DEFINITION, PURPOSE AND STEPS OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Research and Development (R & D)

A. Definition Research Development Research and Development (R & D)

Research Development and Research and Development (R & D) is currently one of the most widely used research types. Research development is one type of research that can be a link or breaker gap between basic research with applied research. Understanding Research Development or Research and Development (R & D) is often defined as a process or steps to develop a new product or product that already exist. What this means is not necessarily hardware (books, modules, learning aids in the classroom and laboratory), nor can software (software) such as programs for processing data, classroom learning, libraries or laboratories, or models Education, training, guidance, evaluation, management, etc.

Research and Development (R & D) According to Gay (1990) Research Development is a business or activity to develop an effective product for school use, and not to test the theory. While Borg and Gall (1983: 772) defines research development as follows: Educational Research and development (R & D) is a process used to develop and validate educational products. The steps of this process are usually referred to as the R & D cycle, which consists of studying research findings pertinent to the product to be developed, developing the products based on these findings, field testing it in the setting where it will be used eventually, and revising it to correct the deficiencies found in the filed-testing stage. In more rigorous programs of R&D, this cycle is repeated until the field-test data indicate that the product meets its behaviorally defined objectives.

While Borg and Gall (1983: 772) define development research as a process used to develop and validate educational products. The steps of this process are usually referred to as the R & D cycle, which consists of studying the research findings related to the product to be developed, developing the product based on these findings, the testing field in the setting where it will be used eventually, and revising it to correct deficiencies Which was found in the stage of filing the test. In a more rigorous program of R & D, this cycle is repeated until field-test data indicates that the product meets defined behavioral objectives.

Research development in education (R & D) is a process used to develop and validate educational products. The steps of this process are usually referred to as the R & D cycle, which consists of studying the research findings related to the product to be developed, developing the product based on these findings, the testing field in the setting where it will be used eventually, and revising it to correct deficiencies Which was found in the stage of filing the test. In a more rigorous program of R & D, this cycle is repeated until field-test data indicates that the product meets defined behavioral objectives.

Seals and Richey (1994) define development research as a systematic review of the design, development and evaluation of programs, processes and learning products that must meet the criteria of validity, practicality and effectiveness. While Plomp (1999) adds the "can indicate added value" criterion in addition to these three criteria.

While Van den Akker and Plomp (1993) describe development research based on two objectives namely as the development of product prototype and as formulation of methodological suggestions for designing and evaluation of the product prototype

While Richey and Nelson (1996) distinguish research on the development of two types, the first research focused on completion and evaluation of a particular product or program with the aim to get a picture of the development process as well as studying conditions that support for the implementation of the program. Second, research focuses on the assessment of previous development programs. The purpose of this second type is to obtain an overview of effective designing and evaluation procedures.

Based on the above opinions, it can be concluded that development research is a process used to develop and validate the products used in education. The resulting products include: training materials for teachers, learning materials, media, problems, and management systems in learning.

B. Research Development Objectives

The purpose of the development study usually contains two information, namely (1) the problem to be solved and (2) the specification of the learning, model, problem, or device to be generated to solve the problem. As long as these two aspects are contained in a development research problem formulation, then the formulation of the problem is correct. It can be argued that the purpose of Development Research is to inform the decision-making process as long as the development of a product grows and the developer's ability to create things of this kind in the future.

According to Akker (1999) the purpose of special development research in education is differentiated based on the development of curriculum, technology and media, lesson and instruction, and didactic teacher education. Here's an explanation:

1. In the curriculum section

The goal is to inform the decision-making process throughout the development of a product / program to improve a program / product to develop and developer's ability to create things of this kind in the future.

2. In the technology and media

The goal is to improve the instructional design, development, and evaluation process based on other specific problem-solving situations or generalized inspection procedures.

3. In the lesson and instruction section

The objectives are for development in the design of the learning environment, the formulation of the curriculum, and the assessment of the success of observation and learning, and simultaneously seeking to contribute to a fundamental scientific understanding.

4. In the teacher education and didactic sections

The aim is to contribute professional teachers' learning and / or improve changes in a specific educational setting. In the didactic section, the goal is to make development research as an interactive, circular process of research and development where the theoretical ideas of the designer provide product development that is tested in a specified classroom, pushing rapidly toward theoretical and empirical by finding the product, the learning process From developers and instructional theories.

C. Characteristics and Motives Research Development

According to Wayan (2009) there are 4 characteristics of research development, among others:

1.    The problem to be solved is a real problem related to innovative efforts or the application of technology in learning as a professional responsibility and commitment to the acquisition of quality learning.

2.    Development of models, approaches and methods of learning and learning media that support the effectiveness of student achievement competence.

3.    Product development process, validation done through expert test, and field trial in a limited need to be done so that the resulting product is useful for improving the quality of learning. The process of development, validation, and field trials should be clearly described, so it can be accounted for academically.

4.    The process of developing models, approaches, modules, methods, and instructional media needs to be well documented and systematically reported in accordance with research rules that reflect originality.

While the research development motif as dikkerkan Akker (1999), among others:

1.    The basic motive is that research is mostly done in a traditional way, such as experiments, surveys, correlation analyzes focused on descriptive analysis that do not provide useful results for design and development in education.

2.    A very complex state of policy change in the world of education, so a more evolutionary (interactive and cyclical) research approach is needed.

3.    Educational research in general mostly leads to a hesitant reputation due to the absence of proof of relevance.

D. Steps and Research Development Methods

In general, the steps of Research and Development include:

1)       Potentials and Problems

2)       Gathering Information

3)       Product Design

4)       Design Validation

5)       Design Repair

6)       Product Trial

7)       Product Revisions

8)       Usage Trial

9)       Advanced Product Revisions

10)    Mass Product Making

The main steps of the R & D cycle are presented by Borg and Hall (1989: 775) as follows a) Research and Data Collection, b) Planning, c) Initial Product Development, d) Initial product trial / Limited Trial , E) Preliminary Product Enhancement, f) Larger Field Trial, g) Product Completion of Wider Field Test Results, h) Final Product Test, i) Revision or Final Product Completion, j) Dissemination and Implementation

a) Research and Data Collection

At this stage, there are at least 2 things to do namely literature studies and field studies. In the literature study, it is used to find concepts or theoretical foundations that reinforce a product. Through literature study is also studied the scope of a product, the usage of the use, supporting conditions, etc .. Through the literature study is also known the most appropriate steps to develop the product. The study of literature will also give an overview of the results of previous research that can be as a comparison material to develop a particular product. In addition to literature studies, it is also necessary to conduct field studies or in other words referred to as measurement of needs and research on a small scale (Sukmadinata: 2005). In developing a product, should be based on the needs assessment (need assessment).

b) Planning

Based on preliminary studies that have been done, then made the planning / design of products which include, among others: a) the purpose of the use of products; B) who is the user of the product; C) a description of the components of the product and its use.

c) Initial Product Development

The initial product development is a rough draft of the product to be created. Nevertheless, the draft of the product should be as complete and perfect as possible. The initial draft or product developed by the researcher works together or solicits the help of experts and or practitioners who are suitably skilled in their area of ​​expertise (desk try out or desk evaluation). At this stage it is often called an expert validation stage. Experimental trials or evaluations are approximate or judgmental, based on analysis and logical considerations from researchers and experts. Field trials will be micro-feasible, case-by-case for general or generalized conclusions.

d) Initial product trial / Limited Trial

After the test on the table, then field trials are conducted at school or in the laboratory. According to Borg and Hall (1989), initial product field trials are recommended for 1 to 3 schools with a total of 10 to 30 people. During the implementation of field trials, researchers conducted intensive observations and recorded important things done by the respondents who will be used as material for the refinement of the initial product.

e) Completion of Initial Products

Completion of the initial product will be done after a limited field trial. At this stage of the initial product improvement, more is done with qualitative approach. Evaluation is done more on the evaluation of the process, so that improvements made are internal improvements.

f)  More extensive field trials

Although it has been obtained a more perfect product, but trials and product improvements still need to be done once again. This is done so that the developed product meets certain standards. Therefore the population target must be adjusted. Trials and improvements in the early product stages are still focused on the development and refinement of product materials, not paying attention to eligibility in the context of the population. The feasibility of the population is carried out in an improved trial and refinement of the product. At this stage, trials and improvements are performed in larger sample quantities. Borg and Gall (1989), suggest that in this stage school samples are used from 5 to 15 schools, with sample subjects between 30 to 100 people (This is relative, depending on number-of-category and population characteristics). Improved product trial steps are exactly the same as the initial product test, only the sample numbers are different.

g)  Greater Product Test Results Results Field

Completion of products from the results of a wider field test will further strengthen the product that we develop, because at the stage of field trials previously implemented with the control group. The design used is pretest and posttest. In addition to internal improvements. Completion of this product is based on the evaluation of the results so that the approach used is a quantitative approach.

h)  Trial Product Testing

Testing of final product, intended to test whether an educational product is feasible and has excellence in practice level. In this test the goal is no longer refining the product, because the product is assumed to be perfect. The final product test can be performed at the same school as at the second or different test phase with the same number of samples. In the final product testing, a control group should be used. The test is carried out in the form of experimental design. The design model used is "The randomized pretest-posttest control group design" or at least "the matching only pretests-posttest control group design". The first design is a pure experimental design, since both experimental groups are randomized or equated. The second design includes a quasi experiment, because both experimental groups are only paired.

i)  Revision or Enhancement of the End Items

Completion of the final product is deemed necessary for more accurate product being developed. At this stage has been obtained a product that the level of effectiveness can be accounted for. The final product refinement results have a reliable "generalization" value.

j) Dissemination and Implementation

Having produced a final product that has been tested for its efficacy, the next step is dissemination, implementation, and institutionalization. The dissemination of a product, which is developed, will require considerable and long socialization. Usually the dissimination and implementation prs will be dealing with various policy issues, legality, funding, etc.

Research Development in the field of education usually begins with the identification of learning problems encountered in the classroom by teachers who will conduct research. The definition of learning problems. In development research is a problem related to instructional tools, such as syllabus, teaching materials, student worksheets, learning media, tests to measure learning outcomes, etc. Learning tools are considered to be a problem because they do not exist, or exist but do not meet the learning needs, or are there but need to be fixed, Of course not all learning device problems will be solved at once, a single learning device problem is chosen as a priority to be solved first.

The next stage is to study theories about the development of learning tools relevant to that will be developed. After mastering the theory related to the development of learning devices, researchers then worked on developing a draft learning tool based on relevant theories that have been studied. Once completed, the draft must be repeatedly reviewed by the researcher himself or assisted by peer review.

Once believed to be good as expected, the draft is requested for input to the relevant experts (expert validation). Input from experts serves as a basis for improvements to the draft. After the draft is revised based on input from experts, the next step is to test the draft. The trial is tailored to the use of the device. When developed is a teaching material, then the test is used to teach to students who will need the device. Trials can be done on some sections only to a small group of students, or one class. If the test is a syllabus, then the test is for the teacher who will use the syllabus. The test activity is to ask the teacher to use syllabus to prepare the Learning Program Plan (RPP).

The purpose of the trial is to see if the developed learning device is acceptable or not. From the trial results, some parts may require revisions. The last activity is the revision of the draft into the final draft of the learning device.

According to Akker (1999), there are 4 stages in the development research that is usually done in the world of education are:

1. Preliminary inverstigation.

Systematic and intensive preliminary investigations of the problem include:

·          Review of literature,

·          Consulting experts,

·          Analysis of sample availability for related purposes, and

·          A case study of a common practice for detailing needs.

2. Theoretical embedding

A more systematic effort is made to apply the basic knowledge in expressing the theoretical rationale for the choice of design.

3. Empirical testing

Clear empirical evidence indicates the practicality and effectiveness of the intervention.

4. Process and results of documentation, analysis and reflection (documentation, analysis, and reflection on process and outcome).

Implementation and results to contribute to the specification and extension of the research design and development methodology.

The method of research development is not much different from other research approaches. However, development research focuses on two stages: preliminary stage and formative evaluation stage (Tessmer, 1993) which includes self-evaluation, prototyping (expert reviews and one-to-one, and small group), as well as field tests. The design flow of formative evaluation as follows:

1. Preliminary Stage

At this stage, researchers will determine the place and subject of research such as by contacting the principal and teachers of school subjects who will be the location of research. Furthermore, researchers will conduct other preparations, such as arranging research schedules and cooperative procedures with the classroom teachers used as research sites.

2. Formative Evaluation Phase

1) Self Evaluation

·               Analysis

This stage is the first step of development research. Researchers in this case will conduct student analysis, curriculum analysis, and analysis of the device or material to be developed.

·               Design

At this stage the researcher will design the device to be developed which includes the design of the grille, the purpose, and the method to be developed. Then the results of the designs that have been obtained can validate existing validation techniques such as with data triangulation techniques that design is validated by experts (expert) and peers. The result of this designation is called the first prototype.

2) Prototyping

The result of designing the first prototype developed on the basis of self evaluation is given to expert (expert review) and student (one-to-one) in parallel. From the results of both used as material revision. The revision result on the first prototype is called the second prototype.

·               Expert Review

At the expert review stage, products that have been designed are reviewed, evaluated and evaluated by experts. The experts reviewed the content, constructs, and language of each prototype. Expert advice is used to revise the developed device. At this stage, the responses and suggestions from the validators of the design that have been made are written on the validation sheet as a revised material and state whether or not this design is valid.

·               One-to-one

At the one-to-one stage, researchers piloted designs that have been developed to students / teachers who become testers. The results of this implementation are used to revise the designs that have been made.

·               Small group

The revised results of the expert and the difficulties experienced during the first prototype test were used as the basis for revising the prototype and named the second prototype and then the results were tested on a small group. The result of this implementation is used for revision before it is tested in the field test stage. The result of the revision is based on the student's suggestion / comment on the small group and the result of this item analysis is called the third prototype.

3) Field Test

Suggestions and test results on the second prototype serve as a basis for revising the second prototype design. The result of the revision is tested to the research subject in this case as a field test or field test.

Products that have been tested on field tests should be products that meet the quality criteria. Akker (1999) suggests that the three quality criteria are: validity, practicality, and effectiveness (have potential effects).

E. Advantages and Disadvantages of Development Research

Here are the advantages of Research Development or Research and Development are as follows:

a.    Research Development or Research and Development is able to produce a product / model that has a high validation value, because the product is generated through a series of field trials and validated by experts.

b.    Research Development or Research and Development will always encourage the process of product innovation / model that is relentless / has a pretty good value of suistanibility so it is expected to be found products / models that are always actual in accordance with the present demand

c.     Research Development or Research and Development is a liaison between research that is theoretical with research that is practical

d.    Research Method Development or Research and Development is a fairly comprehensive method, ranging from descriptive, evaluative, and experimental methods.

The weakness of Research Development or Research and Development are as follows:

a.    In principle Development or Research and Development takes a relatively long time; Because the procedure to be followed is relatively complex.

b.    Development and Research and Development can be regarded as "here and now" research, R & D research can not be fully generalized, because basically research R & D modeling on sample not on population.

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