The workshops are scheduled on August 17, 2016. We offer a total of four workshops organized for all interested researchers. You can register for the workshops only without registering for the conference. The cost for each workshop is 20 euro.

Description of workshops

Workshop 1
August 17, 2016; 9.00 – 12.00 h
Integration in Mixed Methods Research
Judith Schoonenboom

About this Workshop:
We will start with a reflection, based upon participants’ own research experiences, on what makes integration of outcomes of qualitative and quantitative inquiry so difficult (yes, it is difficult). After identifying barriers to integration, we will make the difficult task of integration easier, by discussing the following aspects of integration
a) Several types of integration. This will open up possibilities for participants to think of strategies they can pursue when they are confronted with qualitative and quantitative results. We will focus especially on integration when the qualitative and the quantitative inquiry have resulted in apparently conflicting results.
b) Preparing for integration: mixed methods research design. Integration will be more successful when we know beforehand what to expect. One of the best ways to prepare for integration is by focusing not only the moment of integration, but also on the way toward integration in the mixed methods design. This workshop will provide a number of tools and concepts that are useful in preparing integration.
The more philosophical question: why are we allowed to integrate results of qualitative and quantitative research? Participants will hopefully feel more comfortable about integration when they know why it is not only allowed, but often also necessary to engage in mixed methods research and thus in the integration of qualitative and quantitative findings. In this workshop we will alternate between reflection on one’s own research (individually or in small groups), lecturing, and whole-group discussion.

About Judith:
My name is Judith Schoonenboom. I hold a chair in Empirical Pedagogy at the University of Vienna. I was educated as a linguist at the University of Amsterdam. Later, I switched to educational research, especially in higher education. In the past few years, I specialized in mixed methods, the combination of qualitative and quantitative research. My research aims at developing mixed methods concepts and tools that mixed methods researchers can use in their inquiry.

 

Workshop 4
August 17, 2016; 13.00 – 16.00 h
Social Network Analysis: An Introduction
Dominik E. Fröhlich

About this Workshop:
In this workshop, we will cover the foundations of social network analysis. You will get an overview over the current methods that are used in this field and what kind of questions you could explore. For instance, often is not just the attributes that matter for learning in school or work contexts, but also the relationships between the learners. Also, the workshop shows you the necessary tools and ideas that allow you to conceptualize and execute a social network study on your own. Please bring your own laptops (any Operating System), as we will also take a brief look into Gephi–an open source software for social network analysis and visualization. Please download it before the workshop (http://gephi.org/).

About Dominik:
I am a post-doctoral researcher at Maastricht University, School of Business and Economics, and researcher at the institute for industrial economics in Vienna. In my research, I mostly focus on networks of informal learning from others (e.g., feedback-seeking networks) and how this translates into various learning outcomes such as employability.
Mail: dominik@froehlich.onl
Web: http://www.dominikfroehlich.com

Workshop 5
August 17, 2016; 13.00 – 16.00 h
Analysis of Interaction Data and Strategies of Working with Video-Data
Crina Damşa

About this Workshop:
Empirical data generated through learning activities performed in collaborative groups require in-depth analyses and sophisticated interpretations. Generically, such qualitative data capture what students do and how they participate in (collaborative) learning activities and it often takes the form of (video- or audio-)recordings of verbal or non-verbal interaction.
This workshop will provide an insight into how to treat and analyze such interaction data. The workshop aims at offering insights into, discuss and become familiar with analyzing data that capture learners’ participation in verbal interaction and collaborative learning activities, such as team or project work. This will be mainly done by supporting the participants to gain knowledge about analysis of interaction data, and to engage with data sets in this fashion.
Main aspects addressed in the workshop will be: challenges in collecting interaction data, and video data especially; preparing interaction data for analysis; analysis of verbal interaction data (generated by video-recorded data); ways of using analytic software.
The aforementioned aims will be addressed by:
a. Presenting and discussing foundations for thinking and working qualitatively, with a focus on data and analysis of learning activities that involve interaction;
b. Exploring verbal interaction data. Analytic software will be used for illustration;
c. Engaging with interaction data excerpts, selected from video-data provided by the instructor;
(d. If desired: Engaging with participants’ own data. Participants are encouraged to bring in their own data, to be used in the hands-on activities. If the infrastructure allows it, participants will have access to computers equipped with analytic software.)

About Crina
I am currently a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Oslo. My research focuses on learning in collaborative settings in higher education and is primarily qualitative. I worked with analysis of verbal interaction (based on audio and video-recorded data) and consider this an insightful way of generating substantiation for  in-depth interpretations of various learning-related phenomena.
Email: crina.damsa@iped.uio.no

Workshop 6
August 17, 2016; 13.00 – 16.00 h
Use and Misuse of Statistics
Rink Hoekstra

About this Workshop:
The last few years, there has been a lot of attention for the role of so-called ͞Questionable research practices͟ (QRPs), and some have even stated that the social sciences are in a serious crisis. QRPs refer to dubious practices that are far more common in research than one would hope. In fact, many researchers are not even aware that some of these practices are unwanted. Often, these practices are related to statistics. When analyzing quantitative data, many rely on a statistical framework that is called frequentism. One of the cornerstones of this framework is the so-called significance test, and it is widely believed that getting a significant outcome substantially increases the probability of getting a paper published. For this reason, getting a significant outcome becomes a goal in research in itself, and many questionable research practices, – practices that sometimes seem rather harmless at first sight-, result from this. Naturally, this is not in science’s interest. Apparently, sometimes the interests of science as a whole and individual researchers are at odds. In this workshop, there will first be attention for the problems itself. What questionable research practices are out there, and how are they related to some basis statistical techniques? In the latter step, there will be attention for some more technical and philosophical aspects of these techniques, but no statistical knowledge beyond bachelor level in the social sciences is required. Also, some elementary but common statistical misconceptions are discussed. Subsequently, participants will search in published articles whether misinterpretation or questionable research practices can be distinguished. In the third part of the workshop, the implications and possibilities for change for researchers early in their careers are discussed. Are there alternatives in the first place? Could these alternatives hamper the careers of those using them? Are young researchers just bystanders in the scientific machinery, or can they contribute substantially to a way out of this so-called crisis?

About Rink:
Rink Hoekstra is an assistant professor at the GION education/research institute at the university of Groningen. He is interested in researchers’ use and interpretation of frequently used statistical techniques. His studies show that even basic techniques are often misunderstood. Arguably more worrying, it seems that the scientific community accepts and sometimes even endorses these misinterpretations, by often emphasizing the importance of the quantity of published papers, and by its pressure on novel outcomes.