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RESEARCH PROBLEM

WHAT IS A RESEARCH PROBLEM?

A research problem is exactly a
problem that someone (a researcher)
would like to answer or resolve
through a research (= Something
that make someone feel uneasy
before he gets the information or
knowledge about it)

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A RESEARCH PROBLEM can be:
• Anything that a person finds unsatis-
factory or unsettling
• A difficulty or a state of affairs that
need to be changed
• Anything that is not working as well as
it should

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 HOW CAN WE GET A RESEARCH
PROBLEM?

In general, a research problem can

happens if there is a GAP between
the “das Sein” and “das Sollen”, or if
WHAT SHOULD BE and WHAT
REALLY HAPPENS does not match.

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 HOW CAN WE STATE A
RESEARCH PROBLEM?

A research problem is
commonly posed as (a)
QUESTION(S) which serve(s)
as the focus of the
researcher’s investigation

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 Examples of finding a problem:

The fact :
In 80ies, most elementary schools in Jakarta
rejected children to enroll as new pupils. They
accepted only those who had ever followed
kindergarten classes. The reasons, very
pragmatic, it was easier to start the lessons (in
the first year) to pupils ex. kindergartens. Really,
they could have been able to write, count, draw
faster and can be easily disciplined.

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 The the ideal one?
(What should it be?)
Elementary schools should accept all
normal children whether or not they have
followed pre school education

The reasons:
• (So many, i.e the psychological, curricular, to
the formal/regulation reasons)

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THE FORMAL EDU. INSTITUTIONS IN

INDONESIA

KINDER- JUNIOR
PRIMARY BASIC
GARTENS SECONDARY EDUCATION
SCHOOLS
SCHOOLS

SENIOR
SECONDARY
HIGH DUCATION
SCHOOLS

HIGH/
COLLEGES/
ADVANCED
UNIV. EDUCATION

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WHAT (ALTERNATIVE) QUESTION(S) COULD
BE DERIVED TO A RESEARCH PROBLEM(S)?

• Do the pupils ex kindergarten in the

early classes make better achievement
than those of non-ex kindergarten?
• Do the pupils ex kindergarten in the long
run in elementary school achieve better
than those of non-ex kindergarten??
• ?

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 The problem was really taken by Faculty of
Theory and History of Education of
IKIP Muh.Jkt in 1984 as the Research Problem.
The Governor of DKI donated and facilitated
the research

The result:
In the short term, in the first three months, the ex.
KG had achieved better in reading, writing and math.
However, given appropriate and equal treatments, in
the long term (the full year), there had been NO
difference in reading, writing and math achieve-
ments between the two types of pupils,.
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 HOW TO STATE (an) APPROPRIATE
RESEARCH QUESTION(s)?
MAKE SURE, the questions are:
• FEASIBLE (can be investigated)
• CLEAR (Most people will have the same
understanding of the key words/terms)
•SIGNIFICANT (It is worth investigating; the result will
give contribution to the institution/pupils/science
development, etc)
•ETHICAL (Not harm human beings/nature/social
environment, a personal figure or the institution being
investigated.
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 FEASIBLE
The problem can be investigated or researchable; all
procedures can be done practically; if possible without
un-resolvable handicaps.
(As a matter of fact NOT ALL KINDS OF PROBLEM
cannot be automatically investigated by a researcher with
his given capacity)
Was it really true that there were several Indonesian Army generals
planned to make a coup de tat against Suharto’s regime in the late of
90s? If so, who would get involved? How would they do to act it? Etc.

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 CLEAR
Most people must have the same under-
standing of the key words/ terms. To make
them clear, any key words or terms in a
scientific research must be well-defined
scientifically.

(Are students with low motivation performs better in

mathematics if taught by repressive instructors?)

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 SIGNIFICANT
The problem is worth investigated; the result
will give contribution to the institution/
pupils/science development, etc)
The effectiveness or Role Play compared to
Dialogue Memorization in Teaching Speaking to
the First Grade Students of SMP N 20 Jkt; an
Experimental Study of the Effectiveness of
Teaching Techniques Controlled by Students’
Gender.

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 ETHICAL
Not harm to human beings/nature/social
environment, or a personal figure/
institution being researched.

What type of pornography could stimulate most to

high school students to act sexual harassment;
internet, comics, or VCD/DVDs? (An e

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 EXAMPLES OF (UNCLEAR) RESEARCH
•
PROBLEMS

1. How would GIVING EACH STUDENT his/her

own laptop to use for a semester AFFECT
the achievement in math?
2. Is HUMANISTICALLY ORIENTED CLASSROOM
effective?
3. How do teachers feel about the profession
incentive through port-folio certification?
4. Is the spontaneous action more effective
than outlined exercises in encouraging
students?
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 KEY CLARITY OF KEY WORD OR
TERMINOLOGY

FOR A TERMINOLOGY OR VARIABLE, A THESIS

NEED TO PROVIDE:

CONCEPTUAL DEFINITION DERIVED FROM

RELEVANT THEORIES. This must include The
dimension(s) of the variable and indicators

OPERATIONAL DEFINITION How the variable

operated in the implementation of the research.

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 Is lecturing effective to highly motivated
students?
For the key terms: “Lecturing” and “motivated students”
You have to explore resources to get the descriptions of
motivation first
“Motivation is BLA-BLA-BLA” (from theories/experts).
Based on the definition it could be identified the
INDICATORS of the motivated students as follows:
1. work hard
2. eager and enthusiastic
3. sustain attention to a task or tasks
Later, these indicators will give you bases for developing a
research instrument.

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1. How would GIVING EACH STUDENT
his/her own laptop to use for a semester
AFFECT the achievement in math?

How would facilitating students of the first

year of SMA 46 Jakarta with individual
personal computer affect their achievement
in Mathematics?

Is the editing exercises while typing

through MS-word program effective
in increasing the grammar capacity
of the the early year students of SMP
Negeri 11, Jakarta Selatan?
 2.
Is HUMANISTICALLY ORIENTED
CLASSROOM effective?

Humanistic? Though theoretical resources

(Humanistic Approach) give you clear descriptions
of what it is, make it clear what would you focus on:
THE TEACHING STRATEGY?
THE CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT?
THE TESTING AND EVALUATION? or
SOMETHING ELSE?
Make limitation at and take ONE point !!
3. How do teachers feel about the profession
incentive through port-folio certification?

The term of profession incentive and port-folio

certification has been clear enough (Read
the Undang-undang)

However, you don’t know “What teachers?

What school? When?
Feel? Can you measure one’s feeling? Can it
be measured objectively? Do others feel
happy when you feel sad?
 COULD YOU STATE THE PROBLEM
MORE CLEARLY?

Research Problem Statement

………………………………………………………..
………………………………………………………. ?
 4.
Is the spontaneous action more effective
than outlined exercises in encouraging
students in writing?

Rewrite the above problem so that it becomes

clearer and appropriate to be followed up through
a research in TEFL in Indonesia schools!
……………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………
 TYPE OF RESEARCH
(the beliefs and assumptions)

QUANTITATIVE QUALITATIVE
RESEARCH
RESEARCH

Assumption:
FACTS and FEELINGS can be
separated. The world is a
single reality made up of facts
that can be discovered
Assumption:
Assume that the WORLD is
made up of MULTIPLE
REALITIES,SOCIALLY
CONSTRUCTED by different
individual views of the same
situation
 TYPE OF RESEARCH
(the PURPOSE)

QUANTITATIVE QUALITATIVE
RESEARCH RESEARCH

Seek to establish the relat-ionship To explore the situation and

between variables and look for
(some-times) the causes.
Final aim:
To make generalization through
hypothesis testing (or
theoretical justification)
events from the view points of
participants (who directly get
involved ).
Final aim:
To get overall understanding
(No hypothesis testing, but
sometimes hypothesis
generating)
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 TYPE OF RESEARCH
(The Procedures)

QUANTITATIVE QUALITATIVE
RESEARCH RESEARCH

The steps and

The steps has been techniques or strategies
rigidly formulated are flexible. The design
tend to emerge during
and agreed by
the process of the
researchers research.

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 TYPE OF RESEARCH
(The Role of the Researcher)

QUANTITATIVE QUALITATIVE
RESEARCH RESEARCH

To be a DETACHED Become immersed

(PARTICIPANT
observer (Like in
OBSERVERS) in the
“EXPERIMENT” as situations in which they
the prototype of this do the research (like in
research) ethnograpic research)

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 RESEARCH PROBLEM, MOSTLY, IS QUESTIONING
THE RELATIONSHIP OF TWO (OR MORE)
VARIABLES:

1. Would facilitating classrooms with air conditioner lengthen

the students’ learning stamina of the students of SMA 18
Jakarta Selatan ?
Dep. Var.  facilitating c.rooms with A.C (as the treatment).
Indep. Var  the students’ learning stamina (as the effect)

2. Is the technique of webbing more effective than word-

meaning memorizing in increasing the vocabulary capacity
of the students of the fifth grade of SD Pondok Labu 05,
Jakarta Selatan?
 SOMETIMES, A RESEARCHER IS EAGER TO
KNOW THE PARTICULAR SITUATION; SO THAT THE
RESEARCH PROBLEM ONLY CONSISTS
ONE VARIABLE

EXAMPLES:
WHAT CHANGES WOULD THE TEACHERS
OF ENGLISH AT SMK N 45 JAKARTA
SELATAN LIKE TO DO IN DEVELOPING
THE KTSP FOR THEIR OWN?

HOW IS THE LEARNNG MATERIALS

ABSORTION OF THE 12TH GRADE
STUDENTS OF SMA MUH 3,
JAKSEL?