CHAPTER 3
METHODOLOGY
The purpose of this phenomenological study was to discover the Praxis preparation factors (i.e., programs, policies, and practices) that have contributed to or limited exam success among African American teacher education students at two public Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in Alabama. Praxis includes both the Praxis Core Skills for Education and the Praxis subject area exam. Praxis preparation and success factors will be generally defined as [Fill in the explanation here.] This study examined the experiences and perceptions of African American students enrolled at the Alabama HBCUs, as well as the perceptions of faculty and program directors of the teacher education programs at the same site institutions.
In keeping with the suggested sample size for phenomenological research, at least twenty participants (Creswell, 2013) will be interviewed to include TEP students, faculty, and program directors to examine perceptions and lived experiences involving the Praxis Series® assessments. A short survey will be added to help determine the background of each participant.
Chapter three presents the phenomenological study methodology and the research design. The chapter also details participant sampling, the data collection procedures, and all the materials and instrumentations required to complete the study. This chapter reveals reliability and trustworthiness specifics, the role of the researcher, ethical considerations, and a summary of the research methodology.
Research Methods and Design
Creswell (2013) describes qualitative research as being interpretive in a natural setting. Creswell states, “We conduct qualitative research when we want to empower individuals to share their stories, hear their voices, and minimize the power relationships that often exist between a researcher and the participants in a study” (p. 48, emphasis in original). Qualitative research is an exploratory approach, in which the researcher asks open-ended questions that will depend on the perception of the participants involved (Creswell & Poth, 2018). The data will entail a collection of words from the participants that will be analyzed using emerging themes, while acknowledging the subjective of the research (Clark & Creswell, 2010).
The participants will be asked to respond to a survey about their preparedness to take teacher certification and how many times it took to pass the assessments. Qualitative method is considered as the preferred method when the research questions require exploration because very little is known about the topic and the detailed understanding of the phenomenon. Qualitative researchers intend for participants to be able to vocal express and discuss their experiences and perspectives openly so they can tell their stories (Creswell & Poth, 2018).
The data will be obtained interviewing the participants allowing them to share information and observing them in a natural setting. This particular qualitative phenomenological design will allow the researcher to thoroughly examine and explore the perceptions of African American, TEP students; TEP faculty, and TEP program directors at NAC and SWAU.
Research Questions
The overarching research question for this phenomenological study is:
RQ1. What programs, policies, or practices contribute to or limit Praxis exam success among African American TEP students at two public HBCUs in Alabama?
This overarching research questions will be researched through the following sub-questions provide for this study:
RQ2. How do African American TEP students perceive Praxis preparation at two public HBCUs in Alabama?
RQ3. What are the lived experiences of African American TEP students as they prepare for the Praxis at two public HBCUs in Alabama?
RQ4. How do TEP faculty and program directors perceive Praxis preparation at two public HBCUs in Alabama??
RQ5. What are the lived experiences of TEP faculty and program directors as they prepare African American students for the Praxis exam at two public HBCUs in Alabama?
Role of the Researcher
The researcher for this study, who is responsible for collecting and analyzing the data, is an employee at one of the site institutions. As the researcher, from 2012, I served as the testing specialist at a public university of four thousand to five thousand students. My experiences with assessments involve the administration of these assessments and making sure all policies and procedures are followed. The researcher will encourage participants to share their personal experiences and perceptions devoid of influence and input.
Validity Strategies
Conducting “backyard” research warrants multiple strategies for validity (Creswell, 1992). Therefore, multiple strategies of validity were integrated to mitigate bias and validate the accuracy of the data: (a) clarification of bias (b) member-checking, (c) triangulation, and (d) peer debriefing.
Clarification of bias. I currently hold the position as the testing coordinator and administer the Praxis assessments to internal and external constituents at the university. I believe this understanding of the context and role enhances my awareness, knowledge, and sensitivity to the many challenges students encountered as a test taker. The investigator will be conscious of the biases and experiences she may have in connection with the research; therefore, the researcher will make an attempt to be open-minded in developing a clear knowledge of the participants ‘ experience for this research. My main focus will be to bracketing set aside all prejudgments to maintain unbiased of students, and faculty experiences and perceptions. It will be vital to focus on the objections of the research data that will help maintain an adequate study that the College of Education may use to help students with different strategies and technique to be successful test takers on Praxis assessments.
Member-checking. This validation process includes determining the accuracy of the findings by sharing themes with the participants to determine if they feel it is accurate (Creswell, 2013). Member checking will be added during the initial coding of the interview to provide participants with an opportunity to review the collected data for accuracy based on their reflection and experiences (p.211).
Triangulation. Examining evidence from at least three sources, the researcher will build a clear justification for the themes (Creswell, 2013). The researcher will ensure with every attempt not to embed personal data into the study because of the finding using triangulation. Creswell and Plano-Clark (2011) describe that to “embed qualitative data into an intervention experiment is the issue of introducing bias through the qualitative data collection that affects the experiment’s internal validity” (p.193). For this study, triangulation will be used to validate data and to help identify themes based on participants responses using audiotape, interviews, and notes, that support the qualitative study to “reduce the threats to internal validity and external validity” (Creswell & Plano-Clark, 2011, p. 211).
Peer debriefing. To increase the accuracy of the data and analysis, the researcher will identify a peer debriefer to review and ask questions about the study so the account is meaningful to others (Creswell, 2013). The aforementioned strategies will be used to strengthen the reliability, trustworthiness, and integrity of the findings.
Data Analysis
Data collection and data analysis will occur simultaneously. The researcher will involve the use of various qualitative techniques to examine each of the research questions thoroughly: (a) administering surveys, (b) conducting interviews, (c) transcribing the data, (d) member-checking, and (e) peer debriefing. Creswell and Poth (2018) identify six steps of data analysis:
- Handling and Organizing data,
- Reading and memo emergent ideas,
- Describing and Classifying codes into themes,
- Evaluating interpretations,
- Visualizing the data, and
- Account of Findings.
Using the aforesaid six steps as a guide, the researcher will identify and describe patterns and common themes from the participants’ perspectives and explain the patterns (Creswell, 2013). The researcher will identify common responses and remarks by coding frequent words, statements, and phrases. The researcher will then create categories to help identify themes and then propose recommendations based on categories and recurring themes.
The data analysis process will be supplement through the uses of Qualtrics and ATLAS.ti, data analysis computer programs. The researcher will use Qualtrics. . . . Using ATLAS.ti, the researcher .
Participants
The participants will include TEP students, faculty, and program directors at NAC and SWAU. The student participants will include those who are in the process of participating in the teacher education program at the site institutions and have taken the Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators and the Praxis subject assessments at least once. All student participants will also self identify as African American.
The sample is a purposeful and convenient because the students consist of participants who are enrolled in TEPs at the site institutions, and the faculty and program directors are those who work directly with the TEP students. Purposeful sampling allows the researcher to select “participants and sites because they can purposefully enlighten an understanding of the research issue and central phenomenon in the study” (Creswell, 2007, p. 125). The convenience sampling allows the researcher to choose “sites or individuals from which the researcher can access and easily collect data” (p. 126). The participants involved in this study will volunteer without receiving any compensation and will be informed of their privileges to withdraw from the study at any time during this process.
Site Selection
INDICATE WHY YOU SELECTED THESE SITES. THIS IS A GOOD TIME PROVIDE INFORMATION ABOUT THE RESPONSIBILITY THESE INSTITUTIONS HAD AND HAVE IN PREPARING AFRICAN AMERICAN TEACHERS. REMEMBER RESEARCHER BIAS; DO NOT AVOID YOUR CONNECTION TO ONE OF THE SITE SCHOOLS.]
HBCU I was founded in 1867 in the state of Alabama. Initially, the school mission was to train teachers with an enrollment of approximately 4208 students. HBCU II was founded in 1875 in the state of Alabama and has an enrollment of 5038 students. These two public Historically Black Colleges and University are traditional land grant institutions with an urban setting and a Tier 2 status. The admission policy for the teacher education program for both universities is the same which requires a 2.75 grade point average or higher.
Data Collection
All TEP students must receive a satisfactory Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators assessment score results in reading, writing, and math, which is anticipated within the teaching area (Praxis, 2010). [DEFINE A ‘SATISFACTORY SCORE’. IS THE SCORE SPECIFIC TO ALABAMA STUDENTS?]. Therefore, the Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators and the Praxis subject assessments will represent the tool through which the collecting of the data will occur within the research process.
Upon approval from the Alabama State University Institutional Review Board (IRB), the researcher will identify prospective study participants at two Historically Black Colleges and Universities. After permission, the IRB offices and Deans’ offices from the site institutions will grant and approval. The researcher will contact NAC and SWAU to request permission participants for the study. These individuals must meet the required criteria in an introductory letter (Appendix A).
Data collection for the research study will be accomplished through the instrument in the form of face-to-face interviews, collection of detail notes, and a Qualtrics short 10-item perceived survey from each participant in the study (Creswell & Creswell, 2018) (Appendix D). The researcher will use a structured face-to-face interview and an interview protocol that will elicit views and opinions from the participant’s protocol (Creswell & Creswell, 2018, p. 187) (Appendix C). The interviews will be recorded with an audio recording device; prior to participation, the participants will be alerted to the recording strategy. Interview recordings and all paper documentation will be stored separately in a locked file cabinet, secured, and destroyed one year after completing the study.
The location for the interview will be agreed by both the participant and the researcher of the study. All interviews will be coded and stored in a password-protected computer for confidentiality to protect the privacy and preserve the anonymity of each participant in the study. The researcher, alone, will have access to the computer. These interviews will be loaded into ATLAS.ti software for analysis, which will be stored on the same password-protected computer.
Ethical Considerations
Creswell stressed the importance of protecting participants during all phases of research (Creswell, 2018). Because this research study will include feedback from human participants, it will be essential to obtain consent to assure confidentiality during all the phases of the research study and to gain permission from the Alabama State University Institutional Review Board (Creswell, 2018).
Participants in the study will receive a consent form (Appendix B). The consent form will outline the conditions of the study. All participants will be reminded that they can cease from participation in the study at any time without penalty. All documents and electronic recordings will be stored in a locked file cabinet and computerized data will be stored on a password-protected computer to help maintain the confidentiality of the participants. Moreover, each participant will be assigned a pseudonym which will appear in all transcripts and the final published capstone of the project.
Summary
Revise this summary. Simply restate the main processes of the methodology.
