REFLECTIONS: CHAPTER 3 AND 4

Reflections:
Chapter 3
I first selected ERIC as the database that I would explore.  I typed in: Private, Christian elementary school student discipline compared to public elementary school student discipline.  It yielded 37,441 results.
The descriptors for the first record were: Mixed Methods Research, Private Schools, Elementary School Students, Low Income Groups
The descriptors for the second record were: Disproportionate Representation, Elementary School Students, Teacher Student Relationship, Intervention
The descriptors for the third record were:  Hispanic American Students, Elementary School Students, Discipline Problems, Discipline

Areas of commonality were each descriptor had the word "school", each had the word "elementary" and each had the word "student".  Differences were that they were all completely different topics and only one provided information that could be used to provide more information on the topic I wanted to explore.

Descriptors that I would like to add are :  Private, Christian, Elementary, Schools, student, Discipline, problems, compared, Public, urban, African-American

These descriptors are more specific because I added a geographic term (urban) and a biological context (African-American) and, should assist in narrowing the search.

The search yielded fewer results, 7,438 results.  I changed the publication date to "since 2016" and received 136 results.  I then changed the dates back to since 1998 and selected the descriptor African-American, which yielded 758 results.

When I used the connector "AND", it resulted in 0 findings.  I am not sure why this happened, but I believe that there is no title of any document that has these specific  descriptor  words all together.

When I used the connector "or", it resulted in 75,713 findings.  This is because I was given results with the specific words in quotations if they were included in the title, but did not have to be included with the other descriptors.

I narrowed my search to "a comparison of student discipline problems in private Christian elementary schools and public elementary schools.  It yielded 62 results.  However, only one article seemed to provide any information about the topic and it was not allowing me to see the full research study/dissertation, only a preview.  At this point, I think that I need further assistant in getting the articles that would provide me with good resources for my topic.

Chapter 4
I was able to select 2 articles from my list of findings in ERIC.  One article did not provide a literature review.  The title of this article was "Sources of Stress for teachers working in Private Elementary Schools  and the methods for coping with stress."  The second article included a literature review.  The title of this article was :A case study of classroom management practices and and the influence on classroom disruptions.  Both authors used subheadings and both authors described their hypothesis, research questions and research purposes.

The first article was about the types of stress teachers in a private school experience and how they cope with the stress.  The second article was about the classroom management practices of teachers and how classroom disruptions are afftected by these management practices.

Based on my overview of the list that I have, I am going to need some assistance increasing my list to get articles that are more specific to my topic.  I cannot seem to find any articles that speak on a comparison of publc vs. private school elementary students discipline alone.  They all seem to be tied to some other topic not completely related.  

Activities for Chapter 1:  Locate an original report of empirical research in your field, read it, and respond to the following questions:

Are there any obvious sampling problems? Explain

The study that I read and responded to was on the impact of leadership on student outcomes.  The study was done by compiling empirical data from a 3 year mixed-methods national study that investigated the works of principals in effective and improving schools.  A critical survey of existing literature on the topic of school leadership was also done, followed by a national survey that looked at principals' perceptions and actions that impacted student achievement.  Finally, a case study using 20 schools , primary and secondary, was dissected.  The sample of 20 schools was enough to determine patterns and causal relationships that had an impact on school improvement.

Are there any obvious measurement problems? Explain

The researchers used a mixed-methods approach instead of a one dimensional quantitative or qualitative approach.  I believe that this approach provided a more indepth and clearer understanding of the behaviors and leadership of principals who were effective and were able to sustain that effectiveness.

Has the researcher examined only a narrowly defined problem?  Is it too narrow?  Explain

The research examined a well-defined problem-leadership impact on student outcomes and school improvement.  Providing historical views and past works on the topic from a number of resources gave a more indepth look at the problem and its historical significance and impact on schooling today.  It examined both instructional and transformational approaches that impacted school improvement using research that focused on either qualitative or quantitative research methods.  The researchers then shared their methods and made a case that using a combination approach to research methodology yielded a less one- dimensional view of the problem.

Did you notice any flaws? Explain

No flaws were noticed in the studies.  The researchers pointed out that past studies may have been one dimensional and that by using the mixed methods approach, they were able to avoid that pattern.  They believed that focusing solely on one type of approach decreased the possibilities of finding patterns and causal relationships.  They felt that their method was better to show the link between leadership practices that affected student outcomes.

Overall, do you think the research make an important contribution to advancing knowledge? Explain.

As a school principal, I found the research to be very helpful.  It confirmed what I already held to be true, that as a school leader, it is important to not only focus on instructional strategies, but also building relationships and changing school culture to impact student achievement.  It also opened my eyes to selecting the appropriate research methodology to effectively gather data for my study.