EDS6003 Introduction to Research Methods
The Complete Study & Assessment Guide · EDS6003 Overview
- The Education University of Hong Kong
- Semester 1, 2026/27
- Postgraduate course
- Three credit points
- Three required assignments
What this course is designed to teach
EDS6003 introduces the practice and logic of social science inquiry in education. It is organised around two broad paradigms, qualitative and quantitative research, and requires students to follow an investigation from design and data collection through analysis and reporting.
- Assessment route A research proposal leads into an interview report and a survey report.
- Core skill Match each research question to evidence, analysis and a bounded claim.
- Quantitative work Sampling and measurement govern what statistical output can mean.
- Qualitative work Trace themes back through categories and codes to participant material.
How EDS6003 is assessed
| Component | Weight | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Assignment 1: Research Proposal | 34% | About 1,000 words, paired research questions, literature review and research design |
| Assignment 2: Interview Report | 33% | About 1,000 words, interview collection, transcription, analysis and themes |
| Assignment 3: Survey Report | 33% | About 1,000 words, questionnaire, sample, administration, analysis and discussion |
The published course outline and 2026/27 handbook agree on these three components and weights, totalling 100%. The pass condition stated in the handbook is submission of all three assignments, and late submission or non-submission without prior approval receives a fail grade. A numeric attendance threshold is not published, so the reviewed materials do not state a minimum attendance requirement. Check the course Moodle page for any separate attendance scope, live submission settings and task-specific AI instructions.
Assessment structure
The segment widths reproduce the three published weights, which total one hundred per cent.
Current EDS6003 dates
| Date | Item | Control |
|---|---|---|
| 15 October 2026 | Assignment 1 | Research proposal due by 18:00 GMT+8. |
| 12 November 2026 | Assignment 2 | Interview report due by 18:00 GMT+8. |
| 10 December 2026 | Assignment 3 | Survey report due by 18:00 GMT+8. |
Dates are as published in the published 2026/27 course handbook and current Moodle assignment pages. Confirm exact deadlines and submission settings in the live LMS.
What EDS6003 covers
Ten chapters follow an educational investigation from the first research question through literature, ethics, sampling, interviews, surveys, analysis and reporting.
Educational Inquiry and Research Paradigms
systematic inquiry, qualitative and quantitative evidence, mixed designs and bounded claimsInquiry as a connected design
Educational research begins with a question whose wording determines what evidence is relevant and what conclusion can follow.
- Research as systematic inquiry
- Qualitative evidence and meaning
- Quantitative evidence and numerical analysis
- Mixed-method integration points
- Question, design, evidence and claim
- Description against inference
Research Topics, Problems and Questions
educational problems, answerable verbs, paired questions and defensible scopeFrom interest to uncertainty
A topic names an area, while a research problem identifies uncertainty that blocks an educational decision. The research question then specifies what evidence could reduce that uncertainty.
- Topics against research problems
- Sources of educational questions
- Population and setting
- Answerable qualitative verbs
- Quantitative relationships and differences
- Causal wording and design limits
Literature Searching and Review Design
Boolean searching, concept maps, synthesis structures and evidence gapsA review is a method, not a reading list
The course treats literature review as systematic, explicit and reproducible work for identifying, evaluating and interpreting existing knowledge.
- Systematic literature review
- Concept groups and synonyms
- Boolean AND, OR and NOT
- Historical review structure
- Conceptual and methodological synthesis
- Evidence gaps and contribution
Research Ethics and Participant Protection
voluntary consent, withdrawal, confidentiality, risk and responsible disseminationConsent is an ongoing relationship
The official participant materials require understandable information about aims, procedure, time, recordings, benefits, risks, mitigation, data handling and dissemination.
- Voluntary informed consent
- Right to question and withdraw
- Anonymity against confidentiality
- Risk and discomfort
- Data minimisation and storage
- Permission for quotation and dissemination
Sampling and Representativeness
population and sample, probability selection, non-probability routes and claim limitsSelection governs the population claim
The sampling lecture defines a population as the complete specified group and a sample as a subset. Representativeness concerns whether values and patterns found in the sample also exist in that population.
- Population and sample
- Representativeness
- Simple random sampling
- Systematic, stratified and cluster sampling
- Convenience and snowball sampling
- Purposeful selection and bounded claims
Qualitative Interview Design
interview schedules, episode probes, consent, transcription and procedural reportingDesign backwards from analysis
The interview assignment requires sampling, conduct, transcription, analysis and themes that answer the research question. An effective schedule therefore invites material that can later be compared and interpreted.
- Interview schedules and research questions
- Broad openings and episode probes
- Meaning and contrast probes
- Leading and double-barrelled questions
- Piloting and revision
- Transcription and procedural reporting
Coding, Themes and Qualitative Interpretation
inductive and deductive coding, categories, themes, counter-cases and audit trailsAbstraction with a visible trail
Coding labels meaningful segments, categories gather related codes and themes express patterned meaning that answers the research question.
- Excerpts and descriptive codes
- Interpretive codes
- Categories and abstraction
- Themes answering research questions
- Inductive and deductive analysis
- Negative cases and audit trails
Survey Instruments and Administration
constructs, questionnaire items, response scales, piloting and achieved samplesScores are built through translations
Assignment 3 asks students to identify an appropriate questionnaire of about twenty items, excluding demographic information, and use a three-to-five-point scale.
- Constructs and operationalisation
- Single-purpose item wording
- Response scales
- Leading and double-barrelled items
- Cognitive piloting
- Recruitment and administration bias
Descriptive and Inferential Analysis
means, distributions, correlation, two-group comparison, several-group comparison and interpretationDescription before inference
The survey report asks students to describe participants and results, then use inferential reasoning such as correlation, a t-test or an F-test where appropriate.
- Counts and distributions
- Mean and median
- Correlation and association
- Two-group t-test
- Several-group F-test
- Statistical significance and causal limits
Reporting Evidence and Evaluating Quality
results, discussion, synthesis, documentation, limitations and proportionate claimsQuality is visible in the evidence chain
The handbook’s grade descriptions value understanding, interpretation, critical thinking, synthesis, organisation, fluent writing, documentation and engagement with literature.
- Evidence, interpretation and implication
- Results against discussion
- Critical synthesis
- Documentation and traceability
- Specific limitations
- Proportionate recommendations
The focus is deliberately practical. Rather than surveying every method, the course concentrates on interviews and surveys so students can experience the choices that determine whether a conclusion is credible.
How the assignments connect
The assessment structure contains three required assignments.
The research proposal establishes an educational problem, paired qualitative and quantitative questions, a literature review and a justified design. The interview report then documents collection, transcription and analysis before presenting themes. The survey report selects or adapts a questionnaire, explains sampling and administration, describes respondents, analyses results and discusses how the data answer the question.
Together they move from planning to two different forms of evidence.
Where difficulty comes from
The demanding part is not remembering method names. It is keeping choices coherent. A broad question produces an unfocused review. A convenient sample limits the population claim. A leading interview prompt weakens the theme built from it. An ambiguous survey item produces a precise score with uncertain meaning.
A statistically significant result still cannot establish causation when the design only observes an association. The guide therefore teaches each technique through the inference it permits and the failure it is meant to prevent.
How to use the chapters
Carry one educational problem across the sequence.
Refine its question after reading the literature chapter, test its recruitment and consent against the ethics chapter, select participants through the sampling chapter, and create both an interview probe and a survey item. Then practise stating separate qualitative and quantitative conclusions.
The final chapter brings those choices back together by auditing the route from evidence to claim.
Completion rules to check
The pass condition stated in the handbook is submission of all three assignments. It also states that late submission or non-submission without prior approval receives a fail grade.
A numeric attendance threshold is not published, so the reviewed materials do not state a minimum attendance requirement. Check the course Moodle page for any separate attendance scope and for the current operation of these completion rules.
Worked example · free
Align one question with one defensible claim
- 3Identify the design and sampling limits.
- 3State the relationship the data can show.
- 2Write one suitable next research step.
Key terms
- Research Paradigm
- A broad way of framing what counts as evidence and how knowledge claims are justified.
- Research Question
- An answerable statement of the relationship, process or meaning an investigation will examine.
- Literature Gap
- A consequential uncertainty left by existing research that a feasible study can reduce.
- Informed Consent
- Voluntary agreement based on understandable information about procedure, risk, use and withdrawal.
- Population
- The complete group about which a study intends to make a claim.
- Sampling Frame
- The operational list or route from which a sample can actually be selected.
- Interview Probe
- A follow-up prompt that develops meaning, sequence, contrast or detail already introduced by a participant.
- Inductive Coding
- Developing analytic labels and categories from patterns found in the collected material.
- Deductive Coding
- Applying concepts drawn from theory or prior knowledge to organise and examine data.
- Construct Validity
- The degree to which an item or score supports the intended interpretation of an abstract concept.
- Correlation
- A statistic describing the direction and strength of a linear relationship between two variables.
- Statistical Significance
- A model-based judgement about how unusual an observed result would be under a specified null hypothesis.
EDS6003 FAQ
What are the three assessments in this course?
The published structure contains a research proposal worth 34%, an interview report worth 33%, and a survey report worth 33%. The handbook states that all three must be submitted. The tasks move from planning an educational inquiry to producing qualitative and quantitative reports, so decisions made in the proposal can shape the later work.
What submission and attendance conditions affect completion?
The pass condition stated in the reviewed handbook is submission of all three assignments, and late submission or non-submission without prior approval receives a fail grade. A numeric attendance threshold is not published, so the reviewed materials do not state a minimum attendance requirement. Check the course Moodle page for any separate attendance scope and current implementation details.
What belongs in the research proposal?
The handbook describes a background establishing significance, one research question leading to a quantitative study and one leading to a qualitative study, a literature review, a research design and references. The key is coherence: each question should require the proposed evidence, and the review should establish the gap that makes the study necessary.
How is the interview report assessed?
The report explains interview design, sampling and conduct, describes how the material was analysed with a rationale, and presents interpreted themes answering the research question. The appendix includes the interview questions and transcript extracts. Strong work shows a traceable route from participant material through codes and categories to each theme.
What does the survey report require?
The task uses an appropriate point-scale questionnaire, a sampling framework, respondent recruitment, numerical description of participants, descriptive results and inferential analysis such as correlation, a t-test or an F-test where suitable. The discussion then evaluates how the results answer the original research question without claiming more than the design supports.
How should I choose a sampling method?
Begin with the population claim and available sampling frame. Probability methods support known selection chances, while convenience, snowball and purposeful methods serve access or information-rich case selection but do not justify population percentages. State what the method enables, what it excludes and how nonresponse changed the achieved sample.
Can generative AI be used for the assignments?
The course outline says generative AI tools may be used in some or all assessment tasks, with restrictions and acknowledgement requirements supplied by instructors in the relevant briefs. That is not blanket permission for every use. Follow the current task instructions, document permitted use and retain responsibility for the accuracy and originality of submitted work.
What is the best way to revise a research report?
Read from the conclusion backwards. Attach each claim to a result, each result to an analysis, each analysis to collected data and each dataset to the research question that justified it. Then check sampling, ethics and measurement limits. A limitation is useful only when it changes the scope or wording of a claim elsewhere in the report.
Questions students ask in each EDS6003 chapter
- How do qualitative and quantitative questions differ?
- Qualitative questions usually seek meaning, experience or process and produce material that can be interpreted in context. Quantitative questions examine amount, distribution, association or difference using numerical measures. The decisive issue is the answer form required, not whether the question begins with how, what or why. Chapter 01 · Educational Inquiry and Research Paradigms
- What makes a research question too broad?
- A question is too broad when it contains several populations, settings, outcomes or analytic jobs that one feasible study cannot address. If no clear sample, evidence source and analysis follow from the wording, the question still functions as a topic rather than as a design guide. Chapter 02 · Research Topics, Problems and Questions
- How many keywords should begin a literature search?
- The course worksheet begins with two or three key concepts, but each concept should expand into synonyms, spelling variants and field-specific phrases. Search the groups separately before combining them so you can identify which concept makes the result set too broad or too narrow. Chapter 03 · Literature Searching and Review Design
- Is a signed consent form enough for ethical research?
- No. The form records agreement but researchers must preserve voluntary participation, permit questions and respect withdrawal throughout the relevant period. New uses, unexpected risks or identifiable quotations may require further permission because the original consent may not cover them specifically. Chapter 04 · Research Ethics and Participant Protection
- Does a large sample guarantee representativeness?
- No. A large sample can estimate its own pattern precisely while systematically excluding important groups. Representativeness depends on the relation between population, frame, selection and response. Size cannot turn an open convenience link into a probability sample. Chapter 05 · Sampling and Representativeness
- What makes an interview question open but still leading?
- A question can permit a long answer while assuming an evaluation, such as asking how helpful a programme was. Replace the assumption with a neutral invitation about experience, then use probes for helpful, difficult and neutral episodes so variation can emerge. Chapter 06 · Qualitative Interview Design
- Is the most frequent code automatically a theme?
- No. Frequency may be informative, but a theme is justified by explanatory relevance, contrast and connection to the research question. A rare account can reveal a condition that changes the interpretation of a common pattern, so counting alone cannot determine importance. Chapter 07 · Coding, Themes and Qualitative Interpretation
- Why should survey items ask one thing at a time?
- When an item combines two ideas, one response cannot show which part the respondent accepted. Splitting the item preserves interpretability and prevents a convenient score from hiding disagreement between the underlying constructs. Chapter 08 · Survey Instruments and Administration
- When should a mean be reported?
- A mean is useful for a quantitative measure when its scale and distribution make arithmetic averaging meaningful. Report sample size and spread, inspect skew and outliers, and consider the median. Decimal precision cannot compensate for a poorly measured construct. Chapter 09 · Descriptive and Inferential Analysis
- What belongs in results rather than discussion?
- Results present the achieved sample, numerical pattern or qualitative themes with supporting evidence. Discussion explains meaning, relates findings to literature, considers alternatives and states contribution. Keeping the distinction visible prevents interpretation from being mistaken for observation. Chapter 10 · Reporting Evidence and Evaluating Quality
How to prepare for the assessments
Keep a single educational problem as a working case throughout the semester. After each class, revise one part of its evidence chain rather than rewriting everything: sharpen the research question, add search terms, identify a consent risk, justify a sampling route, improve one interview probe, or repair one survey item. Before drafting an assignment section, write the decision it must defend and the alternative you rejected.
This turns method definitions into reasons. For analysis practice, compute small examples by hand before using software so that the output has a meaning you can explain. For qualitative work, keep an audit trail showing how one excerpt became a code, category and theme, including a counter-case that changed the interpretation.
During final revision, trace every conclusion backward to evidence and weaken any verb that the design cannot support. Short, accurate methodological claims score better than ambitious claims detached from sampling, measurement or analysis.
Your AI Education tutor for EDS6003
Stuck on a hard EDS6003 question? Sia is AskSia’s AI Education tutor — ask any EDS6003 Introduction to Research Methods question and get a clear, step-by-step explanation grounded in how the course is actually taught and assessed. Read this whole study guide free, then take your hardest questions to Sia.
