Introduction to Research Methods

Introduction to Research Methods

Investigation of research articles

In this section, various research articles on a subject are included. The research methods used by the researchers in their study are discussed extensively in this study. The primary focus of this study will be the benefits and limitations of these research methods. The articles that are included are on the subject of gifted children and the influence of various factors on them.

Research Article no. 1: Gifted Primary Students` Knowledge of Self Directed Learning

In this paper titled 'Gifted Primary Students` Knowledge of Self Directed Learning', the author has used the method of interview for research purpose (Deur, 2004, p.64). He has conducted an interview study on gifted students who are self directed and self regulated learners. The main objective of his study was to obtain the view points of primary schooling students on self-directed learning. The researcher`s aim was to construct a self-directed learning model using these views of students.

The research method using interviews proves to be an effective as well as an efficient method. Interviews are structured way of communication between the interviewer and the interviewee (Oatey, 1999, p.n.d.). The interviewer uses open-ended questions to conduct the interview (Kothari, . Interviewing is a method to collect information and data. Interviews are usually carried out when the data required is highly personalized. Although, they can also be used for general collection of data. Interviews provide opportunities of probing the interviewee. This methodology permits the interviewer to respond to the interviewee`s responses. He can make alterations to his questions accordingly. The ability to create new relevant questions on the occasion helps in achieving revealing and comprehensive information from the subject. Interviewer can also make his points clear in this methodology. In this research technique, the respondent can make false statements due to lack of knowledge on a particular subject, nervousness, confusion, feeling of embarrassment or memory loss. On the contrary, confident participants may provide elaborative answers on a subject (Gupta, 2008, p.142).

Interviews provide a good rate of response to the interviewer. In the article we have chose for investigation, the researcher received a good rate of response from the respondents. He conducted the interviews of 10 gifted students in the school and tape-recorded their views. He made prompts available for the majority of the questions. He transcribed and categorized all the responses of the questions. All the students successfully managed to provide a complete explanation of self directed learning (Deur, 2004, p.73). They put across an optimistic attitude towards self directed learning and its significance for their future. Their answers clearly represented that they have sufficient knowledge regarding self directed learning.

The researcher also interviewed students with learning difficulties and randomly selected students. Their answers showed that they also had sufficient knowledge on the subject of self directed learning, though there was a difference in the responses of each of the group. This group`s response indicated that they viewed self directed learning as chiefly school oriented. Students of each group had a positive attitude ...