Final Article Critique: Vocational Education and Leadership

This assignment provides a detailed critique of two research articles focused on vocational education. The first article, "The Effect of Vocational High School Administrators’ Leadership Behaviors on Teacher Job Satisfaction," examines the correlation between leadership styles and teacher satisfaction, utilizing a quantitative approach. The second article, "Vocational Teaching-Learning through the Eyes of Undergraduate Vocational Students in Malta: A Qualitative Exploratory Study," explores undergraduate students' perspectives on effective teaching and preferred learning environments, employing a qualitative methodology. The critique analyzes each article's methodology, findings, and limitations, offering a comprehensive overview of the studies' strengths and weaknesses. The assignment also includes a comparative analysis of the two articles, highlighting key differences and similarities in their approaches and findings. The goal is to provide a neutral critique of each section of the study, with a particular focus on the methods used for data collection.

Running head: CRITIQUING ARTICLE
CRITIQUING ARTICLE
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

1CRITIQUING ARTICLE
Article 1: The Effect of Vocational High School Administrators’ Leadership
Behaviors on Teacher Job Satisfaction
Overview:
The research article used direct research approach and the primary data for conducting
this study. The article was peer reviewed and it has the number of citation of 7. The article has
four principle sections excluding the abstract section. The sections are Introduction, Methods,
Findings and Interpretation, and Conclusion and Recommendations (Tas, 2017). The article was
published in the year 2017, hence can be considered as a recent study. The study is valid for
being referred in the similar studies. The author of this article was involved in the education
industry, hence his opinion on the matter of vocational leadership in the teaching industry, can be
considered to have a proper validity. The article is available on a government funded site, hence
the information recorded in it can be considered as reliable (Heale & Twycross, 2015).
Abstract:
The abstract of this article successfully summarizes the content of the whole paper. It
describes the aim of the study, the sample size and population, the method of data analysis and
finally the conclusion of the research study. According to the abstract section the aim of this
study was to determine how the job satisfaction of the teachers is affected by the leadership
skills of the vocational high school administrator. The sample population for this study was
the technical teachers, who worked in the city of Isparta at the high schools, which provide
vocational trainings. The sample size was 21. The data analysis method for this study was
quantitative and it involved the calculation of frequency, arithmetic mean and the analysis of

2CRITIQUING ARTICLE
correlation and regression. The study found that there is a significant correlation between the
job satisfaction in the teachers and the display of vocational leadership skills by the high
school administrators. The study also found the individual oriented leadership behaviors to be
more effective in heightening the job satisfaction level of the teachers (Tas, 2017).
Introduction:
This section of the article starts with describing the importance of the two principle
factors in the teaching industry, which are also in the main focus of this research study. The
importance of the leadership display by the administrator and the job satisfaction of the
employees in the teaching industry have been discussed in detail. After that the section describes
the problem involving the lack of leadership skills and the lack of satisfaction with job among
the teaching staffs (Tas, 2017). The section uses the reference of various scholarly studies to
describe this problem. Then it addresses the issue in the vocational platform, describing the
importance of this study. Finally the section focuses on describing the aim of this particular study
in detail.
Methods:
This section of the article describes the sample size, sample population, the data
collection method and the data analysis methods in detail. As described in the abstract section,
the sample population involved the teachers of the vocational high schools, situated in Insparta.
The data was collected by using a survey method. There was a data collection tool development,
which was a scale for the determination of the level of job satisfaction in the teachers and the
level of leadership behavior. The questionnaire was selected very carefully and the answers were
analysed by using quantitative methods, such as Barlett test and the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO)
coefficient. The data analysis method also examined the themes like institution-oriented

3CRITIQUING ARTICLE
leadership, individual oriented leadership and the change oriented leadership behaviors. For
examining the highest efficiency among all those behaviors, the factor load value and the
variance load value was calculated (Tas, 2017). For examining the reliability of the data,
Cronbach Alpha coefficient value was calculated. There was also frequency calculation,
arithmetic mean calculation, standard deviation and correlation calculation for the whole data
analysis method.
Results:
The result section of this article describes the findings of the study in a properly tabulated
format. It is consisted of three tables. The first table describes the extent of leadership skill
display by the administrators of the vocational high schools, from which it was established that
the administrators of the vocational high schools often displays both change oriented and the
individual oriented leadership. The second table described the relationship between the job
satisfaction in the teachers and the leadership behavior of the administrators. From the analysis
of this table, it was found that the individual oriented leadership results in a better job
satisfaction than that of change oriented leadership display. Finally table 3 describes the effect of
leadership behaviors on the job satisfaction of the teaching staffs of the vocational high schools.
There was a regression analysis involved, which found that there are different effects of the
different leadership activities on the job satisfaction of the teachers (Tas, 2017).
Discussion:
There was no distinct discussion section in the article. However, there was a detailed
discussion on the results and the findings in detail under the Findings and Interpretations section.
There was a further discussion on the topic under the conclusion and the recommendation section
of the article (Said, 2018). In this section the results were summarized and they were discussed in

4CRITIQUING ARTICLE
relation to the expected outcomes. However, the article did not include any limitations of the
study, which is a limitation of this article (Heale & Twycross, 2015). There was a
recommendation for the future study though. The author suggested that the future research must
include the institutions like preschools, primary schools and general schools as well along with
the general high schools.

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Criteria Yes No Notes
Overview
Verify that this is a primary source article + Direct survey approach
was used.
Is this article is from a peer-reviewed journal? + 7 citations.
Does this article contain all the main sections of
a primary source article, such as abstract,
introduction, methods, results, and discussion? If
not, list missing section in the notes.
+ Discussion section is
missing. However, there
was a detailed discussion
of the results in both the
findings and conclusion
sections.
Abstract
Is there a clear and concise abstract section that
provides an overview of what this paper will be
about?
+
Introduction
Does the introduction section state/describe/sell
the problem?
+
Does it list what is known about the problem? +
Does it list what we do not know about the
problem?
+

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Does it provide the reader with information on
the purpose & hypothesis of the study?
+
Methods
Does it list a participants section? (WHO) + The teachers working in
the vocational high
schools of Isparta city.
Does it list instruments? (WHAT) + Data collection scale,
which was developed to
measure both the level of
leadership behavior and
the job satisfaction.
Does it list procedures? (HOW) + Quantitative data analysis
Does it list why a particular instrument was
selected?
+
Does it meet the basic purpose of providing
sufficient information to be able to replicate the
study?
+
What type of design is this?
Descriptive Correlational Causal
Correlational
Sample Size: Does this use large (n>30) ideally
random samples?
+ 21 sample size.
Reliability: Does it show some type of reliability?
(test-retest, split half, internal consistency =
Cronbach’s Alpha)
+ Cronbach Alpha

7CRITIQUING ARTICLE
Results
Does it list the main findings? +
Does it provide analysis and data in relation to
the question?
+
Discussion
Does the article discuss/explain/connect findings
for the reader?
+
Does the article list any broader implications for
practice?
+
Does the article list any limitations of the study? +
Does the article contain any directions for future
research?
+

8CRITIQUING ARTICLE
Article 2: Vocational Teaching-Learning through the Eyes of Undergraduate
Vocational Students in Malta: A Qualitative Exploratory Study
Overview:
The research article used direct research approach and the primary data for conducting
this study. The article was peer reviewed and it has the number of citation of 4. The article has
eight principle sections excluding the abstract section. The sections are Introduction, Teaching
Quality in Higher Education and Vocational Education, The Role of Learning Environments in
Quality Vocational Teaching, Powerful Learning Environments Framework, Research Design
and Methodology, Findings, Discussion and Conclusions, Limitations and Future Work (Tas,
2017). The article was published in the year 2018, hence can be considered as a recent study. The
study is valid for being referred for the similar studies (Leung, 2015). The author of this article
was involved in the education industry, hence her opinion on the matter of vocational teaching
and learning can be considered as valid.
Abstract:
The abstract of this article successfully summarizes the content of the whole paper
(Leung, 2015). It describes the aim of the study, the sample size and population, the method of
data analysis and finally the conclusion of the research study. According to the abstract section
the aim of this study was to develop a brief understanding of the teaching qualities that are
preferred by the students, who are receiving the vocational education. The sample population
for this study was the undergraduate vocational students, from two vocational institutions,
which are situated in close proximity with each other. The sample size was 10. The data

9CRITIQUING ARTICLE
collection methods involved the semi-structured interviews and the photo-elicitation
interviews. The data analysis methods for this study were qualitative iterative analysis method
and the constant-comparative method. It was found from the study that the students prefer the
teaching processes that involve interactions and relation of the theories to the field of practice.
The students also prefer the lecturers, who are easy approachable and provides an easy
understanding on a topic by providing application based concrete examples. There is a
preference of research projects and home-based assignments along with a powerful learning
environment can be noted among the vocational students (Said, 2018).
Introduction:
This section of the article starts with describing the expectations of the technical students
and their opinions on the teaching quality, which is also in the main focus of this research study.
The importance of identifying a student preferred learning environment has been discussed in
detail. After that the section describes the importance of the promotion of the student preferred
learning environments in order to develop a competence-based community practice (Said, 2018).
The section uses the reference of various scholarly studies to describe this situation. Then it
addresses the issue in the vocational platform, describing the importance of this study. Finally
the section focuses on describing the aim of this particular study in detail.
Methods:
The research design and the methodology section of this article clearly describes the
participants under a subsection named “Participants and Sample Size” section. The study
involved 10 participants, among which, 9 participants were male and one was female. The
participants were selected on a random basis following the only criteria that all of them were
enrolled for an undergraduate vocational degree program. Both the data collection method and

10CRITIQUING ARTICLE
the data analysis methods are described in detail under different subsection of this article. The
data was audio-recorded and then was transcribed. For further validation of the data, the
transcripts were sent to the participants (Said, 2018). The researcher was attentive in explaining
her role as an observer. However, there was no mention of the terms like saturation of themes or
triangulation of sources in this qualitative research study analysis. The section also described the
ethical consideration of this particular study, which is a proper approach for the validation of a
research study (Leung, 2015).
Results:
The results of this research study are discussed in detail under the Findings section of this
article. The results are properly listed after mentioning the research question. Thus the results are
recorded in a question-answer format under this section. The first research question involved the
student’s opinion on the definition of effective vocational teaching. The answer of this question
was supposed to involve the behavioral aspects, personality and the knowledge possessed by a
lecturer on their relevant subject. The second research question involved the preferred learning
environment for the vocational students. For this analysis the Powerful Learning Environment
framework was used (Said, 2018).
Discussion:
The article has a distinct section for discussing the findings of the research study. The
discussion section describes each finding in brief, analyzing the opinions of the participants,
which are based on their learning experiences. However, this section does not include the
limitations and future implications of the study. This information is included in the next section
named “Conclusion, Limitations and Future Work”. The author admits that this study involved a
very small sample size and the study was done in a very small scale. There was no statistical data

11CRITIQUING ARTICLE
collection or socio-economic data collection was involved. The author decided that the future
studies should be conducted on this topic that will exclude her limitations (Said, 2018).

12CRITIQUING ARTICLE
Criteria Yes No Notes
Overview
Verify that this is a primary source article + Direct research approach
Is this article is from a peer-reviewed journal? + 4 citations available
Does this article contain all the main sections of
a primary source article, such as abstract,
introduction, methods, results, and discussion? If
not, list missing section in the notes.
+
Abstract
Is there a clear and concise abstract section that
provides an overview of what this paper will be
about?
+
Introduction
Does the introduction section state/describe/sell
the problem?
+
Does it list what is known about the problem? +
Does it list what we do not know about the
problem?
+
Does it provide the reader with information on
the purpose & hypothesis of the study?
+
Methods
Does it list a participants section? (WHO) + Undergraduate vocational

13CRITIQUING ARTICLE
students.
Does it list instruments? (WHAT) + Semi-structured interview
and photo-elicitation
interviews.
Does it list procedures? (HOW) + Qualitative iterative
analysis method and the
constant-comparative
method.
Does the researcher describe their role as a
participant observer?
+ Observer.
Was there language around reaching a
“saturation of themes”?
+
Was there a triangulation of sources or
methods?
+
Were copious, low inference notes taken? +
Was the data captured verbatim or mechanically
recorded?
+ Mechanically recorded.
Was there any attempt at member checking? + The transcripts were sent
to the participants.
Were direct quotes used? +

14CRITIQUING ARTICLE
Results
Does it list the main findings? +
Does it provide analysis and data in relation to
the question?
+
Discussion
Does the article discuss/explain/connect findings
for the reader?
+
Does the article list any broader implications for
practice?
+
Does the article list any limitations of the study? +
Does the article contain any directions for future
research?
+

15CRITIQUING ARTICLE
References:
Cochran-Smith, M., Villegas, A. M., Abrams, L., Chavez-Moreno, L., Mills, T., & Stern, R.
(2015). Critiquing teacher preparation research: An overview of the field, part II. Journal
of Teacher Education, 66(2), 109-121.
Coughlan, M., Cronin, P., & Ryan, F. (2007). Step-by-step guide to critiquing research. Part 1:
quantitative research. British journal of nursing, 16(11), 658-663.
Heale, R., & Twycross, A. (2015). Validity and reliability in quantitative studies. Evidence-
based nursing, 18(3), 66-67.
Leung, L. (2015). Validity, reliability, and generalizability in qualitative research. Journal of
family medicine and primary care, 4(3), 324.
Lipp, A., & Fothergill, A. (2015). A guide to critiquing a research paper. Methodological
appraisal of a paper on nurses in abortion care. Nurse education today, 35(3), e14-e17.
Said, A. (2018). Vocational teaching-learning through the eyes of undergraduate vocational
students in Malta: A qualitative exploratory study. International Journal for Research in
Vocational Education and Training (IJRVET), 5(1), 42-63.
Silverman, D. (Ed.). (2016). Qualitative research. Sage.
Tas, S. (2017). The Effect of Vocational High School Administrators' Leadership Behaviors on
Teacher Job Satisfaction. Universal Journal of Educational Research, 5(11), 2092-2100.