Evolution of topics in education research

A critical review on ‘Evolution of topics in education research: a systematic review using bibliometric analysis’

Introduction

The article by Huang et al. (2020) presents a systematic review of the evolution of topics in education research using bibliometric analysis. The authors employed various bibliometric methods, including co-word analysis and co-citation analysis, to analyse the topics and trends in education research. The study aimed to provide a comprehensive understanding of the trends, themes, and hotspots in education research, which can be used to guide future research in the field.

The article is well-written, and the research is based on a sound methodology. The authors provide a clear and detailed description of the methods used in the study, making it easy for readers to understand the analysis. Additionally, the authors include a detailed discussion of the findings, which highlights the major themes and trends in education research over time.

Critique

• The strength of the review lies in the use of bibliometric analysis, which provides a comprehensive overview of the trends and research topics in education. The authors also used a wide range of databases, including Web of Science, Scopus, and ERIC, to ensure the inclusion of relevant articles in their analysis.

However, the study had many limitations, which include the following:

• Language bias – The review included only the studies written in English and, therefore, missed out on significant research on education in other languages.
• Limited time frame– The study included only those papers published between 2000 to 2017, implying that it might have missed out on some critical research before or after the specified time. Additionally, this time frame may not offer a complete picture of the evolution of topics in education research.
• Limited search terms– The study only searched for papers using a limited set of keywords, meaning it may miss out on relevant papers that do not use those specific terms. 
• Exclusion of grey literature- Since the study focussed exclusively on peer-reviewed papers, there are chances that it might have missed out on necessary research published in non-peer-reviewed journals.
• Lack of contextual analysis– While the review offers a quantitative analysis of the trends in education research topics, a contextual analysis was not done explaining the reasons for the trends or their implications for education policy and practice.
• Over-reliance on bibliometric analysis– While bibliometric analysis provides a valuable overview of the trends and themes in education research, it does not comprehensively analyse the content and quality of the articles included in the study. It only analyses published articles and excludes unpublished studies and research in progress. In addition, bibliometric analysis may not fully capture the complexity and nuance of the topics in education research.

Conclusion

The systematic review by Huang et al. (2020) contributed significantly to the field of education research. The bibliometric analysis helped to direct future studies in this discipline by providing a thorough overview of the trends and themes in education research. However, the study had potential drawbacks, such as the likelihood of bias in the article selection process and over-reliance on bibliometric analysis.

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