This course fulfills its promise to help students understand research methods in education and educational administration specifically. Concepts of research have been covered clearly, to allow students better insight into how they might construct their own research from the proposal stage through the analysis and interpretation of results. Through encounters with original research like the Porter, Polikoff, Goldring, et al. (2010) study, students in this course also become more familiar with how researchers develop and implement assessments to evaluate the efficacy of different school leadership models. Moreover, this course empowers students to adopt a professional mindset to evaluate the research of others, consider gaps in the literature, and contribute to the growing body of evidence on educational administration. The course has also covered theoretical orientations in educational research, encouraging students to consider their own points of view and the directions their research and their careers will take them. Ultimately, students can understand the connections between research, practice, and policy.

The goals of educational research are typically to improve practice and policy. Therefore, it is important to use resources judiciously when planning educational research. Research should have specific goals in mind to help administrators serve their districts,...

This course has also asked that students consider their work in light of the ethical principles governing the profession of education. Research should promote social justice and equity in education, help improve educational outcomes, or to promote a more efficient or cost-effective way of using limited resources. Students have also learned in this course how to communicate the results of research to a community of peers, providing background information on the theoretical orientation and showing how the research can be used to influence public policy or education practice.
Designing a research proposal can seem like a daunting process, especially considering the potential ramifications of real-world applications of the research. Students have been encouraged to consider the ethical implications of the research conducted, not just in terms of the methods such as providing informed consent, but also in terms of how the results of the study could be used. For example, educational administrators need to consider how standardized tests and other assessments impact student labeling, educational tracking, and student self-concepts. Some administrators will want research that specifically shows areas of need or weakness in their school, with the goal of…