Running head: UNDERSTANDING THE DOCTORAL RESEARCH PROCESS

UNDERSTANDING THE DOCTORAL RESEARCH PROCESS

Topic Paper Submitted to Northcentral University Graduate Faculty of the School of Business and Technology Management in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of

Doctor of International Education

by Steven Clark Bradley

Prescott Valley, Arizona January, 2014

UNDERSTANDING THE DOCTORAL RESEARCH PROCESS

Part 1 Introduction The topic I would like to write about for my dissertation is the positive and/or negative impacts of the massive change in American education called the Common Core and to research whether or not the results are valid and reliable. Though Common Core is a relatively recent subject that is just coming into play in the American education system, there are many peerreviewed articles that appear to be well suited to the topic. This paper will discuss the importance of using valid and reliable peer-reviewed information from academias body of knowledge and the need to use critical thinking and analysis to compare the current well-founded and thoroughly critiqued traditional state-by-state methods of education, which have been meticulously evaluated, to the still abstract, theoretical Common Core standards for educating American children. Key concepts in academic research According to Last (2001) research validity and reliability have two parts. One part is interior that is the internal validity and reliability that determine whether the conclusions of a research study are legitimate or not as a result of the manner in which data was gathered and interpreted and whether it actually applies to the topic under investigation. The second form of research validity and reliability is external, which measures if the data recorded is actually applicable to other sub-groups that may be of interest in a research endeavor. Both of the terms of validity and reliability are central to a researchers work of gathering unbiased and untainted facts in the area under investigation. In research for a dissertation, it is imperative that critical thinking be employed to develop impartial and applicable results and that the researcher allow the facts to be revealed whether support their hypothesis or not. True critical thinking requires the ability to detach ones self from an issue or opinion and to look at the facts, as they are

UNDERSTANDING THE DOCTORAL RESEARCH PROCESS

revealed without prejudice or preconceived opinions or notions. The true critical thinker is willing to modify their outlook when valid and reliable data logically demands that they do so. Leedy and Ormrod (2010) point out that true research is not merely the act of grouping pieces of information into a logical assortment of ideas, and the true researcher is not someone who tries to back up their ideas with subjective information that proves their analysis as true. The true researcher is an academic professional who seeks, through critical thinking, to reveal truth through the body of available knowledge that will either confirm or refute their own assumptions on a given topic. The authors demonstrated that authentic research requires that the academic researcher use critical thinking to objectively analyze and interpret the validity, reliability of the information they are investigating in order to produce unbiased resulting facts that are not tainted by the investigators own opinions. The objectives of academic research Since the purpose of research is logically the result of problematic or questionable academic situations, the examination of applicable academic data must have clear, dependable and applicable objectives for the inquiry. Adequately developed research must be bathed in sufficiently developed preparation that will aid the investigator and the reader to ascertain the validity and reliability of the information included in a research paper. The main problems, questions or hypothesis in question, and their sub-questions and/or sub-problems that naturally arise in adequate research, must be organized in a manageable fashion that accepts certain critical suppositions so that the collection of data gathered can lead to a resolution to the situation that led to the research endeavor initially. In the article, Opportunities and Challenges in Next Generation Standards, Stage et al. (2013) discuss how the harmonization of subjects and increased preparation of students for college study and their future vocations will be the catalyst for the national Common Core curriculum school standards. The authors predict that elementary, middle schools and high

UNDERSTANDING THE DOCTORAL RESEARCH PROCESS

schools will experience a great increase in learning related to science, math and English Language Arts based on the U.S. National Research Council's (NRC's) structure that the first national education curriculum known as Common Core will adhere to. Stage et al. (2013) are lacking in objectivity in their article as they formed their research around the presupposition that the new standards and homogeny of curriculum into a united national system will bring about more advancement in science, math and English Language Arts than previous traditional, individual state standards procured. The authors compared the traditional standards that have been in place and scrutinized over many decades with the more conceptual and unproven principles that are only now beginning to gain a foothold in American education. Comparing untested Common Core standards to traditional ones, which have stood the test of time, does not necessarily indicate that the Common Core standards are inferior to the traditional values in America. It only shows that because Common Core standards are still more abstract than traditional ones, there is no ascertainable manner, as of yet, to know of their efficiency or success, which the authors did not bring adequately into question. Because the various aspects of Common Core standards have not yet met the test of time or scrutiny, the development of a dissertation on this topic will require a great amount of objectivity that fairly and sufficiently employs scholarly material that allows the facts to paint the picture of this new national curriculum without permitting preconceived notions to skew truth. One of the biggest challenges to Common Core standards is whether literacy and math standards will be widely adopted throughout the United States. Twenty-six states have served as partners in the implementation and development of the new standards. Nevertheless, it is feared that the impetus for the new educational standards may be diminishing. Some states have suggested that they may choose to reject the implementation of Common Core, since evolution and environmental issues are taught throughout the curriculum. Herein, it can be witnessed that the

UNDERSTANDING THE DOCTORAL RESEARCH PROCESS

success of common Core has not been fully accepted, and there is a fair amount of subjectivity concerning the new standards in contrast to the more recognized, traditional standards. A truly academic dissertation on this topic must reliably and verifiably demonstrate that the standard basis for evaluating success or failure. Validity, reliability and critical thinking must be utilized in the comparison of the effectiveness of traditional education standards to the more abstract, yet untested national curriculum called the Common Core, for which there is still no real manner of determining educational improvement or educational regression. The one compelling method to measure the success or failure of traditional or Common Core standards is by employing definable tools of comparative measurement to determine if the reduction of material studied actually helps a students education or impedes it. For now, Common Core standards are a speculative theory. An effective dissertation should logically use this rhetorical strategy to show the contrast between a well-founded set of standards and a more recent set, for which there is no sure approach to reliably identify if the intangible Common Core initiatives are more successful or less than the concrete traditional educational standards now in place. This kind of comparison between the more concrete traditional standards, with years of evaluation and reform behind them, and the more recent abstract Common Core standards that have almost no history to back them up should form the structure of research for a dissertation on this topic. With virtually no official evaluation mechanisms associated with the Common Core strategy of concrete verses abstract ideas or positions is a logical choice for the development of a dissertation on the subject of the new national curriculum called Common Core. Conclusion It cannot be understated that valid and reliable impartial information cannot be truly discovered without the use of critical thinking. The ability to reason, without the fog of innate opinion, is the fuel for logic that is based upon facts that are free of partisanship. In the article

UNDERSTANDING THE DOCTORAL RESEARCH PROCESS

titled Critical Thinking: What is it, Beyer (1985) states that thinking critically requires that researchers be both dubious and unbiased. The veritable critical thinker is a mature academician who is fair in their judgment and only yields their verdicts based on verification and logic. The objective ability to think critically necessitates the admiration of lucidity and meticulousness in analysis and the ability to subjectively consider opposing points of view. The true critical thinker is willing to modify their outlook when valid and reliable data logically demands that they do so. Such abilities are a profound prerequisite to carry out appropriate academic research for a dissertation that is fair, objective and honest in its ultimate conclusions.

UNDERSTANDING THE DOCTORAL RESEARCH PROCESS

References Last, J. (2001). International Epidemiological Association. A dictionary of epidemiology. New York: Oxford University Press. Leedy, P. D. and Ormrod, J. E. (2010). Practical Research: Planning and Design. Boston: Pearson Education. Stage, E.K. Asturias H, Cheuk T, Daro PA, Hampton SB. (2013). Opportunities and challenges in next generation standards. Science, 340, 276-7. doi: 10.1126/science.1234011. PubMed PMID: 23599466. Beyer, B.K. (1985). Critical Thinking: What is it? Social Education, 49, 270-276

UNDERSTANDING THE DOCTORAL RESEARCH PROCESS

Part Two Annotated Bibliographies 1. Stage EK, Asturias H, Cheuk T, Daro PA, Hampton SB. (2013). Opportunities and challenges in next generation standards. Science, 340, 276-7. doi: 10.1126/science.1234011. PubMed PMID: 23599466. In the article, Opportunities and Challenges in Next Generation Standards, Stage et al., (2013) discuss how the harmonization of subjects and increased preparation of students for college study and their future vocations will be the catalyst for the national Common Core curriculum school standards. The authors predict that elementary, middle schools and high schools will experience a great increase in learning related to science, math and English Language Arts based on the U.S. National Research Council's (NRC's) structure that the first national education curriculum known as Common Core will adhere to. The authors suppose that the new standards and homogeny of curriculum into a united national system will bring about more advancement in science, math and English Language Arts than previous traditional, individual state standards procured. The article compares traditional standards that have been in place and scrutinized over many decades with the more conceptual and unproven principles that are only now beginning to gain a foothold in American education. Comparing untested Common Core standards to traditional ones, which have stood the test of time, does not necessarily indicate that the Common Core standards are inferior to the traditional values in America. It only shows that because Common Core standards are still more abstract than traditional ones, there is no ascertainable manner, as of yet, to know of their efficiency or success. The article insists that the past education standards that were developed for science, ELA and math, on an individual state by state basis, were too extensive and created more curriculum and material than any school system could adequately teach. Common Core creates a uniform national curriculum that is more

UNDERSTANDING THE DOCTORAL RESEARCH PROCESS

precise and that tapers down the scope and quantity of material taught to students. The main premise is based on a greater emphasis on analysis and investigative standards and is critical of traditional education standards even though the evidence indicating that a larger amount of school hours studying fewer subjects results in better scores exist only in high-performing countries, which may not have the same positive results in the culture and social framework of students in the United States. Creating a common set of assessment tools, at least at the elementary and middle school levels and getting universities to accept the new standards is key to Common Cores success in school systems across the nation. Stage et al., (2013) state that the old system limited access to higher learning in science, but they provided no data for such a claim. They insist that the new standards will grant more access to all students, but there is no record of this and the authors only provide theory and opinion to support their claims. The new system will require purposeful resources to meet the new higher standards. What the resources are is complicated to ascertain, from the article. The article strives to show that the traditional system of academic standards does not inspire students and fails to appreciate students interests and accomplishments, while the new Common Core standards enhance learning and students drive. These unsubstantiated hypotheses that pose new and less accepted ideals for education against concrete standards. 2. Regional Educational Laboratory Southeast, et al. (2012). Plans to Adopt and Implement Common Core State Standards in the Southeast Region States. Issues and Answers. Regional Educational Laboratory Southeast 136. This study describes how six states from the south are analyzing common core policy in mathematics and English, with the purpose of putting it into operation. The research aims to assemble and evaluate the state policy to determine each states outcomes after implementation takes place. Each state conducted their own investigation to build support for the implementation

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of Common Core. The states worked on putting together a potential schedule to determine the first year of implementation and to decide what would be taught from Common Core during the first year after execution the new national curriculum. The states education officials also worked on the development of a training program centered on the Common Core for teachers. A deadline was also decided upon for merging the states current test appraisals with the new standards set in the Common Core. Though each state maintained their own schedule, they worked to let the Common Core standards become take effect in 2014-2015 school year. This article contains a lot of excellent information that can be used to compare and contrast with material in opposition to the Common Core Curriculum. 3. Sawchuk, S. (2012). Many Teachers Not Ready for the Common Core. Education Week, 31, 1217. This article is about the concern shared among many educational researchers that there is a need for a lot more professional development in order for the Common Core state standards to succeed. Sawchuk discussed the difficulties that school officials have before them because of the lack of reliable tools to train the large numbers of teachers about the new standards that will be implemented through the Common Core. Many teachers are opposed to the changes that implementing the Common Core will bring about. The author sought to show that many of the teachers who oppose the implementation of the Common Core are already failing in teaching critical thinking to their students. The Common Core Standards place a lot of emphasis on the skill of critical thinking. The author revealed that several states plan to give training to their teachers as students before the teacher teaches it in their classrooms and to help teacher have a better understanding of the new education standards and to develop their own teaching skills for teaching within the Common Core Curriculum. In Sawchuks opinion, schools are not yet

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prepared to teach the classes in the new curriculum and are not effectively prepared for the Common Core. Though the author has good information about the unpreparedness of teachers for the Common Core, he did not adequately demonstrate how the training given by state school systems will improve teachers ability to function well in teaching the Common Core. The author did not show how the states plan to determine if the teachers are functioning well or if students are adequately learning as a result of the states training for instructors. This article is useful for my dissertation as it demonstrates the lack of verification that exists in the soon to be implemented Common Core standards.