Research design and methodology
4.3 Research methodology
This study was rooted in the qualitative research tradition. Qualitative methods were used in this research because they provide an in-depth description of a certain practice or setting (Mertens, 2014, p. 225). Since this study sought to investigate how EWP6 is implemented in the form of a full-service school, the new setting in this case is the concept from the EWP6policy of ‘full-service school’. According to Mertens (2014, p. 225) qualitative research involves a set of a variety of empirical material, such as a case study or life-history interview which describes meanings in individual lives. For this study, the teachers’ meanings and understandings of EWP6 were studied and analysed. Mertens (2014) identifies types of research and questions for which qualitative methods are appropriate, which include:
Where the main focus of the research is on the process and implementation of a certain programme;
Gathering of detailed and in-depth information about certain clients or programmes; and
Examining the unique qualities exhibited by individuals.
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The abovementioned apply to the intended subject of investigation in this study, which involved detailed information on the teachers’ understandings and experiences of inclusive education and how is it implemented at a full-service school.
4.3.1 Research design
This design is a plan, structure or strategy of investigation so conceived to obtain some answers to research questions (Kumar, 2012, p. 94). It outlines what the investigator will do from writing the hypothesis and other operational implications to the final analysis of data.
Sarantakos (2012, pp. 105-106) states that research design simply explains in detail how the researcher intends to conduct a study, and further highlights the purpose of having a research design:
It offers a guide that directs the research, and helps to rationalise the use of time as well as resources,
It outlines order and clarity in the entire process of study,
It guarantees that all aspects of the study will be addressed, and
It helps to control and minimise influences on data collection and the quality of data.
The research design that was selected to address the research questions of this study is the case study. As mentioned earlier in this chapter, the study was piloted as a case study at a full- service school using only questionnaires for data collection. The study was piloted to check the feasibility of the entire study and the data collection strategy before attempting the main study.
I chose a case study because it allows the researcher to use many data sources (Swanborn, 2010, p. 17), as will be discussed later in this chapter. A case study is defined as an approach that involves an in-depth exploration of a single case of the phenomenon under study (Mcduffie and Scruggs, 2008, p. 233). The case could be based on any number of units, an individual, a group of individuals, a school or an event. Rule & John (2011, p. 4) define a case study as a systemic and in-depth study of one particular case in its context, and state that the case may be a person (teacher or learner), a group of people or an organisation. They further describe the aims of a case study, saying that it analyses what it is like in any particular situation, and state that the case study is generally descriptive in nature. The researcher aims to capture what the
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reality of the participants is, the life experiences they have lived through and their thoughts about a particular situation (Cohen, Manion and Morrison, 2000, p. 182). Case studies also capture how this reality manifests in practice. For this research, through a case study, I investigated teachers’ understandings and experiences of EWP6 and how its implementation unfolds at a full-service school.
4.3.2 Research methods
The data were collected solely by the researcher. The data collection techniques used closely followed the interpretive paradigm that was chosen for this study. Individual interviews, questionnaires and focus group interviews were chosen as the means of data collection.
4.3.2.1 Questionnaires
I designed a list of questions which the respondents answered. I also followed the five considerations to keep in mind when designing questionnaires (Bertram and Christiansen, 2013, pp. 78-79): they were piloted with a small sample before being administered to a large group; questionnaires should not contain ambiguous questions; they are administered directly by the researcher; they should not have leading questions that a respondent would answer in a particular way; all questionnaires contain questions in a language which participants understand easily; and the questionnaires ask only for information related and relevant to the study. As mentioned earlier in this chapter, all the questionnaires were piloted at Mcoyi full- service school to check the feasibility of the main study. The questionnaires were administered to 34 teachers, and were in English, as the teachers seemed very comfortable with this. The purpose for completing the questionnaires was discussed with the respondents. Confidentiality and anonymity were assured. The questionnaires comprised eight pages with a total of 30 questions. The first few questions sought biographical information including their qualifications, and the rest focused on their understandings and experience of inclusive education, as well as how they implement EWP6.
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This data collection technique has advantages and disadvantages (Cohen et al., 2011, pp. 78–
79). Advantages of questionnaires include that:
Questionnaires can be administered to a large number of people,
Data collected can be easily captured into a computer program which will sort responses in each category,
They also enable the researcher to standardise the questions and to control the amount of information given by respondents, and
They offer a rapid, efficient, effective and confidential means of collecting a large number of responses.
Denscombe (2014) adds that this data collection method (questionnaires) is very economical in that they can provide significant amount of research data for a relatively low cost in terms of materials, money and time. There are also disadvantages these being that the researcher is not always there when the participants complete questions and they might not fully understand the questions; questionnaires require a good literacy level of respondents; and the information received from the respondents tends to be descriptive rather than giving any in-depth explanation (Bertram & Christiansen, 2013, pp. 78-79).
4.3.2.2 Focus group interviews
This was one of the data collection technique used in the study. The SMT was the targeted group. There were four members of the SMT, two men and two women. I considered the distinctive characteristics of this approach, as described by Swarnborn, (2010, p. 348), who stated that this approach:
Involves homogeneous people in sound interactions;
Allows a researcher to develop an understanding of why people feel a certain way, and the researcher can be innovative enough to bring up issues which participants feel are important, rather than just responding to the questions;
Allows the researcher to gather more than enough data with a considerable number of participants;
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Allows the researcher to collect qualitative data from the focused discussion; and
Allows individuals to respond to each other, so as to build on from the previous replies.
Swarnborn (2010) further describes the importance of participant selection, saying that researchers need to select participants carefully to ensure there is an appropriate mix of people representing various groups (i.e. balance of gender, race, etc.). For this study it was not easy to consider the above statement, because there was only one racial group present at Ntabakayikhonjwa full-service school. Boyman also suggests that the researcher needs to keep the size of the group manageable, and for this study it was a manageable group of four participants. The ground rules for the session were set prior to commencement of the actual discussion. Rules mentioned included, inter alia, the importance of respecting the speaker who is on the floor and respecting each other’s opinion on the topic; the researcher was prepared to intervene in a polite manner if the interaction became heated. This method was chosen because the researcher was able to encourage groups to voice their opinions, and was also able to probe more deeply when further clarifications were required.
This also assisted me to obtain greater coverage on the understanding of EWP6 and its implementation process at a full-service school. Two focus group discussions were held with the same participants. Both focus group interviews were recorded via audio recorder with the permission of the participants, and each lasted 45 minutes. The first session aimed to create a good rapport with the participants. At first it was not easy for my participants to talk freely because of my position as an official in the DoE, but the second session of the interview went very well.
4.3.2.3 Individual interview
The study also used individual interview as a technique to generate data. The LSE was the only one subjected to this method. I saw the need to interview an LSE in order to familiarise myself with the main functions they perform at a full-service school to investigate how EWP6 is being implemented and identify how the LSE provides support to this school. For the LSE I chose a semi-structured interview which was divided into two sessions, each of which lasted for an hour. The interview was based on the support she provides to the Ntabakayikhonjwa full- service school. The interviews were recorded with her permission. The whole interview process
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took place at Ntabakayikhonjwa full-service school to which she is allocated by the DoE to provide support to school. Supplementary notes were taken during the interview.
4.3.2.4 Observation
I used the supplementary method of observation informally throughout the entire process as well as during the individual interview with the LSE and focus group interviews with the SMT.I kept field notes throughout the research process.