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10 - Design-Based Research

A Methodological Toolkit for the Learning Scientist

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 June 2012

By
Sasha Barab
Edited by
R. Keith Sawyer
Sasha Barab
Affiliation:
Indiana University
R. Keith Sawyer
Affiliation:
Washington University, St Louis
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Summary

Design-based research (DBR) is used to study learning in environments which are designed and systematically changed by the researcher. The goal of DBR is to use the close study of a single learning environment, usually as it passes through multiple iterations and as it occurs in naturalistic contexts, to develop new theories, artifacts, and practices that can be generalized to other schools and classrooms. In describing design-based research, Cobb et al. (2003) state:

Prototypically, design experiments entail both “engineering” particular forms of learning and systematically studying those forms of learning within the context defined by the means of supporting them. This designed context is subject to test and revision, and the successive iterations that result play a role similar to that of systematic variation in experiment.

(p. 9)

This design process allows the researcher to move beyond simply understanding the world as it is, and involves working to change it in useful ways with the broader goal of examining how these systematic changes influence learning and practice (Barab & Squire, 2004). It is this innovative aspect of design-based research that makes it such a useful methodology for advancing new theory and practice.

One way of understanding the focus of design-based research is in terms of Pasteur's Quadrant (Stokes, 1997; see Figure 10.1). In this quadrant model for characterizing scientific research, the upper-left-hand cell consists of basic research for the sole purpose of understanding without an eye toward practical use.

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The Cambridge Handbook of the Learning Sciences , pp. 153 - 170
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2005

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  • Design-Based Research
  • Edited by R. Keith Sawyer, Washington University, St Louis
  • Book: The Cambridge Handbook of the Learning Sciences
  • Online publication: 05 June 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511816833.011
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  • Design-Based Research
  • Edited by R. Keith Sawyer, Washington University, St Louis
  • Book: The Cambridge Handbook of the Learning Sciences
  • Online publication: 05 June 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511816833.011
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Design-Based Research
  • Edited by R. Keith Sawyer, Washington University, St Louis
  • Book: The Cambridge Handbook of the Learning Sciences
  • Online publication: 05 June 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511816833.011
Available formats
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