January 2026; 100% correct solutions and explanations.
A. Learning Unit 1: Becoming an Educational Researcher (15
marks)
Essay: Key Skills and Qualities of an Effective Educational
Researcher and Their Influence on Research Design and Outcomes
Educational research plays a central role in understanding, improving
and transforming teaching and learning processes. To become an
effective educational researcher, one requires a combination of
intellectual, methodological, ethical and personal skills and qualities.
These competencies not only enable the researcher to generate credible
and meaningful knowledge, but also directly shape the design of the
research and influence the quality and usefulness of the research
outcomes. This essay discusses the key skills and qualities required of an
effective educational researcher and explains how these inform and
shape research design and the overall outcome of a research project.
One of the most fundamental skills of an educational researcher is
critical thinking. Critical thinking involves the ability to question
assumptions, evaluate evidence, analyse arguments and make reasoned
judgments. In educational research, this skill allows the researcher to
move beyond surface-level observations and to interrogate educational
problems in a systematic and reflective manner. For example, when
identifying a research problem, a critically minded researcher does not
simply accept commonly held beliefs about teaching or learning, but
examines whether these beliefs are supported by empirical evidence.
This skill informs research design by guiding the formulation of clear,
focused and researchable questions. A critically framed research
question leads to a coherent study design and increases the likelihood
that the findings will contribute meaningfully to educational knowledge
and practice.