Critical Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Critical Analysis - Essay Example At the same time they aim to deliver specific suggestions through analysis of the research outcomes. The suggestions would be of much benefit to education and in making educational decisions. The article, Motivating boys and motivating girls by Marsh and Martin, supports positivist and anti-positivist research paradigms (Babbie, 2006) to explore the effect of gender as well as other educational constructs on student motivation from different levels of understanding. This combined paradigmatic model on one hand is necessary to dig into the psyche of those who believe in the gender stereotypic model and that of the students who are at the centre of all discussions. On the other hand it would help in accumulating tried and tested factual details of the factors affecting motivation and engagement. While the qualitative or the subjective approach helps in generating meaningful responses from the groups, the quantitative or the objective approach backs the subjective findings by providing with significant data. Depending upon the nature of the research topic, this combined approach is undertaken as any one approach would have been insufficient in critically assessing and evalu ating the validity of the research outcome. A qualitative approach based on interviews and case study of students and teachers gives the research its basic direction. An approximate idea could be formed about the practicality of each model. The authors held interviews with teachers, educational practitioners and students of either gender. The subjective interrogation has been of much help in comprehending the standpoints of the two groups. While the educational practitioners hold the gender stereotypic model functional in student motivation within the class room, the students have been observed to hold neutral views implying the need of good teachers rather than fussing over teacher gender. The subjective approach has actually established the relevance of the