Educational Research Methods
A site to support teaching and learning...
Research Ethics
Faculty policy:
The Faculty of Education at the University of Cambridge has a policy and procedure on ethics that all members of the faculty must observe.
This is a personal site of Keith S. Taber to support teaching of educational research methods.
(Dr Keith Taber is Professor of Science Education at the University of Cambridge.)
2016-2017
All research has to be informed by a strong sense of ethics. This is especially important in a field like education which has values at its core.
“As researchers (as well as teachers) we wish to act morally, and to be seen as doing so. We generally think of research as a good thing, as it allows us to develop new knowledge; and as educators we tend to see knowledge as having higher value than ignorance. However, research has costs and consequences.” (Taber, 2013: 223).
“…the subject matter of ethics is the justification of human actions,
especially as those actions affect others.”
Schwandt, 2001: 73
Schwandt, T. A. (2001). Dictionary of Qualitative Inquiry (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications.
Taber, K. S. (2013). Classroom-based Research and Evidence-based Practice: An introduction (2nd ed.). London: Sage.
Guidelines:
Professional and academic organisations often issue guidelines on the ethical conduct of research. For example, the faculty requires members to adhere to the BERA guidelines.
Ethical issues need to be considered during research design, whilst carrying out the research, and whilst writing up any report (such as a thesis).
Ethical issues include:
Anonymity in reporting research
Respect for intellectual property: Plagiarism and infringement of copyright.
