Ramos, Clores Talk on Research Confab
Proving that the Ateneo de Naga University is home to Bicol’s authorities when it comes to research, the top academicians from the Council of Deans and Department Chairs (CODDCCAS) – Region V listened as two of ADNU’s young administrators talked on Mixed Methods Research Design lecture last December 11, 2008 at the University of Northeastern Philippines in Iriga City.
Dr. Rufino Llagas-Ramos III, director of College Guidance Center and program director for Psychology at the Graduate School, discussed “Mixed Method Research: Integrating Quantitative and Qualitative Methods”, while Dr. Michael A. Clores, program director of the Science cluster of the Mathematics and Natural Sciences Department, expounded on “Models/ Examples of Mixed Methods Research”.
Dr. Ramos' lecture focused on two parts. The first part discussed the characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses of both qualitative and quantitative research designs. It also covered the theoretical foundation, methodology and typology of mixed methods. The second part thoroughly explained the two types of the methods, sequential and concurrent, and their subtypes or models.
In his lecture, Dr. Ramos subscribed to and elucidated Johnson, Onwuegbuzie and Turner’s (2007) definition of mixed methods research designed to “combine elements of qualitative and quantitative research approaches (e.g., use of qualitative and quantitative viewpoints, data collection, analysis, inference techniques) for the broad purposes of breath of understanding and corroboration”.
Dr. Ramos keeps a high profile in the local and even international field of psychology. Last year, he participated as the only Filipino scholar in the Young Scientists Program of the XXIX International Congress of Psychology held at the International Congress Centrum in Berlin Germany. He was further given the chance to present in the Congress the outputs of his highly acclaimed researches, Predictors of Subjective Well-Being Among Filipino Adolescents and Defining Implicit Theories of Happiness Among Filipino Adolescents. The abstracts of the said papers were likewise published in the International Journal of Psychology, the journal of the International Union of Psychology Science.
A full Professor-ranked administrator, Dr. Ramos finished his Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology in 2000 here in the University. In 2005, he completed his Doctorate degree in Counseling Psychology with specialization in Clinical Psychology at the De La Salle University with High Distinction and Outstanding Graduate Dissertation honors.
Dr. Clores, on the other hand, supplemented Ramos’ lecture as he presented examples of studies that employed the Mixed Methods research design. To help the participants understand better the Mixed Methods research design, he discussed three researches. Two of which were his own researches, School Absenteeism: The Case of Ateneo de Naga University College Students (2008) and Changing Students' Beliefs and Concepts about the Evolutionary Theory Using Pedagogy based on History and Philosophy of Science (HPS) (2004), while the third was Dr. Ramos’ dissertation Defining (2005). He underscored in his lecture how the Mixed Method was used in every portion of the studies presented.
Dr. Clores is an Associate Professor at the Math and Sciences Department in ADNU. In the same University, he completed his Masters degree in Education major in Curriculum and Instruction and took his Professional Teacher Education. He pushed through with his Doctorate degree in Science Education Major in Biology at the De la Salle University-Manila. Dr. Clores’ passion for teaching and paradigm in research give him opportunities to publish, read and present papers locally and internationally. Among his research agenda are: biodiversity, the theory of evolution, cognitivist pedagogy, conceptual change, reapproachment of history and philosophy of science, at-risk students, constructivism and other alternative paradigms and approaches in research.
Dr. Clores presented papers twice in an international conference in education held at Singapore, first in 2005 Redesigning Pedagogy: Research, Policy, and Practice, and in 2007 Redesigning Pedagogy: Culture, Knowledge, and Understanding in Singapore. One of his papers was published internationally in the ISI journal Asia Pacific Journal of Education. Since 2005, he is a journal referee/reviewer/critic in the Journal of Research in Science Teaching (JRST); just recently he received an invitation also in The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher (TAPER), both are international scholarly, refereed journals. At present, he is working on an ecological and field research, Survey and Monitoring of Invasive Plants in Mt. Isarog, a study funded by the University Research Council (URC) of Ateneo de Naga University.
The two resource persons were invited by CODDCCAS in response to the research needs expressed by the members and officers of the Council. Also present in the lecture were administrators from ADNU who presently hold important positions in the Council, namely: CODDCCAS president Dr. Lydia T. Goingo, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, and Communication cluster representative Dr. Digna Alba (ADNU), chairperson for Media Studies.
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