Judith Bell

Clive Opie

* How do I begin to plan my research? * How can I be sure that I am collecting useful data and analysing it appropriately? * Do I need a sophisticated understanding of statistics in order to carry out high quality research? If these are questions which concern you, then you will find great support in this reassuring and down to earth book. It tells the story of five postgraduate researchers on their journey to successful completion of Master of Education or PhD degrees. Four of the five were new to research, had demanding full time jobs and so were researching part time - and at a distance. All four undertook quantitative studies and even though two of them claimed to be 'afraid of stats' at the beginning, they all succeeded in producing quality theses. The fifth researcher had previous relevant research experience and had an award which enabled her to carry out a full time qualitative investigation at doctoral level. All five faced sharp learning curves at various times but they learnt from their experiences, as we all do. They discuss very openly some of the mistakes they made, the lessons they learnt and, with hindsight, how they might have done things differently. A comprehensive glossary, key quotations in boxes and detailed annotated further reading combined with a straightforward writing style make this an invaluable text for any researcher.

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