1. The Scientific Method   1. identification of problem 2. form a hypothesis 3. deductive reasoning- decide on procedure 4. data collection and analysis 5. derive conclusion Note: We never prove a hypothesis – we can confirm or fail to confirm

2. Stages in the Research Process b b *Select problem area *Derive hypothesis(es) *Review the literature *Develop methodology *Data collection *Data analysis *Interpretation of results

3. Parts of a Research Article b b *ABSTRACT *INTRODUCTION *REVIEW OF THE RESEARCH *HYPOTHESES OR OBJECTIVES

4. METHODS b b *METHODS *SAMPLING *INSTRUMENTATION *RESEARCH DESIGN *DATA ANALYSIS METHODS *RESULTS *DISCUSSION/IMPLICATIONS

5. Types of Hypotheses b b *Non-directional hypothesis *Directional hypothesis *Null hypothesis *Research question

6. Types of Hypotheses b b *Will students who attended at least two years of Montessori preschool have better reading comprehension abilities at the end of first grade than those students who did not attend preschool at all?

7. Types of Hypotheses b b *At the end of first grade, there will be a difference between the reading comprehension abilities of children who attended at least two years of Montessori preschool and children who did not attend preschool at all.

8. Types of Hypotheses b b *At the end of first grade, there will be no difference between the reading comprehension abilities of children who attended at least two years of Montessori preschool and children who did not attend preschool at all.

9. Types of Hypotheses b b *At the end of first grade, children who attended at least two years of Montessori preschool will have higher reading comprehension abilities compared to children who did not attend preschool at all.

10. Selecting a Hypothesis b b *interest - what are you dying to know? * feasibility - is research problem "do-able"? *ethics - is research ethically tenable?

11. Where to get ideas for hypotheses b b *personal experience *textbooks *library books *journals

12. Independent and Dependent Variables b b * Identifying Independent and Dependent Variables *Independent Variable b b *Dependent Variable