Professor Glynis Cousin
University of Wolverhampton
Qualitative research: ornamental or fundamental?
Universities routinely gather a variety of quantitative data either from monitoring or from evaluation sources (e.g. numbers and profile of students, student surveys, course evaluations). This data provides an invaluable means by which a university can get a handle on the scale of issues such as retention and progression rates or student achievement. Why then do universities need the addition of qualitative research for an understanding of these kinds of issues? This talk will seek to answer this question by discussing the distinctive, though much misunderstood, purpose and value of qualitative research.
Glynis Cousin is Director of the Institute for Learning Enhancement and of the Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning at the University of Wolverhampton. She joined the University from her previous role as Senior Advisor at the Higher Education Academy in York. Dr Cousin has worked in adult, community and higher education, and her book Researching Learning in Higher Education was published by Routledge in February 2009.
Tel: 0044 114 225 5342 Fax: 0044 114 225 5337
E-Mail: conference21@shu.ac.uk
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