This course aims at developing in students an understanding of quantitative and qualitative methods of collecting, analyzing, and interpreting data in educational research. Quantitative topics include application of statistical concepts / procedures, graphs, numerical summaries; normal distribution, correlation/regression analyses, probability, statistical inferences for one or two samples, hypothesis tests, chi-square tests, and factor analysis. Qualitative topics include data analyses in case studies, observations, and ethnography studies.
Pre-requisite: None

This course provides the foundations for conducting evidence-based research in education and other social and behavioral sciences (e.g., psychology, sociology, political science). The course is designed to cover three major areas: (1) educational measurement; (2) research design, and (3) data analysis. Under “educational measurement”, topics such as measurement validity, measurement reliability, and practical measurement approaches will be covered. Under “research design”, topics such as scientific inquiry, causal inference, experimental design, quasi-experimental design, and non-experimental design, sampling approaches and issues, will be discussed. Under “analysis”, some common quantitative methods will be covered, such as analysis of variance, simple and multiple regression analysis, analysis for categorical variables, and general linear model (GLM), effect size and statistical inferences, etc. It is expected that students will have the foundations (measurement, design, and analysis) for conducting evidence-based research in education and other social and behavioral sciences. Background in mathematics or statistics is a plus, but not required.
Prerequisite(s): At least one course in educational research or data analysis, or equivalent; or based on instructor’s consent.

This course is designed to introduce graduate students to qualitative research, including the epistemological underpinnings of different approaches to qualitative research, the social theoretical paradigms informing different approaches, ethical considerations and issues of reflexivity/positionality/legitimacy, and the methodological nuts-and-bolts in conducting qualitative inquiry. Class readings will be of three types: epistemological/theoretical issues of research paradigms, ‘how-to’ pieces that stress techniques and ethical conducts, and empirical examples. We will approach qualitative methods used by researchers in several disciplines (primarily anthropology, sociology, and education). Students are expected to work on their ongoing pilot projects throughout the semester, prepare to discuss the process of each stage in class, demonstrate grasp of epistemological, ontological, ethical, and methodological issues and debates gleaned from course readings and be ready to critique them, and complete the final write-up of their pilot project as the final product of the class.
Pre-requisite(s): Introducing Qualitative Research, or equivalent; or based on instructor’s consent.

This course provides coverage of some widely-used advanced quantitative methods in education and other social and behavioral sciences (e.g., psychology, sociology, political science, etc.). Application of these advanced quantitative methods in evidence-based research is often important for the quality of the research products, and is often expected by internationally competitive journals. The major topics covered in this course are: multiple regression analysis (review), hierarchical linear modeling (HLM), exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and structural equation modeling. Both conceptual understanding of these topics and analytical implementation of these techniques in practice will be emphasized. This course will provide the analytical foundation for doctoral students in using these more advanced analytical approaches in evidence-based empirical research.
Pre-requisite(s): Introducing Quantitative Research, or equivalent; or based on instructor’s consent.

This course is intended to provide a foundation for PhD students to think critically about what it means to be an ethical researcher. During this course students will critically analyse research ethics topics and case studies, and learn how to conduct a research project from an ethical standpoint. By understanding and reflecting upon research ethics-specific issues, students will assimilate the importance of scientific integrity while acquiring key reasoning skills that will significantly increase the scientific quality and impact of their future research.
Pre-requisite: None

The purpose of this course is to provide PhD students with necessary instruction of advanced research writing skills in their fields. Students will be taken through the process of reviewing literature and writing academic articles. During this course, students will conduct an actual research study in their field, and write up the finding as an academic manuscript. This would be done through lectures, small group discussion, and individual consultation. Students will be fully in charge of their own research project and encouraged to develop their own writing style.
Pre-requisite: None

The purpose of this course is to provide an introduction to a variety of research approaches and procedures common to the field of education. Conceptual, procedural and analysis issues from a wide variety of areas will be covered. Students will have a good awareness of the range of procedures that may be applied to different types of research and the guidelines to be used in selecting a set of appropriate research methods. This course will become a primary mechanism by which students develop a broad sense of the discipline of education and use the knowledge to identify possible thesis topics.
Pre-requisite: None

This course is designed for students with little or no prior experience with qualitative research methods. The aim of the course is to familiarize students with various aspects of qualitative research strategies, as practiced by educational researchers. The course, conducted in the form of a seminar, covers a wide range of issues to help students to design, conduct, evaluate, and reflect upon qualitative research work. This introductory course can serve as a prerequisite, but not necessary if students already have prior knowledge in the subject matter, to the “Qualitative Research Methods” course.
Pre-requisite: None

This course is designed for students with little or no prior experience with quantitative research methods. This course provides an introduction to quantitative methods used in educational research, particularly descriptive statistics and elementary inferential statistics. Topics include formulating research questions, research design, sampling, descriptive analysis, bivariate relationships, regression, analysis of variance etc. This course is required for all students enrolled in the doctoral program of FED.
Pre-requisite: None

This course will present qualitative research objectives, qualitative research characteristics, and commonly used qualitative research strategies for Year-1 PhD students. This course aims to promote PhD students’ ability to understand, interpret and apply qualitative approaches in authentic research contexts and prepare them for learning advanced qualitative research at a later stage.