Research Questions should be SMART...

Question Tip: Questions should be SMART...
• Specific 
• Measurable 
• Attainable 
• Relevant 
• Timely 

Types of Research Questions:   

Exploratory:  Seeks to gain an understanding of a new topic that has not had much research on it before.  

1. Exploratory research 

   typically addresses the “What” questions.   

• What types of professional development opportunities would teachers find helpful? 
• What types of extra curricular activities are students involved in? 
• What types of learning aids are effective with students who have learning disabilities?  

2. Descriptive:

 Presents a picture of a specific situation.Descriptive research asks the How? and Who? questions.

• How did Aboriginal students score on the grade 3 provincial test? 
• How do students from X school use X technology? 
• How did the implementation of X program effect X student group? 
• How did teachers rate “named” professional development opportunity?
 
3.Explanatory:  Builds on exploratory and explanatory research.It goes beyond exploring a  topic or providing a picture of it.The goal is to identify the reason certain things occur. Explanatory research asks the “Why” questions. 
• Why do some teachers integrate new technology X into their classroom, and other do
not? 
• Why did “student group” achieve “x-result” on the provincial test?