of students, or multiple classes, courses, or programs | Which type of reflection activities (highly structured or unstructured) lead to better student retention of course content? | Relevant to other (similar) courses, programs, or possibly servicelearning in general |
Whether qualitative or quantitative in nature, the research process itself may start out in an informal manner. For example, a faculty member may make an observation in class that leads to curiosity about whether including particular reflection exercises leads to learning a particular concept better. A review of the literature reveals different theories of active learning pedagogies, leading to refinement of the research question. The next step is defining the specific variables of interest (e.g., types of reflection) and how to manipulate and measure the outcomes (e.g., academic learning). These steps include determining the procedures to conduct the study (e.g., whether to measure learning through multiple choice exams, by conducting interviews, or through content analysis of student reflections; Will there be a control group of students?; Will learning be assessed at the beginning and end of the course?). After getting required clearance to conduct the project from the local Institutional Review Board, the researcher proceeds with data collection. The strategy used to conduct the analysis of the data will be linked with the research design and will determine the patterns of the results that are most relevant to evaluating the theoretical context of the research questions. In order for others to know about the project, the researcher needs to summarize the study in a report for dissemination. Dissemination can take a variety of forms, including an oral report to a local nonprofit agency, a presentation at a professional conference, and a peer-reviewed journal article. Frequently the research project will lead the investigator to be curious about other related questions, which starts the research cycle again.
