11

Practical Research1
Quarter 2
Data Collection
 EXPECTATIONS

This lesson aims to help you in planning data collection

for your qualitative research paper.
After this lesson, you are expected to:
1. discuss the concept of research data;
2. identify the steps in data collection of qualitative
research; and
3. write data collection plan for a qualitative research.
 PRETEST

Directions: Read the questions carefully. Write the letter

of the best answer in your notebook.
1. What term refers to the kinds of information
researchers obtain from the subjects of their
research?
A. Sampling
B. Information
C. Research Data
D. Data Collection
2. What type of research data is
captured through observation of a
behavior or activity?
A.Derived Data
B.Simulation Data
C.Experimental Data
D.Observational Data
3. What is the first step in planning data
collection?
A. Determine how much data is needed
B. Determine the kind of data that is
available
C. Identify the questions that you want to
answer
D.Decide whether to measure a sample or
the whole population
4. Which of the following is NOT true in data collection?
A. The researcher must determine how he/she will
measure the data.
B. The researcher must first identify the questions
that he/she wants to answer.
C. The researcher will always have credible
findings even without data collection plan.
D. It is important that the researcher has determined
who will gather data
before conducting data collection.
5. The company management has decided to use open-ended
survey to determine how employees feel about the newly
imposed alternating working schedule for their essential
workers. What will be the next step the company management
has to do?

A. The company management should plan how data will be

presented.
B. The company management must assign a team who will be in-
charged for data collection.
C. The company management must determine how they will
measure the data to be gathered.
D. The company management must determine the number of
essential
workers that may answer the survey.
 LESSON

After selecting the participants, the next step of

the researcher is to gather the information needed for
how would you know if the
the study. But
information you have gathered will
suffice your research objective?
What is RESEARCH DATA?
Research Data refers to the kinds of information researchers obtain
from the subjects of their research. Research data takes many different forms.
It may be intangible as demographic information, such as age, gender,
ethnicity, and religion or an object as in physical research materials such
samples of rocks, plants, or insects. Here are some examples of the formats
that data can take:
Documents (text, MS Word), Test responses
spreadsheets Artifacts, specimens, physical
Lab notebooks, field notebooks, diaries samples
Questionnaires, transcripts, surveys Models, algorithms, scripts
Codebooks Content analysis
Experimental data Focus group recordings; interview
notes
 Generally, data may be classified into four main
types: observational, experimental, simulation, and
derived.

1. Observational Data – data captured through

observation of a behavior or activity. It is collected
using methods such as human observation, open-
ended surveys, or the use of an instrument or
sensor to monitor and record information.
2. Experimental Data – data collected through active
intervention by the researcher to produce and measure
change or to create difference when a variable is altered.
Experimental data typically allows the researcher to
determine a causal relationship and is typically
projectable to a larger population.
3. Simulation Data – data generated by
imitating the operation of a real-world
process or system over time. This
method is used to try to determine
what would, or could, happen under
certain conditions.
 4. Derived or Compiled Data – involves using existing data
points, often from different data sources, to create new
data through some sort of transformation, such as an
arithmetic formula or aggregation.

However, it is important to note that in qualitative research you will be

generating data that is primarily in the form of words, not numbers. Qualitative
data describes qualities or characteristics which may be difficult to precisely
measure and analyze.
.
Data Collection Plan

Data collection is one of the most important

stages of your research because the quality of the
data you collect will shape or limit the value and
credibility of your findings. Thus, you must
formulate a plan before conducting the data
collection. Here are the steps in creating a Data
Collection Plan.
1. Identify the questions that you want to answer.
 A well-thought-out-research-question identifies what you are going to
explore the specific data you need. Our data must be relevant to the
study.
2. Determine the kind of data that is available.
 As a researcher, you must find out what kind of data is available to
collect. You must list all the data points that are needed to answer the
questions the research is centered on. You may refer to the types of
research data in the earlier discussion.
3. Determine how much data is needed.
 We want to get enough data so what we can see patterns and trends.
For each data element on the list, write down how much data is
needed. You may refer to the effective sample size discussed in the
previous lesson.
4. Determine how to measure the data.
 There are four types of measurement scales; (1) nominal scale –
researchers simply assign numbers to different categories in order to show
differences, for example, a researcher concerned with the variable of
gender might group data into two categories, male and female, and
assign the number 1 to females and the number 2 to males, (2) ordinal
scale - one in which data may be ordered in some way—high to low or
least to most, (3) interval scales – possesses all the characteristics of an
ordinal scale with one additional feature: the distances between the points
on the scale are equal, (4) ratio scales – an interval scale that does possess
an actual, or true, zero point.

5. Decide who is going to collect the data.

 This refers to the administration of the data collection. As a
researcher, you can get the information (1) yourself, with little or no
involvement of other people; (2) directly from the subjects of the study;
or (3) from others, frequently referred to as informants, who are
knowledgeable about the subjects.
6. Determine where the data will be collected from.
 There are three broad strategies for obtaining data: collecting the
data yourself, using existing data which may come from government
data, organization data, data repositories or existing research studies,
or combining these strategies together.

7. Decide whether to measure a sample or the whole population.

 As we have learned from previous lesson, oftentimes, it is impractical
to measure an entire population of data. In such a case, we then take
a sample of data using different sampling techniques. But in rare
situations, you may choose to measure the entire population if
reasonable.

8. Determine in what format the data will be displayed.

 The last step is to decide the format of displaying the data. We can
display data in many ways such as charts and diagrams.
 Here is an example of a simple Data Collection Plan. While your data
collection plan template may vary slightly, it will likely contain many of the
components found in the following example.

Research Title: The Effect of Distance Learning Modality

to Senior High School Students’ Over-All School Performance
 Research Title: The Effect of Distance Learning
Modality to Senior High School Students’ Over-All
School Performance

Table 1: Example of Data Collection Plan

Questions to Data Sample Measure Person Source Sampling Format
be Answered Size ment Assigned

What are the

students’ reactions to Questio
distance learning observational nnaires
ordinal Researcher owned / Survey
materials? / Informant

How well do the

students perform
simulation organization Test Results
during the interval informants
simulation classes? Quota (250 per
grade level, 250
500 per gender)
students
What are the Questionnair
teachers’ evaluation observational es
ordinal Researcher Owned / Survey
for their students? / Informant
 ACTIVITIES

After learning the concept of research data and the

process of creating a Data Collection Plan, you are now ready to
do the following task. Perform each activity in your notebook.
1. Answer the following questions.
a. In your own words, what is research data?
b. Give at least 5 examples of research data formats.
c. What are the main types of research data? Briefly
explain each type.
2. Enumerate the steps in creating a data collection plan by writing the
appropriate words in the blank.

STEP 1. Identify the that you want to answer.

STEP 2. Determine the that is available.

STEP 3. Determine is needed.

STEP 4. Determine the data. Decide

STEP 5. the data.

STEP 6. Determine the data will be collected from.

STEP 7. Decide .

STEP 8. Determine the data will be displayed.

 3. Create a data collection plan for your research interest by following the steps
discussed in the lesson. Use the template below as your guide.

Research Title:
Questions Data Sample Measure Person Source Sampling Output
to be Size ment Assigned
Answered
 WRAP – UP

To summarize the lesson, copy the diagram below in your notebook then fill
up the circles with the appropriate steps in creating a Data Collection Plan for
research study.

Data Collection Plan

 VALUING

Ponder on the questions below. Write your answers in your notebook.

1. As a qualitative researcher, why do you need to create a Data Collection Plan

before conducting the data gathering for your research?
2. How important is doing the collection plan in solving life problems especially
this time of pandemic where almost everyone has been affected?
K E Y TO CORRECTI ON